The 1997 Barolo Riserva La Rocca e La Pira is loaded with ripe dark fruit, leather, tobacco, cedar and spice nuances. It offers outstanding length as well as balance in a style that captures the sweet, seductive style of the vintage. Although it retains good freshness for its age I wonder if a shorter stay in oak might have been beneficial in this hot vintage. Anticipated maturity: 2007-2017.
Luca Roagna is one of the most promising young winemakers in the Langhe. Low yields, late harvests, long macerations and extended periods of oak aging are the rule at this traditionally-minded estate. Historically Barolo and Barbaresco were left to macerate on the skins until around the Christmas holidays, a practice unheard of today but still followed here. The normal bottlings of Barolo and Barbaresco typically see around 50 days of maceration while the selections may see as many as 75 days. The wines then undergo a lengthy sojourn in oak which allows them to develop the tertiary notes that the estate seeks. The wines spend an additional year to year and a half of bottle age before being released. I have mixed feelings about the long oak aging the estate prefers. In some cases the wines have the stuffing to stand up to extended periods in oak, but in other cases I can't help thinking the wines would retain more fruit and freshness if they were bottled earlier. The wines are also very delicate and don't respond well to sudden movement or temperature changes immediately prior to serving. I have had my best luck letting them gradually warm from cold cellar temperature and opening them several hours before serving. Readers who appreciated traditionally made wines should be sure to put Roagna on their radar screens.
Importer: Louis Dressner Selections, New York, NY; tel. (212) 334-8191
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