Paolo Conterno Barolo Ginestra 2013 Front Bottle Shot
Paolo Conterno Barolo Ginestra 2013 Front Bottle Shot Paolo Conterno Barolo Ginestra 2013 Front Label

Winemaker Notes

Dark garnet red. Elegant, round nose with lingering fruity, spicy, balsamic and mineral undertones. Strong, warm body, with powerful aromas and well-balanced flavors. Long, intense finish. Lends itself to lengthy aging, with a cellar life even extending to over fifteen years.

Pairs well with roast veal, rump steak cooked in Barolo wine, and mature cheeses.

Professional Ratings

  • 95
    The 2013 Barolo Ginestra shows grace and purity, with significant power at the back that is partially fueled by the wine's well-integrated alcohol (recorded at 15%). The wine's texture is compact, and the flavor knitting is tight and carefully detailed.
  • 95
    This 2013 Ginestra is singing right now, its vibrant red-cherry flavors layered with notes of tarragon and menthol, all woven together in harmonious balance. Firm mineral tones underline the red fruit and lend firmness to the silky texture. Decant it to let those layers unfurl, but if you can, keep a few bottles in the cellar to watch it develop over the next decade.
  • 93
    Aromas of dried flowers, berries and sandalwood follow through to a full body, firm and silky tannins and a fresh and clean finish.
  • 92
    Lavish fruit on the forthright nose, with rich cherry fruit. Plump and rounded on the palate, this nonetheless has a tannic undertow, with energy as well as weight and concentration. Spicy, assertive and long, this has the structure and vigour for which Ginestra is known.
Paolo Conterno

Paolo Conterno

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Responsible for some of the most elegant and age-worthy wines in the world, Nebbiolo, named for the ubiquitous autumnal fog (called nebbia in Italian), is the star variety of northern Italy’s Piedmont region. Grown throughout the area, as well as in the neighboring Valle d’Aosta and Valtellina, it reaches its highest potential in the Piedmontese villages of Barolo, Barbaresco and Roero. Outside of Italy, growers are still very much in the experimentation stage but some success has been achieved in parts of California. Somm Secret—If you’re new to Nebbiolo, start with a charming, wallet-friendly, early-drinking Langhe Nebbiolo or Nebbiolo d'Alba.

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The center of the production of the world’s most exclusive and age-worthy red wines made from Nebbiolo, the Barolo wine region includes five core townships: La Morra, Monforte d’Alba, Serralunga d’Alba, Castiglione Falletto and the Barolo village itself, as well as a few outlying villages. The landscape of Barolo, characterized by prominent and castle-topped hills, is full of history and romance centered on the Nebbiolo grape. Its wines, with the signature “tar and roses” aromas, have a deceptively light garnet color but full presence on the palate and plenty of tannins and acidity. In a well-made Barolo wine, one can expect to find complexity and good evolution with notes of, for example, strawberry, cherry, plum, leather, truffle, anise, fresh and dried herbs, tobacco and violets.

There are two predominant soil types here, which distinguish Barolo from the lesser surrounding areas. Compact and fertile Tortonian sandy marls define the vineyards farthest west and at higher elevations. Typically the Barolo wines coming from this side, from La Morra and Barolo, can be approachable relatively early on in their evolution and represent the “feminine” side of Barolo, often closer in style to Barbaresco with elegant perfume and fresh fruit.

On the eastern side of the Barolo wine region, Helvetian soils of compressed sandstone and chalks are less fertile, producing wines with intense body, power and structured tannins. This more “masculine” style comes from Monforte d’Alba and Serralunga d’Alba. The township of Castiglione Falletto covers a spine with both soil types.

The best Barolo wines need 10-15 years before they are ready to drink, and can further age for several decades.

Item# 507154