Winemaker Notes
Pair with egg pastas, risottos, white meats, poultry, red meats, game, venison and aged cheese.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
Marked by ripe cherry, strawberry, floral and tar flavors, this red is graceful and detailed, with the fruit intensity persisting on the finish. This is well-integrated, and just needs time for the tannins to soften. Excellent length.
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James Suckling
Aromas of dried berry, lemon peel and plum follow through to a medium to full body, fine tannins and a bright finish. Bright and delicious. I like both the 2010 and 2011 at the same level but for different reasons.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The delicious 2011 Barbaresco is a very well-integrated and balanced wine that shows an impressive level of elegance. Soft oak spice is fused with red berry fruit and balsam herb. You feel some of the heat of the vintage in the ripeness of the fruit, but those qualities never subtract from the wine's overall harmony. Soft fruit flavors are woven between tight tannins and long persistence.
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Wine & Spirits
Producttori's normale is consistently one of Barbaresco's best values. One panelist described the 2011 as "a girl in a skirt on Madison Avenue," pretty and feminine. Everything about it is balanced and in its proper place. Its red fruit flavors are fresh and lifted, with licorice and herb notes and well-integrated tannins. This will last well for several years but gives plenty of pleasure now. Best Buy.
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Wine Enthusiast
Always one of the best quality-for-value wines in Italy, this classic Barbaresco delivers quintessential Nebbiolo sensations of rose, black cherry, red berry, cinnamon and a hint of leather. It’s friendly, with firm, round tannins and just enough fresh acidity.
Responsible for some of the most elegant and age-worthy wines in the world, Nebbiolo, named for the ubiquitous autumnal fog (called nebbia in Italian), is the star variety of northern Italy’s Piedmont region. Grown throughout the area, as well as in the neighboring Valle d’Aosta and Valtellina, it reaches its highest potential in the Piedmontese villages of Barolo, Barbaresco and Roero. Outside of Italy, growers are still very much in the experimentation stage but some success has been achieved in parts of California. Somm Secret—If you’re new to Nebbiolo, start with a charming, wallet-friendly, early-drinking Langhe Nebbiolo or Nebbiolo d'Alba.
A wine that most perfectly conveys the spirit and essence of its place, Barbaresco is true reflection of terroir. Its star grape, like that in the neighboring Barolo region, is Nebbiolo. Four townships within the Barbaresco zone can produce Barbaresco: the actual village of Barbaresco, as well as Neive, Treiso and San Rocco Seno d'Elvio.
Broadly speaking there are more similarities in the soils of Barbaresco and Barolo than there are differences. Barbaresco’s soils are approximately of the same two major soil types as Barolo: blue-grey marl of the Tortonion epoch, producing more fragile and aromatic characteristics, and Helvetian white yellow marl, which produces wines with more structure and tannins.
Nebbiolo ripens earlier in Barbaresco than in Barolo, primarily due to the vineyards’ proximity to the Tanaro River and lower elevations. While the wines here are still powerful, Barbaresco expresses a more feminine side of Nebbiolo, often with softer tannins, delicate fruit and an elegant perfume. Typical in a well-made Barbaresco are expressions of rose petal, cherry, strawberry, violets, smoke and spice. These wines need a few years before they reach their peak, the best of which need over a decade or longer. Bottle aging adds more savory characteristics, such as earth, iron and dried fruit.