1989 Giuseppe e Figlio Mascarello "Monprivato" Barolo

“The 1989 Barolo Monprivato is staggering in its freshly cut roses, spices and hard candy. The wine possesses a level of inner sweetness and kaleidoscopic, multi-dimensional aromas that give me chills. This remarkably fresh, vibrant and chiseled Barolo continues to develop beautifully in the glass, revealing shade after shade of nuance. Mascarello's 1989 Barolo Monprivato remains one of the greatest wines ever made - from any region. Although the wine is almost certain to last beyond my drinking window, it would be a shame to miss it while the fruit is so gorgeous. (AG)” (02/2010)

“It had been a few years since I last crossed paths with a bottle of the ’89 Monprivato and the wine is aging at a very relaxed and graceful pace. As readers may recall from the article I wrote on the domaine back in 2008, the 1989 Monprivato from the Mascarello family is an absolute monument to this great vintage. The beautiful nose offers up a gloriously blossoming blend of cherries, strawberries, rose petals, a superbly complex base of soil, fresh oregano, a touch of mustard seed, nutskins and underbrush. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, complex and beautifully transparent, with an outstanding core of fruit, still plenty of ripe tannins, impeccable focus and balance and a very long, tangy and building finish that is starting to show the first signs of blossoming in the not too distant future. This is still really a bit too young to be pulling corks on with wild abandon, but it is showing all of its considerable potential today and is really not too bad of a drink with proper decanting time. It is a legendary vintage of Monprivato and will age for another forty years or more, so obviously, there is no rush to start drinking this great wine today.” (11/2013)