Found bottle in cellar. Misplaced. Worried that it had turned. Brown at the edges when poured in the glass. Entry with burst of fruit. Middle and finish mellow with fruit tapering. Think I missed peak but still very enjoyable way to start the evening
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Cellaraid Discovery Box; 5/19/2017-5/26/2021 (Delivered to Home): Seems a bit of garnet brownish hues on the edges. Pronounced nose of dried roses, twigs and smoked meat. While rather light on the body, the initial hit on the palate was intense, with sour cherries, rose, and tar smoke, and felt a lot of acids and tannins as well. Fair finish, like blooming roses. Aged pretty well, and still several years to come. Nice!
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Pop and pour at this point in its lifetime (finally), but still beautiful (maybe even better) the next day from the 1/2 btl left corked on the counter. Brambly black raspberry and black cherry with a hint of menthol. Juicy with nice acidity. This is just flat out terrific Barbera d'Asti and a great value. Really nice food wine and on its own.
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Good to very good. Thick red bordering on purple, fruity nose and palate (cherries?), decent finish and good balance. Nice wine, if you drink it as an aperitif, or if you like jam with your pizza. Not what I look for in a Barbera; I'd prefer something more rustic and acidic with my food.
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Stunning as usual, per previous notes. Sadly this was my last bottle of '05 - time to move on to the '06 and '07 bottles I've stashed.
Our host tonight was overwhelmed by this wine. Until we opened this, he had been nurturing a glass of 2006 Halls Cab - which is an excellent wine, if still rather young.
We opened about 5 or 6 bottles tonight, and by the end of the night, everyone was holding this Spinetta in their glasses till it ran out.
Fabulous juice.
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I think this is absolutely outstanding considering its age, the fact it is barbera, and the price. This was the second to last bottle of my case. When is Rivetti coming back to Wisconsin? Anyone know a good internet retailer for La Spinetta?
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Big blue/purple fruit on nose, acidity balanced with rich berry fruit on palate along with subtle notes of (surprisingly) leather and cedar... more complex than expected. Rather enjoyable with and after dinner. Glad I have another... will give second bottle six to eight months.
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Discovering Wine: Ruby with a nose of rich black cherry and cedar. Round and soft in the mouth, with black cherries. Very fruity with decent acidity. The finish has black cherries, faint cedar and a hint of vanilla. The tannins are still a little chewy and the finish is on the hot side. Give it a few years.
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Tasted Blind. A very rich nose of blackberry, blueberry and vanilla. Smooth on the palate and a little warm and acidic. Tastes or ripe cherry. The finish is complex with blackberry, anise with marshmallow and oak. The decent length of the finish closes the deal, this is a real winner.
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Past it's prime, but pleasant. Plums (Italian prunes?) on the nose, but the acidity kind of takes over on the palate--there's not a lot of "middle" to speak of. Will be better with food than on its own.
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Rosso: Candied notes, sweet, beaut. smth nose, mth; swt ripe frt! round, almonds hints, good a’s, good effort, but not exactly my style--a bit ripe and frty, needs more Ital Character!
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1h decant. Color: Dark. Nose: pure blueberries and cream. Flavor: Good Barbera. Silky mouthfeel. Well balanced with rich blueberries, milk chocolate and the pinot like gray/brown earth which stick around for a big finish. Very balanced.
Day 2: Nose: Medium-Full bodied. Floral overtones with cherries and blueberries. Very nice. Flavor: Big flavor profile of dark milk chocolate, all sorts of strawberry and blueberry flavors and a well integrated earth/clay mid-tongue component. A very soft milky mouthfeel. A little hot in the throat. Finish: Good, lively tannins and bitter chocolate stay on the tongue 30+ seconds. This really opened up on the second day.
Along with the Massolinos, Bruno Rocca d'Asti, Conterno Fantino, and La Ghersa this is a top 5 Barbera for me to this point.
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An outstanding Barbera. Condensed berry (a touch too much so) .. but this wine has an excellent acid/tannin balance and is -very- easy to drink. This wine is outstanding for the price.
