Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Mocha, blue flower, menthol and forest berry aromas lift out of the glass. Firmly structured but elegant, the linear palate exhibits pomegranate, wild strawberry, star anise and white pepper alongside a backbone of fine-grained tannins and racy acidity. Drink 2029–2044.
Cellar Selection -
James Suckling
This is really beautifully crafted with ultra-fine tannins and clear and bright fruit. Orange peel and berries throughout. Medium body. Excellent length. Super tannins. Elegance with strength.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The Sottimano 2019 Barbaresco Basarin opens to a beautifully luminous ruby appearance with soft Nebbiolo aromas of wild cherry, grilled rosemary, cola and pressed wildflower. The wine is tapered and extremely elegant with firm tannins over a long mouthfeel. There is a hint of crunch on the close that will soften as this beautiful Barbaresco continues its bottle evolution.
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Wine & Spirits
This wine is jubilantly expressive, its flavors of crunchy cherry and raspberry infused with an inner sweetness that’s balanced by tangy acidity and taut, chalky tannins. Immensely enjoyable now, it has the freshness and concentration to improve with age.
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Wine Spectator
This red is classically proportioned, offering pure cherry fruit, with accents of currant and strawberry, leather and spice. A firm spine of tannins provides support and this remains balanced, juicy and long on the ripe cherry- and mineral-tinged aftertaste.
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.