Winemaker Notes
This wine, given its full-body and structure, pairs very well with meat dishes and with cheese.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Sweet cherries and strawberries with floral undertones, following through to a medium to full body with very firm, polished tannins and a persistent finish. Tight and closed. Better after 2022.
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Wine Enthusiast
Enticing aromas of violet and iris mingle with forest berry and crushed herb in this sleek, savory red. Smooth and elegantly structured, the bright palate shows juicy red cherry, blood orange and star anise alongside taut, polished tannins. It's already enjoyable but also has a youthful vibrance that will carry it for several years or more. Drink through 2027. Editors' Choice.
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Wine Spectator
A delicate style, offering macerated strawberry, cherry and earth flavors. Linear and focused, this ends with a mouthwatering impression. Best from 2021 through 2036.
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.