Franceso Rinaldi

When all was said and done last night there were five Barolos with the braised beef and warm polenta discussed below.  While it was a two horse race for the best wine, the finish wasn't that close and the wine of the night was the 1996 Francesco Rinaldi & Figli, Cannubbio.  The double decanting on the previous day gave this wine a head start on the others.  The wine was in full bloom when it went into the first glass. 

The scent was roses, earth, a little road tar and sweet fruit and there was nothing shy about the strength of that scent.  The flavors were much the same with some warm spice thrown into the mix.  The acid was great and the tannins were not in attack mode, they were in a caressing mode.   The wine was soft, warm and inviting, but firm.  With the food it was even better as it seemed to get better with each sip.  

The wine looked most like a pinot noir in the glass and it was as elegant and smooth as a good Burgundy in the mouth.  Fully mature but in no danger of going down hill.  Sadly it was my only bottle of this wine.

13.5% alcohol and around $80.