Echoing Mike and Rich, thanks very much for this Sarah. This has been one of the most informative postings here, and I will be referring to it often! We are probably going to open a 1996 and 1997 Barolo in the next week or two. I will report back on how they are – my plan is to decant late morning and taste on and off throughout the day to see how they develop. We have cousins visiting who are becoming more into wine, and love Italian wine, so it will be fun to share with them.
My experience is that in many cases, those wines shut down hard after a couple of hours in the decanter and never become as good as they were just after opening, no matter how long you wait.
Great thread, by the way. I’ve been wondering about the same thing for a while.
I would love to see threads like this about all classic age-able wines. mostly because I do exactly what you do with Nebbiolo, Sarah, but I think it is probably singular in its ability to put on weight and color and completely change with that long slow ox. I have never seen this happen with an old pinot or cabernet, for example. but it has happened to me every time I open a Nebbiolo from the 80s or prior.
personally, I think my cutoff is even the same. 90s I will PnP and 80s or earlier gets a slow ox. But I typically don’t decant them, just open them early morning and my taste is just to decide if I leave the cork out or stick it back in.
Matt–this happens repeatedly for me with older Rioja as well.
This is a great thread. I personally don’t think there’s an easy answer.
For example, we coincidentally drank a handful of Barolos from the 60s last week, double decanted between 3:30 and 6:30 for a 7:15-7:30 dinner, and there was tremendous evolution in the glass and uncorked bottle for all wines at the table that may have been missed if we had decanted even earlier. There were seeming mid-dinner mini-shut downs for 20-30 minutes even.
I do agree with the original proposition for young Barolo. But as another rough counter-example, when I tried Brovia’s 2013 Barolo 1.5-2 years ago, it was so much better on days 2 and 3 with plenty of air. I didn’t decant but the air in the open bottle was essential to this showing well young.
It’s so hard to tell with Nebbiolo.
On the original Q the transition vintage in the 80s isn’t so clear as a general matter although I agree that’s the right time frame to consider. Many 85s and 90s don’t shut down and haven’t for many years. While certain 82s, 88s, and 89s do. Wine by wine.
I’ve only ever gotten a chance to try one bottle of old Rioja but that is exactly what happened now that you mention it. maybe not to the same degree as a 1970s Nebbiolo but definitely put on weight and fruit character with air.
Doug, agreed completely. I see this happen a lot with very young (under 5 years) Nebbiolo. Upon opening, interesting youthful smells/tastes. Within an hour or two (even without decanting), up comes the massive wall of tannin (recent example: 2016 Ca Nova Montefico). I pretty much never open Nebbiolo younger than 15 years old or so, though there is some vintage variation. I read about good experiences with 2009 and 2011 now, but I haven’t opened any. Right now I’m opening select 2004s, more 2001s, almost anything older. CT is super valuable for deciding if something might be ready.
By the way, different story for Langhe Rosso or Langhe Nebbiolo types - I tend to drink those young, and really like many. A good way to scratch the Nebbiolo itch while the Barolo/Barbaresco slumber.
Thanks for kicking off this thread. It is very timely for me. I have a very few bottles of 1947 Barolo Riserva I will likely open soon. Most of the rest of the Barolos I have are from the late 90s. This thread is covering the ground I needed covered.
I’m glad people are finding the discussion useful. It’s been thought provoking for me as well.
Personally, though I have seen other old wines improve with extended air, I have never seen a wine which I deem madeirized upon opening recover over hours open except Barolo and Barbaresco.
So for the 1989 Brovia Rocche (a bottle I’ve owned since release imported by Neal with a cork only stained at the end) I decanted from a basket at 2:30, covered the top of the decanter and returned to the cellar. I re-canted back into the cleaned bottle at 4:30, re-corked and it is waiting in the cellar.
When you folks say you stand the bottle up and then take a taste aren’t you stirring up sediment? If I do the stand-up rather than use a basket to decant (which is way better IMO) I go strait at it and will taste form the decanter before returning to the bottle. The whole point is that the sediment in nebbiolo is tricky and can change the experience of the wine.
I want someone to invent a basket with an LED light in the side so that decanting is super easy.
Not much if you do it carefully. I will stand old nebbiolo upright for 3-4 weeks before drinking. The sediment is firmly in the bottom of the bottle at that point - it often won’t easily come out when I tip the empty bottle into the sink for washing out - and it takes only a very slight and gentle tip to get a small taste out. The slight disturbance isn’t problematic to me, and I’d rather take that risk and have the majority of the sediment caked at the bottom than go the basket route where some is usually down the side. I can certainly see arguments for both, and have done both. This one works better for me. The process of decanting will stir up a tiny bit as well, no matter how careful you are.
I use a Pourvin professional light, which is an LED light that goes around the neck of the bottle.
I have a 1989 Brovia Rocche that I’m planning on drinking soon but I don’t have a great idea how to treat it as it is a tweener.
Hold it until 2039, when it is in early middle age.
And then agonize about whether to open it.
Most of the rest of the Barolos I have are from the late 90s. This thread is covering the ground I needed covered.
I wouldn’t touch a Barolo from the 1996/97/98/99 quartet before Thanksgiving of 2046/47/48/49.
And for many of the more famous labels, even that could still be infanticide.
I’m in the decant fully and don’t mess with it by tasting first camp. Some very fine sediment gets stirred up no matter how carefully I’ve tried to sample some first. I never try anymore. If the wine doesn’t need/want air, it can go straight back into the bottle after being taken off the sediment. I agree about the basket vs. standing up, but I now rest wines at 45 degrees, and I’ve seen this work phenomenally well many times as long as they’ve rested that way for multiple weeks. I try to make sure the lower side was the bottom during aging. Don’t get me wrong; your system obviously works to your liking, and I’m sure your old wines show well, or you’d be doing something else. I just like to go a different route.
I decanted a ‘67 from a cradle last week. Bottle had been at ~35 deg angle to horizontal for about 4-5 months, and I maintained the angle while moving to a cradle. (I also move wines from horizontal to cradle with no problem.) The end of the cork was wet. Clear cranberry red. Sediment caked onto the side and about 1.25 inch left in bottle when the first signs of sediment appeared and I stopped decanting. The bottle had issues but not from sediment.
Why wouldn’t 30 degrees work better? Only kidding.
Yeah, sometimes I do, too. But sometimes I don’t want that much air. Every time is a little different. 
2006-8 for me. I don’t really enjoy young Nebbiolo unless it’s been open less than an hour and we chug the bottle. After that it’s a facef*%k of tannins and unpleasant. I think 96-04 need hours and hours personally, but I’m also holding those and relatively unlikely to drink them right now, exceptions maybe being a few Barbaresco and maybe La Morra.