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Mario Giribaldi - another new estate for me

I had been bombarded with emails so eventually investigated and found there is an interesting selection of wines made here. But what about the quality? Having a confused SatNav meant I was late arriving but Katie Pattinson was relaxed as we talked about our attitudes to wine and the wine trade. The wines were al interesting but some stood out more than others for me.

Of the whites, I enjoyed the full and fairly complex Gavi with its minerality and white fruit characters (apples and pears). The simple Barbera 2010 Caj offers fruity, juicy, easy fruit and good acidity; a decent, straightforward Barbera. The Nebbiolo 2009 Accerto has good mouthfeel with fairly low acidity and soft tannins - tastes right, feels good.

I rather liked the Dame e Fuet 2007, a blend of 50% Nebbiolo and 50% Pinot Noir which has a great, plush nose which lets some Pinot Noir character through. Good mouthfeel.

The final two wines of the tasting were a Barbaresco 2007 Gaia Principe, a single vineyard wine from Neive with rounded, dancing tannins and lovely fruit. This was the star of the tasting for me, slightly better than the Barolo 2006 with its powerful nose, open and rounded. Forward for 2006 but still tannic.

Altogether, an enjoyable tasting with charming hosts and some wines here that we may see more of - watch this space!

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