Drinking beautifully now, decanted over the evening, rose, dried cherry and an intoxicating dollop of truffle. Still plenty of tannin with seared chicken breast in a mushroom cream Gorgonzola sauce over rice with dressed arugula. I’ll try to wait a couple of years on the last bottle. I’ll try…
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Dark fruit, licorice and lots of tannins. 2 hr decant and got better in glass (and with food, duh). This is an enjoyable, good value Barbaresco that needs time and lots of protein.
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Pretty reddish brick color. Pine needle, crushed herbs and light red fruits on the nose. The palate fresh and dense with supple fine grained tannins. Long fresh finish should age really well and blossom. So tasty now with winter fare.
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Traditional style of Barbaresco, so this is just a baby. Rose petals, black cherries, dark plums, new leather, earth/dirt, black licorice, sandalwood, spices. Medium + body with nice acidity, BIG tannins and high alcohol. Check back in two or three years, this one has the structure to last a while.
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A Barbaresco and a great, if young wine. vSpin for 5 minutes and another hour in the decanter and the fruits began to sing. Cherry, new leather, rose petal, and tar. All classic Nebbiolo flavors. Hi acidity and tannins. Very enjoyable.
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I bought several bottles based on a good review and thought I'd try one early on. Bright, almost hot, roses right out of the gate. Cut flowers, stewed plums, and spice box. A surprisingly long graceful finish for it's youth. Very floral nose as soon as the cork was out and evolved over the evening. A delightful bottle, can't wait to see what it tastes over the next few years.
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Very nice-- dark red fruits balanced by firm tannin structure and pleasant medium acicity. NOtes of earth, minerals, a hint of licorice. a medium to full bodied wine for a red meat accompaniment. (Division Wines $29)
It is indisputable that in 1982 I single-handedly invented the most innovative approach to blind tasting discovered in the second half of the 20th century: "the hangover tasting method." It's equally indisputable that no one else would lay claim to such a dubious achievement, even if it was associated with some modest success in competitive tastings.
We fast forward to 2020 and the work of one Nick Jackson, MW and his spare but groundbreaking publication Beyond Flavour. In this very unique and valuable book, the author posits that blind tasting should consider a completely different set of inputs than the standard fruit-and such-driven, largely subjective and imprecise vocabulary of tasting notes. He believes, and he backed it up by passing the MW practical exams, that individual grapes have unique signatures in the mouth-principally in the way acidity and tannins hit the palate, tongue, gums etc.
I won't spoil any of the fun you may derive from experimenting with his recommendations on your own, but suffice it to say that I'm now examining the foot(in mouth) print of every new wine I encounter to see if I can discern a specific effect.
Nebbiolo is a great grape to begin playing with this technique because the tannic impact is so prominent that even a rookie can sort of get the hang of it. So away we go...
I was not familiar with this producer before and it is not to be confused with the far better known Barbaresco Ronchi of Albino Rocca, who may be related to Giancarlo Rocca...or not. I think this is what the experts mean when they say Piedmont wines can be Burgundian-that is, the average consumer has no freakin' idea how to tell any of the winemakers in either region apart.
As for the wine, it has an inviting red gleam with purple highlights. A generous nose of fresh red berried-fruit and a light graphite-like mineral streak, still very primary as one might expect. Every Barbaresco I've had from '16 so far has been beautifully fresh and lively. The palate (evaluating it from the untutored perspective) has a smooth, soft-cloth-like texture until you get to the finish-Nick Jackson territory!-where the tannins clamp down hard on the very upper back reaches of my gums. This seems conclusive somehow, the only drawback being that I'm not training to pass my MW right now so I can't compare it to anything else to see how site-specific it really is. If I don't record this impression, I'll forget and have to do it all over again in Groundhog Day-like fashion with the next nebbiolo I try. Tough work but someone has to do it...
Enough babbling. This is a delicious and fresh-tasting young Barbaresco and I'm happy to make its acquaintance.
8/26/2023 - Tomportwine Likes this wine: 91 Points
medium-full body, red fruits, earth, slate. Medium full tannins. Not complex nor dense, but pleasant drink--would go with any red meat dish.
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2/17/2023 - Night&Day Likes this wine:
Drinking beautifully now, decanted over the evening, rose, dried cherry and an intoxicating dollop of truffle. Still plenty of tannin with seared chicken breast in a mushroom cream Gorgonzola sauce over rice with dressed arugula. I’ll try to wait a couple of years on the last bottle. I’ll try…
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8/9/2022 - fdub Likes this wine: 91 Points
Drink up now. Rose, cherries and tar aromas. Served with pesto.
