Winemaker Notes
The color is dark ruby-red with purple highlights; nose brimming over with leather, black licorice, coffee and blackberry. This Barbera d’Alba starts out on the palate providing a warm feeling of volume and body, with the fruit blending marvelously with the soft tannins and the acidity, while its finish is long and savory.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
A racy version, with a firm line of tannins, this red exudes black cherry, boysenberry, violet and graphite flavors. Tightens up on the finish, yet this should excel with food. Drink now through 2029. 2,700 cases made, 270 cases imported.
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James Suckling
Aromas of ripe cherries and blueberries with orange peel and violets with a licorice undertone. Juicy and tense with medium body and dusty tannins. Flavorful and fresh with a spicy edge to the finish. From organically grown grapes.
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Wine Enthusiast
This wine is a timeless classic. The nose is all about dark fruits and earth, a combination that never goes out of style. It’s lush and fruit forward, drawing you into a world of imagination. The palate is a warm embrace as flavors of dark plums and black cherries yield big smiles. Subtle but important herbal notes bind with violets to give the finish more elegance and poise.
Friendly and approachable, Barbera produces wines in a wide range of styles, from youthful, fresh and fruity to serious, structured and age-worthy. Piedmont is the most famous source of Barbera; those from Asti and Alba garner the most praise. Barbera actually can adapt to many climates and enjoys success in some New World regions. Somm Secret—In the past it wasn’t common or even accepted to age Barbera in oak but today both styles—oaked and unoaked—abound and in fact most Piedmontese producers today produce both styles.
An historic village situated right in between the famous regions of Barolo and Barbaresco, Alba is also the name for the larger wine region surrounding the village.
In a sense, “Alba” is a catch-all phrase, and includes the declassified Nebbiolo wines made in Barolo and Barbaresco, as well as the Nebbiolo grown just outside of these regions’ borders. In fact, Nebbiolo d’Alba is a softer, less tannic and more fruit-forward wine ready to drink within just a couple years of bottling. It is a great place to start if you want to begin to understand the grape. Likewise, the even broader category of Langhe Nebbiolo offers approachable and value-driven options as well.
Barbera, planted alongside Nebbiolo in the surrounding hills, and referred to as Barbera d’Alba, takes on a more powerful and concentrated personality compared to its counterparts in Asti.
Dolcetto is ubiquitous here and, known as Dolcetto d'Alba, can be found casually served alongside antipasti on the tables of Alba’s cafes and wine bars.
Not surprisingly, given its location, Alba is recognized as one of Italy’s premiere culinary destinations and is the home of the fall truffle fair, which attracts visitors from worldwide every year.