Foglet Howell Mountain Nebbiolo

Moving some wine around while taking inventory and Mark shows up and pulls out his typical “who the hell knew this wine existed?” bottle. Cimarossa is a favorite around here and so we decided to give his a whirl. This may very well age past their own Howell Mtn cabs. 11yrs old and it tastes almost a couple years old. Barnyard funk on the nose. Big acidity up front, but the mid palate and finish are a rush of rhubarb tart, bing cherries, bark, and dirt covered raspberries. A baby.

Wow. Has a long life ahead. Rich, no elbows, pretty floral nose

The best Nebbiolo I have tasted made outside of the Piedmonte region, in fact it's better than some Langhe Nebbiolo and some low end Barolo. Can easily compete with mid range Barolo. A fragrant nose and palate of rose petals, flowers, red berries, licorice and some tar. Fine, yet firm Barolo like tannins. Good acidity and a fantastic finish. Great name to boot if you know the origin of the name Nebbiolo.

Still the best domestic USA Nebbiolo

Had this with a red wine beef stew, (mushrooms and parsnips). Perfect pairing. The brightness has really settled down and this is in a beautifully balanced place. No decant, pop and pour no longer needs food (had a glass while making the mash.) Delicious!

@Tracy Hall got me thinking about these, so I brought a few home. I knew this one was not going to last very long, but I didn't know I would drink it on the first night! This would be a really fun wine to serve at a blind tasting. Everyone would guess this was Italian if served in the first 2-3 hours after cork pop. This wine starts off with black cherry, cola, mint, allspice. Hint of age on the nose and on the palate it shows as an earthy note. There is a mushroom note here towards the finish. As the wine sits beyond the 3 hour mark, it develops a plum and almost kind of a green olive note. Finishes soft with a touch of acidity. I wouldn't say that this wine has too many years left, and this is my last of this vintage.