Panel tasting THE VERDICT

‘I’ve heard a lot about 2006 – it’s a kind of controversial vintage’ Nicolas Clerc MS

With only 29 wines to be tasted, our judges agreed it was impossible to draw any broad conclusions as to which of the Barolo communes (see p115) performed the best. But in fact, the top 10 featured at least one wine from each of the major Barolo communes, with six wines in all awarded an Outstanding score.

Covering cross-communal blends, single-vineyard (Menzioni Geografiche Aggiuntive, or MGA) bottlings and Barolo Riservas, our judges were faced with a diverse line-up. Nicolas Clerc MS said he was ‘pleasantly surprised’ by the wines, adding that, ‘although it’s not a vintage I have come across often, I have heard about it a lot – it’s a kind of controversial vintage’.

By the mid-2000s, the disputes within the region among the proponents of ‘traditionalist’ and ‘modernist’ winemaking philosophies (see Stephen Brook’s introduction, p115) had in the end become a catalyst for stylistic change.

Aldo Fiordelli explained: ‘The region’s tradition was originally for very extractive styles, but today we have arrived at a less extractive and more balanced style of wine overall.

‘Barolo 2006 was a bit in the middle, with some examples which are still quite extractive and powerful compared to other wines which show more freshness and balance.’

Stephen Brook added: ‘I’ve noticed before that, with age – these wines are now 14 years old – what comes through is the quality