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10/21/2021 - Texas Oenophile Likes this wine:
Dark fruit, licorice and lots of tannins. 2 hr decant and got better in glass (and with food, duh). This is an enjoyable, good value Barbaresco that needs time and lots of protein.
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3/13/2021 - Normd wrote:
Need to drink.
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12/8/2020 - fdub Likes this wine: 94 Points
Pretty reddish brick color. Pine needle, crushed herbs and light red fruits on the nose. The palate fresh and dense with supple fine grained tannins. Long fresh finish should age really well and blossom. So tasty now with winter fare.
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11/30/2020 - AlphaMikeFoxtrot wrote: 88 Points
Traditional style of Barbaresco, so this is just a baby. Rose petals, black cherries, dark plums, new leather, earth/dirt, black licorice, sandalwood, spices. Medium + body with nice acidity, BIG tannins and high alcohol. Check back in two or three years, this one has the structure to last a while.
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8/31/2020 - tedcholl Likes this wine: 91 Points
A Barbaresco and a great, if young wine. vSpin for 5 minutes and another hour in the decanter and the fruits began to sing. Cherry, new leather, rose petal, and tar. All classic Nebbiolo flavors. Hi acidity and tannins. Very enjoyable.
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7/11/2020 - aguydrinker Likes this wine: 91 Points
Classic Italian flavor with pepper, short draw, and even a dried flowers vibe on the back end.
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7/9/2020 - aguydrinker Likes this wine: 93 Points
Great Italian pepper, smoke, and even a hint of potpourri.
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7/5/2020 - OGFresno Likes this wine: 90 Points
I bought several bottles based on a good review and thought I'd try one early on. Bright, almost hot, roses right out of the gate. Cut flowers, stewed plums, and spice box. A surprisingly long graceful finish for it's youth. Very floral nose as soon as the cork was out and evolved over the evening. A delightful bottle, can't wait to see what it tastes over the next few years.
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6/22/2020 - Tomportwine Likes this wine: 91 Points
Very nice-- dark red fruits balanced by firm tannin structure and pleasant medium acicity. NOtes of earth, minerals, a hint of licorice. a medium to full bodied wine for a red meat accompaniment. (Division Wines $29)
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3/24/2020 - bevetroppo Likes this wine: 90 Points
It is indisputable that in 1982 I single-handedly invented the most innovative approach to blind tasting discovered in the second half of the 20th century: "the hangover tasting method." It's equally indisputable that no one else would lay claim to such a dubious achievement, even if it was associated with some modest success in competitive tastings.
We fast forward to 2020 and the work of one Nick Jackson, MW and his spare but groundbreaking publication Beyond Flavour. In this very unique and valuable book, the author posits that blind tasting should consider a completely different set of inputs than the standard fruit-and such-driven, largely subjective and imprecise vocabulary of tasting notes. He believes, and he backed it up by passing the MW practical exams, that individual grapes have unique signatures in the mouth-principally in the way acidity and tannins hit the palate, tongue, gums etc.
I won't spoil any of the fun you may derive from experimenting with his recommendations on your own, but suffice it to say that I'm now examining the foot(in mouth) print of every new wine I encounter to see if I can discern a specific effect.
Nebbiolo is a great grape to begin playing with this technique because the tannic impact is so prominent that even a rookie can sort of get the hang of it. So away we go...
I was not familiar with this producer before and it is not to be confused with the far better known Barbaresco Ronchi of Albino Rocca, who may be related to Giancarlo Rocca...or not. I think this is what the experts mean when they say Piedmont wines can be Burgundian-that is, the average consumer has no freakin' idea how to tell any of the winemakers in either region apart.
As for the wine, it has an inviting red gleam with purple highlights. A generous nose of fresh red berried-fruit and a light graphite-like mineral streak, still very primary as one might expect. Every Barbaresco I've had from '16 so far has been beautifully fresh and lively. The palate (evaluating it from the untutored perspective) has a smooth, soft-cloth-like texture until you get to the finish-Nick Jackson territory!-where the tannins clamp down hard on the very upper back reaches of my gums. This seems conclusive somehow, the only drawback being that I'm not training to pass my MW right now so I can't compare it to anything else to see how site-specific it really is. If I don't record this impression, I'll forget and have to do it all over again in Groundhog Day-like fashion with the next nebbiolo I try. Tough work but someone has to do it...
Enough babbling. This is a delicious and fresh-tasting young Barbaresco and I'm happy to make its acquaintance.
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