After a recent trip to NYC I acquired a few bottles of great vintage and tough-to-find-in-America Cappellano wines including the cult-y 1997 "Pie Franco" Barolo (for saving) and some 1996 Nebbiolo d'Alba (for drinking).
A wine this difficult to catch is definitely a special occasion for me, so I cooked a special meal for my wife and I which I'll incorporate into my notes...
We started with an endive, walnut and Roquefort salad in a white wine vinaigrette served with the Pierre Chainier Sancerre, 2006. The Sancerre was youthful, racy and inexpensive ($14) for a worthwhile Sancerre. The Pierre Chanier has a soft, crisp nose with tropical fruit and under-ripe pear on nose; very slight mineral content with a brief dancing acidity, hints of guava, mango and citrus on the palate and a solid, dry finish.
As the main course, we had chicken breasts with a sundried tomato, shallot and white wine sauce; roasted root vegetables (red and gold beets, jerusalem artichokes, rutebega and carrots with lemon zest, rosemary and thyme topped with Parmesan Reggiano), and truffled sweet corn. This went with extremely well with the Cappellano Nebbiolo d'Alba, 1996. The wine was light garnet with brick coloring on the edges. Immediate impressions included subtle barnyard with old leather and cassis as well as candied blueberries and ripe red cherry on the nose. It was dry and dense with soft and inviting tannins, medium acidity and tart cranberry and red cherry on the tongue. It boasted a long layered finish right off the bat.
After some time the more rustic scents have settled a bit and given way to a complex, rich aroma of leather, candied fruit (cherries in particular) and an almost toasted wheatberry scent. Tannins have softened even more and the palate is now rather dusty with ripe fruit dying off, replaced with tarry dark cherries and a layered but slightly shorter finish. Think: barolo light with 11 years of bottle age. Fantastic! I can't wait to try the older siblings in a few years!!
Interesting aside:
Cappellano spells Nebbiolo on the bottle as Nebiolo...is this a misprint or am I forgetting a traditional spelling?