1982 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Riserva Rio Sordo

Community Tasting Notes (4) Avg Score: 90 points

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  2/20/2023 - forceberry wrote: 89 Points

  The fruit is sourced from the Rio Sordo vineyard. Released only after a minimum of four years of aging.
  
  Rather old dried-blood color with a dark yellow-ish rim. The nose feels somewhat reticent, very evolved and noticeably tertiary with aromas of game, some earth, a little bit of wizened dark berry, light dusty licorice root tones and a hint of cherry. The wine feels juicy, evolved and savory on the palate with a full body and dry, tertiary flavors of meaty umami, some dark berry, a little bit of dried sour cherry, light raisiny tones, a hint of wizened fig and a touch of tobacco. The overall feel is firm and quite structured; at first it feels the structure relies mostly on the high acidity whereas the tannins come across as pretty resolved, but they slowly pile up on the gums, turning the wine quite tough and grippy. The finish is savory, rather grippy and quite tertiary with a long, layered aftertaste of sour cherries, some wizened figs, a little bit of dried dates, light gamey tones, a hint of licorice root and a touch of tobacco. There is a little bit of alcohol warmth towards the end of the aftertaste.
  
  At first the wine seemed quite tired and I was wondering if the wine was already past its peak, but with some air the wine managed to come around pretty nicely, turning into a pretty enjoyable effort. Nothing mindblowing, though - the wine remains moderately tertiary and a bit reticent, lacking the finesse, nuance and intensity I look for in older vintages of PdB Riservas. Nevertheless, this was a thoroughly drinkable and harmonious effort all the same. It is hard to say how much there is bottle variation, ie. if our bottle was fully representative of the vintage, but I'd rather pop any remaining bottles instead of aging them any further - I feel there is very little potential for future development.

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  12/16/2020 - jerhardt wrote:

  Mini horizontal of Rio Sordo, Pora, and Ovello. Double decanted in the morning to have with dinner. All were correct, and remarkably similar. Obviously well into their secondary plateau, but still fairly dark with some robust tannins. For my preference, a bit on the young side. Enjoyable, but good, not great.

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  4/21/2013 - kfinsrud wrote: 91 Points

  The cork was soaked and the last piece of it was saved by using a kind of Durand cork screw. Drank from Riedel Vinum Burgundy glas. Upon opening this was very unclean and the nose showed very much of iron and earth. Decanted for one hour and the wine was a different beast. Clear nose of figs and of an old boathouse (tar). Some tobacco in the background. A fully mature wine with perfectly matured tannins. Still a zap of acidity that closes the mouth beautifully in a good length. Some spices on the finish. Had it with a filet of venison, mushrooms, creamed califlowers and port wine sauce. Splendid! Only half the bottle was decanted, the other half developed in the bottle over several hours. This part was the best.

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  4/18/2013 - Henman Likes this wine: 90 Points

  The cork was completely soaked and fell apart on popping. Seemed otherwise intact. Decanted ca ½ hour. On the nose loamy notes and hints of red fruit. A little reticent smell. Surprisingly vibrant palate still, showing dried red toned fruit with a mellowed,silky aspect and some firm acidity and dusty finish to it. Incredible. Could still hold for another five to ten years but won´t get much better. Not a very complex nebbiolo, but it has aged gracefully.

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