Arpepe Sassella Rocce Rosse Valtellina Superiore Riserva 1996
4.7
Ratings
4.7
·@Lo BarJam, dust, meat. Caramelized orange, eucalyptus, dried fruit. Ya'an cha and uzvar - that specific Ukrainian dried fruit compote character. Very good dried red berries running through everything.
High acidity still present - crucial for a wine this age - and the tannin is quite tamed now, settled into the structure rather than fighting it. The finish is like eating dried apples, long and complex and evolving.
This has developed very well, beautifully integrated and layered. And yet - twenty-nine years on - it still has potential. That's what separates great Nebbiolo from merely good: the ability to not just survive but continue to grow, to reveal new dimensions decades later.
Very, very good wine.
Related Wines
1999
4.4
2016
4.2
2017
4.3
2021
4.1
N/A
4.2
4.1
4.0
3.9
3.9
4.3
4.3
4.2