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Viinin Kuvailu
The Story
Soldera has been famous over the years for his “rules.” It's long been said that he will welcome your visit to his Case Basse estate only if you share his “production and sales philosophy of enlightened agriculture.” He will sell wine to you, but only if you are approved because you “share the principles that have inspired his entrepreneurial policy.” Skeptics are unwelcome.
While some see this as arrogant, the fundamental truth is that his self-confidence breeds great wines. He knows exactly what he wants to achieve in both the vineyard and the cellar, and his techniques are an interesting blend of modern and ancient.
His methods for restricting his yields are state-of-the art: short pruning in the winter, a green pruning in the summer, and grape thinning and limited leaf stripping in the fall to maximize ultimate ripening.
But in the cellar, he sounds more like Giovanni Conterno or Bruno Giacosa. While the modern-era Montalcino has seen a rush to French barrique and less time in wood, Soldera continues to age his Brunello for five years in large Slavonian oak tanks and vats, much as Biondi Santi might have done in their glory years. In fact, when you ask him who the other great Italian winemakers are, they are virtually all names from the past, including the fathers of Conterno and Gaja.
Soldera’s wines combine great concentration, richness and aromatic complexity with classic structure. For us, along with Diego Molinari’s tiny Cerbaiona estate, they truly are the elite wines of Brunello.
All Soldera wines are subtle variations on the same theme. His most famous wines are his Brunellos and Brunello Riservas. But in some years, he will select part of his production to spend a year less in barrel. These he calls “Intistieti.” And in 2005, he decided to bottle a one early-maturing barrel as Pegasos.
Vuosikerta 1998
Italy/Barolo/Barbaresco/Excellent to Exceptional – A vastly underrated vintage, 1998 had the misfortune of being sandwiched between 1997 (a vintage that was overrated) and the stellar 1999. 1998 offers everything you want in a manual Barolo or Barbaresco – nice concentration, firm tannins and precise acidity. In fact, it is the acidity of these wines that, in my opinion, carries these wines, keeping a wonderful freshness and elegance to these wines. This is not the most concentrated vintage of the last decade (1999, 2001 and 2004 produced much more powerful wines), but there is admirable depth of fruit and great balance and finesse. Most of the best Barbaresco bottlings as well as many 1998 Barolos drink beautifully now, while some of the best Barolos will provide another 10-12 years of enjoyment.