2000 La Spinetta Barolo Vigneto Campe

30 Jun 2014:  Dinner at La Locanda by Giancarlo Perbellini (Ocean Centre, Tsim Sha Tsui).  Just for this evening, we were luckily spared from the rainstorms that have become rather a permanent feature this summer.  So we were able to enjoy the view of neon-lit Central from the outdoor terrace - it was captivating and reassuring.

La Spinetta and the yummy frolla

2000 La Spinetta Barolo Vigneto Campè. Deep ruby. Blackberry jam, tar, liquorice, rose petal essence. Firm ripe tannin, chewy texture, could do with more acidity , a bit cloying towards the end. Seems a bit heavy-handed and lacks the elegance one would expect of a top Barolo.... This served its purpose to go with rich food such as the suckling pig on the menu but as soon as dinner was finished, it became less inviting! This wine still has a long life ahead and it will be interesting to see if the passage of time will bring about some interesting transformation and evolution. 15.5/20 (2000 was the first vintage of this wine by the Rivetti family....I suspect the more recent vintages would be much more refined.)

Risi e Bisi

We tried the risi e bisi....which was really the star dish of the evening.....perfectly cooked al dente risotto rice, topped with creamy pea foam......with the savoury parmesan further embellishing the flavours of this dish. Very smooth and nourishing! 

The second star dish was the frolla.....a stack of really tasty cooked ham shrouding a huge dollop of creamy stracchino cheese,on top of a crispy tart...laced with balsamic vinegar......this was really yummy! The ham tasted very fresh.


We had expected more of the suckling pig dish but it had too much fat in it and the skin was not crispy enough. The brussel sprouts and onions were rather yummy though! And the sauce perfectly seasoned. 

The suckling pig dish

The crispy chicken leg

I had the crispy chicken leg dish, with creamy potato. The potato cream was really delicious - and the texture and flavours enhanced with the diced root vegetable, and the chicken jus. The chicken though tasted as though it had been pre-cooked before the final touch of crisping up in the grill......??

Would we go back? Definitely! I want to try the Mozarella and Carrozza (pan-fried sandwich with mozarella cheese, potato and anchovy cream). Plus there is an extensive pizza menu! And though we did not choose from the wine list (except for the white wines by the glass), the selection seems well thought-out and not outrageously priced!