Appreciating Barolo In 1926, the wine magazine "Enotria" published the statement that "Barolo, while young, is rough and ungracious but after three or four years of ageing becomes soft, velvety and wonderfully flavoursome with a perfume which could be described as having violets at the top and goudron at the bottom". Among the many definitions of Barolo, a particular favourite of mine is the following by Paolo Monelli in the magazine ('The Wandering Gourmand'): 'Ghiottone Errante' "This is the greatest wine in the world; the historian Cibrario, explorer of Europe's wineries, defined it thus and we can take his word for it. It possesses the colour of autumn leaves, the fresh breath of spring and leaves the heat of summer running through the veins. The one I'm drinking at the moment is thirteen years old, a venerable age, and in its warm-brick colouring I can distinguish the towers of Alba glowing beneath a stormy sky in the sudden brightness of dawn. Then there's the flavour: the way it has, both persuasive yet energetic, of taking possession of one's palate with its tasty fullness and vigorous dryness. A truly honest wine, it doesn't take your legs from under you or make you light-headed. A calm, dreamless sleep is all it will provoke and you'll awake the morning afterwards absolutely fighting fit". In his article of 1963, , Monelli continues: 'O.P. ossia il vero bevitore' "Barolo, along with Gattinara and the Valtellina wines, can certainly be considered the best Italian wine. Its perfume of violets and aftertaste of tar are fresh even in matured wines. Ageing, it loses a certain discordancy present in its early years while preserving its youthful aroma. This is a sign of true nobility: in an excellent wine, the aroma survives until the wine dies from old age". At first glance Barolo offers understatement: its colour isn't as intensely dark as some other great reds, namely Cabernet, but appears rather diluted, similar to a Burgundy Pinot Noir. Depending on its age and producer, Barolo's colour can vary from brilliant red to intense ruby-red although the most frequent colouring is garnet-red with orange highlights. The dilution of the colour commences at the edges of the glass, encroaching on the centre as the wine matures. This loss of colouring gives a more orange tinge to older wines which, with age, will tend towards brown. This final colour is caused by oxidation and indicates that the wine has entered the phase of decline. Obviously whoever wishes to taste very old Barolo will need to expect such coloration, whereas at the moment of entry onto the market it ought to possess its original colours of red, ruby or garnet.