1998 Barolo Rocche
Estimated value
Buying options
Tasting notes
These two Barolo from Vietti are exceptional. I remember visiting the estate when these wines were released and purchasing them for my cellar. Over the years, I never found the 1998s fully convincing and on the same level as today's wines (which are often extraordinary) as I often came away with the sense that the late 1990s were a bit of an experimental period for winemaker Luca Currado. Be that as it may, the proof is in the bottle, and these wines from Vietti are truly special. The 1998 Barolo Rocche shows remarkable clarity and precision in a harmonious expression of the hillside Rocche vineyard in Castiglione Falletto. The 1998 is not a profound Rocche, but readers will have a very hard time finding a wine that offers more pure pleasure in this vintage. This is a great bottle of this wine.
Critic scores
Average Score
Robert Parker
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
More reviews and scores
Moving into the 1990s, I admired the 1996 and 1999, two wines which share many similarities as they are both products of cool, fresh growing seasons. Oddly, the 1998 came across as over-ripe and simple next to the 1997, something that came as a surprise to everyone at the table.
The 1998 Barolo Rocche reveals muscle, volume, and power in its full-bodied, backward yet well-balanced personality. Deep and chewy, with a saturated ruby color, and broad flavors with mouth-coating tannin, it will be at its best between 2006-2020. Importer: Franklin Selections, Annapolis Junction, MD; tel. (410) 880-4790
Medium red. Red fruits, leather, smoke and underbrush on the nose, along with nuts and spices. Sappy and spicy; quite dry but ripe and full, with a silky texture and lovely perfume. Precise but backward; this very young wine seemed to go into a shell in the glass.