Produttori del Barbaresco 2009 Riservas with Aldo Vacca

Aldo Vacca the Managing Director of Produttori del Barbaresco has not been out to New Zealand since he presented the 2004 Riservas to us. John Caro, Produttori's New Zealand importer, from Auckland came down with Aldo for the tasting at Regional Wines.

Aldo gave a fascinating presentation, outlining the history of Produttori, describing their "simple, classical" (traditional) winemaking methods (eg the wines see no new oak) and putting the recent vintages in perspective. He then ran through a slideshow of the nine single vineyards describing the terroir in each case.

In terms of the recent Barbaresco vintages, Aldo commented:

2013: late picked. Not a full bodied vintage, Aldo hopes this will be a classic vintage like 2004 or 2005.

2012: Like 2010, on the light side. Light but good quality.

2011: In Aldo's view a great Barbaresco vintage.

2010: Aldo said this was a better Barolo than a Barbaresco vintage. Due to the winter and cool year overall, Produttori did not get the overall concentration they needed. Aldo solved one mystery for me. He explained that they could have done all of the Reservas in 2010 but as that would have taken the best 35% of their fruit, the 2010 Normale would have been too light, so they used all of the fruit in the Normale.

2009: A much warmer vintage than 2010 producing sweet, ripe grapes, but with enough acids. The Riservas are agreeable and approachable to drink young for a big year. Aldo thought the Riservas should be drunk in the next 10-15 years.

I was very impressed by the 2009 Riservas. They are much more approachable than the 2004s or 2005s at a similar stage, yet definitely have the stuffing for medium term cellaring. The Riservas were served in the order of the most approachable to the least ...

• 2010 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco

  Bright red colour. An attractive nose of red cherry, with savoury and spicy aromas. A fairly sweet entry to the palate. Flavours of bright red cherries, a little white pepper and anise, a nice mix of sweetness and savoury flavours. Good power and length, quite approachable with good acidity. Soft, restrained tannins. Will cellar in the medium term. But all of the 2009 Riservas are a clear step above the 2010 Normale ...

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• 2009 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Riserva Pajè

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco

  The vineyard is a small bowl facing South/West between the village and the famous Asili vineyard. A good red colour. A lovely, ripe, red fruited bouquet, particularly of red cherries and raspberries, showing attractive spiciness. Approachable on palate with lively acidity, bright red fruit flavours, particularly red cherries, and small grained tannins. Obviously, you can cellar the Paje but you can also drink it young. I preferred it to the Pora.

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• 2009 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Riserva Pora

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco

  A vineyard proximate to the Tanaro River and valley floor enjoys warm mornings. One of the deepest reds on the table. A ripe nose of red currants and red cherries. Open textured in the mouth, approachable with refined, smaller scaled tannins. An easy wine to appreciate fairly young, red berry fruity flavours with spices and an attractive herbal character. Quite racy acids.

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• 2009 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Riserva Ovello

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco

  Ovello is the Northernmost vineyard, the highest and coolest, with the soil rich in clay. A bouquet of spices, clay and red currants. On palate, for me, a step up from the first two wines, with more body, structure and tannins. Aldo observed that as Ovello is typically a cool site, it does well in a warmer vintage like 2009. There is a lot of bright red fruit here, with good acidity, but also savoury flavours. More opulent and richer than the first two Riservas. Some sweetness too. Quite approachable now but can be cellared for the medium term (6-8 years) obviously.

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• 2009 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Riserva Rio Sordo

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco

  The vineyard is a long South/West exposed hillside, not far from the river, with a low calcium soil. A nose of polished, ripe fruit, notes of crème de cassis and Black Doris plums. A silky sweetness on entry to the palate. A good Rio Sordo with nice acidity. Elegant, fine and pure. A fine texture but with bigger tannins than the Ovello, with that sweetness and cassis flavours across the palate. As Aldo confirms, this is a very good year for Rio Sordo, the wine is quite mouth-filling, flamboyant and showy. Quite forward, still give this wine 2-3 years minimum before opening.

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• 2009 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Riserva Asili

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco

  The main part of the famous vineyard is a protected bowl facing South/West far from the river. A bouquet of fine red fruit with minerality and chalk. In the mouth, more closed than the others so far, a lot more serious. Pure, elegant, intense, the Asili needs time. Excellent precision, focus and acidity. The best Riserva thus far at the tasting and my second favourite overall.

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• 2009 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Riserva Muncagota

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco

  The name is the Piedmontese version of the former name Moccagatta. The vineyard faces South/East, receiving the cooler morning rather than the warmer afternoon sun. A refined nose with florals, sandalwood and red fruit. In the mouth, there is immediately more fruit weight and structure, with larger scale, but still with fine grained tannins. Still a fairly classically styled Barbaresco, Aldo attributes to the site's cooler exposure.

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• 2009 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Riserva Rabajà

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco

  The Rabajà vineyard is known for its complex mix of soil types. Deep colour. The bouquet is of darker fruit: dark cherries and blackberries, with musk and spice. On palate, the most dark fruit spectrum in the lineup, tending black liquorice and espresso. There are big, ripe, fine textured tannins here, that clearly need serious time to settle. The dry extract is palate staining and there is real power and length, with puckering tannins on the finish. There is also good, bright acidity, but at present, due to its aggressiveness and lack of elegance, I did not have this wine in my top 3. However, with the class of the material and terroir here, this Reserva will I'm sure develop into something truly special.

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• 2009 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Riserva Montefico

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco

  Montefico has full Southern exposure and a high calcium soil. One of the darkest reds on the table. A nose of red and dark cherries, crème de cassis, crushed stones and minerals. Relatively approachable for a young Montefico, reflecting the riper year. Flavours more in the dark than the red fruit spectrum with some dark coffee. Still, this wine has impressive dry extract, structure and power. There are excellent, ripe tannins and a relatively lean and dry finish, almost austere, where the minerality shows. My favourite Riserva of the tasting, but it is in most years. Also Aldo's favourite.

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• 2009 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Riserva Montestefano

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco

  The Barolo of Barbaresco: South facing vineyard with full sun and a soil rich in calcium. Good deep red. A nose of ripe raspberries and mulberries, with some warm clay and dark floral lift. A large volume wine in the mouth, heavy, structured and very powerful. Really solid, a bit of a tannic beast, but one I suspect that just needs time to settle down and integrate. Flavours of dark berries, also medicinal, umami and iodine flavours. There is elegance, proportion and great length here. Typically the most backward Riserva, the 2009 Montestefano needs 10+ years cellaring. On this potential, my third favourite of the Riservas.

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A very informative and excellent tasting, thanks Aldo and John!

Tasting notes on our wines from our dinner with Aldo will follow when I have typed them up ...