2015 Gaja Barbaresco
Community Tasting Note
IvanLi Likes this wine:
94 Points
Saturday, August 26, 2023 - The 2015 Gaja Barbaresco resembles a young Pinot more than Nebbiolo. Medium ruby in colour, heavy on dark red and purple fruit aromas with some reductive notes as well. This strange reductive fruitiness while completely normal and even pleasant is not what I would expect of a top quality Nebbiolo from Barbaresco.
While the wine is really good per se, imvho it can’t be considered among the finest representatives of it’s region.
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Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue (1,594 views)
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue (1,594 views)
Comment posted by oldwines:
11/16/2023 4:59:00 AM - I find this to be true of many of the more "modernist" Barolo and Barbaresco producers. The barrique aging hides the Nebbiolo uniqueness and site specificity. Also the riper and more extracted it is, the more "International" in style. As you indicated, It can result in a pleasant wine experience but not a good example of the region's unique character... Or as a more petulant friend of mine would say, "it becomes oak juice!"
Cheers!
Comment posted by IvanLi:
11/16/2023 10:21:00 AM - I do agree with you, Dave. I also believe this particular style of wine is the result of not just the oak treatment but also the yeast cultures, tannins, inactivated yeasts and mlf bacteria used by the producer. This kind of enological approach to the winemaking while very beneficial in certain cases can be really detrimental when it comes to other wine styles, particularly those that are considered traditional.
Comment posted by oldwines:
11/16/2023 12:22:00 PM - Totally agree!