Giacomo Borgogno Barolo Riserva 1952

Had this wine at a marathon lunch at Borgogno in 1985 and again a few years later when their importer, Banfi, held a tasting. Jim Morris & I arrived at Borgogno about 10 AM and had a noon lunch appointment at a place called del Buon Padre in Barolo. I thought we conveyed this to Cesare & Chiara Boschis and their family but about 11 food started rolling out, after we toured the winery and saw where the older Barolo's were being kept in chestnut barrels ready for Banfi's next order. I believe they went back to 1947. Well we were served all them in a long lunch. At about 1 PM I got to call Del Buon Padre to tell them we'd been hijacked and the restaurant was very upset as I was reviewing it for the Grapenutz Guide to the Wines of Italy, Jim and I collaborated on. We finished our light lunch at about 4, making us late for our next appointment. The folks at Del Buon Padre called me several times at our hotel, Contea, to try to rearrange and berate me, but it never happened because Giovanni Conterno insisted we have lunch with him taking up our only remaining open meal time. There is no hospitality like the Piemontese's. Once they saw who we were dining with, they tried to feed us too. We had to turn Renato Ratti down and promise Valentino Migliori we'd eat at his place in Emilia. All told on that trip we ate at the Currados of Vietti as well as Borgogno and with Bruno Cerretto, Giovanni Conterno, the owner of Dosio, the Vallanas, Bruno Giacosa, Pio Boffa of Pio Cesare. We had our meal tab picked up by Angelo Gaja and Traviglini. The tuscans were much less friendly but we did chow down at at the Buonocossi's of Carmingnano and at Monsanto, where I met Sheldon and Pauline Wbutterman. Tonino Vera of Contea even drove us to Boves and Al Rodendro(sp) and paid for it and we had a nice meal at Contea at his insistence even though we were mangiad out.