From the department of “then as it was, then again it will be…”*

Last month on my Facebook, I shared a post on Barolo/Barbaresco numerology by my friend and client Giovanni Minetti, CEO of Tenuta Carretta, a veteran and homegrown Langhe tradesman.

In it he ponders the question of vintages that end in the number 6. Will 2016, he asks, break the cycle of less-than-extraordinary vintages that end in 6?

The post was met with disbelief and protest by some of my favorite Nebbiolo collectors. And today, I’ve excerpted their comments and Giovanni’s response on the Tenuta Carretta blog (check it out).

I remember all to well when Produttori del Barbaresco decided not to release its single-vintage wines from the 2006 vintage. At the time, it wasn’t clear whether the decision was based on market factors (in 2010 the financial crisis was at its zenith); or whether the growers didn’t feel the harvest was up to snuff (here’s my post from 2010).

I haven’t even begun to touch the 2006 wines that I put down in my cellar at the time. Maybe it’s time to open a few. With ten years gone, only time will tell.

Check out thoughts on the 2006 vintage, including Giovanni’s response, here.

* Play it loud.