Super refined. Aromas of plums and berries with freshly cut flowers and orange peel. Full-bodied, with a very focused palate and super fine tannins. It goes on for minutes with dark fruits and milk chocolate. Gorgeous already. Polished. Complex and subtle. Almost too good now! Better than 2007. Better in 2017.

The 2008 Conteisa is a knock-out. It boasts the most striking inner sweetness and perfume imaginable, a quality shared by a handful of legendary Piemonte wines. Juicy red cherries, spices, hard candy and mint caress the palate in this extraordinary, breathtaking wine. The balance of aromatics, fruit, acidity and structure are simply captivating. The 2008 is of course far too young to deliver maximum pleasure, but it is impossible to miss its pedigree. This is a fabulous showing from Gaja. Conteisa is often outstanding, but the 2008 will go down as one of the great all-time vintages for this wine. Conteisa is made from Gaja's plots in the Cerequio vineyard of La Morra. Anticipated maturity: 2023-2043. -AG

Cellar Selection. A tiny percentage of Barbera grapes accounts for why this famous wine is not labeled as a Barolo. The Nebbiolo is sourced from the Cerequio Cru and offers long aromas of dried fruit, licorice, tar, tobacco, bitter chocolate and cola. The finish is extremely fine and polished. Drink after 2025.

A lean, sinewy red, whose cherry, tobacco and wild herb notes are swathed in stiff, muscular tannins. Properly aerated, this finds inner balance, with the fruit prevailing in the end. Shows fine freshness and length. Best from 2017 through 2035. 50 cases imported. –BS