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Drank over two nights. Nice nose of tar, licorice, and berries. Very angular acidity at first, not quite green, but not quite right either. The acidity loses its edge over time however, and the tar and blackberry flavors shine through. On the second night, a much better wine in my opinion - balance still leans toward acid, but much more typical with tar and blackberry flavors. Very tasty.
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Nice fruit flavors on the attack - a bit condensed. A clean nose and a clean taste. The finish is a bit simple, but this is a very drinkable bottle of wine.
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My immediate reaction to the nose was red cherries. Secondary notes include mocha and spices, and I agree with swirls noted by others below. The nose is clearly better than the palate to me, with slight bitterness and a short, not entirely pleasant finish. A decent wine with a good nose for the price, but I won't buy more than the 2 bottles I've already tried.
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Drank over two nights. First night, lots of fruit aromas, but very sharp tasting. Smoothed out by night two. Quite enjoyable both nights, with an edge to night two. At the price, wish this wasn't our only bottle.
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Coffee plum stemminess meats and teas (brunello like w time open) figs, red cherry Softer and plumper than 04 cherry tobacco combo again short stemmy finish 88+ for different reasons, starts plush but doesnt carry it to finish.
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A nice burst of early fruitiness (cherry-ness) was, unfortunately, followed and somewhat outlasted by a mild bitterness. Not the most complex wine but a nice drink once it aired a bit.
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LPSkeleton comes to town (chicago, IL): nose: bigger and racier nose then the 04 with ripe cherries, mocha tones, vanillians, with some herbs and earth tones underneath. getting more of an oak influence on this one as opposed to the 04
taste: nice and plush feel with tart cherries, mocha, herbal spices, and some fig and twiggy green flavors
overall: nice easy and smooth barbera with a nice filling feel on the palate. Again, I think the room temperature was messing with this as the acidity was a bit higher then I'm used to for a barbera, but that didn't bother me as much as it did for other people
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Dark ruby red, elegant and perfumed nose of wood, raspberry, black cherry and violets with hints of char and glycerin, wonderful on the attack with a perfect peacock like palate, suave but gripping, rich tannins, deep and satisfying, solid QPR
Opened up and became even more satisfying with air
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C: Dark, rust edges. N: Soft fruit, light scents of earth and plum. P: Approachable, cassis, blue berries, ripe plum, some complexity. Finishes nicely with fruit & spicy plum.
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very solid barbera. silky mouthfeel in a modern style. Deep dark fruits, concentrated and pretty hedonistic. Points off for some overbearing alcohol, but a very enjoyable wine. A barbera to seek out undoubtedly.
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Pop and pour: Two different wines. As soon as this was opened, it was quite pleasing. Somewhat simple, but a nice core of soft fruit over a smooth tannic base. 89pts at this time. However, within 45 mins the wine began falling apart. Not closing down, but minerality increased and it actually gained a slight effervesence that was off-putting. I'll admit that we're not Italian fans and bought this on reco from a friend, but we just didn't find anything here unless its to be downed quickly in a large group. And for that, I can do a lot better for the $$
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Dark purple/ruby; lots of ripe red fruit aromas with a hint of something like menthol or mint; med-bodied, red fruit continues on palate with decent acidity/structure, plummy finish, noticeable ripe tannins. Will leave other 2 bottles alone for a couple of yrs.
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The nose is reminiscent of times in Italy. Sweet cherry flavors and floral notes. Below average QPR due to the oversupply of quality New World Merlot and Merlot-blends available in the US.
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Rose and violets float above a core of sweet black cherry, followed by hints of tar and oregano. Fruity and smooth palate, medium low acidity, finishing with abundant but smooth tannins. Everythng a $25 Barbera should be, great with pizza. Really enjoyed this.
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7/14/2022 - shebbar Likes this wine: 92 Points
Found bottle in cellar. Misplaced. Worried that it had turned. Brown at the edges when poured in the glass. Entry with burst of fruit. Middle and finish mellow with fruit tapering. Think I missed peak but still very enjoyable way to start the evening
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7/4/2019 - vinhonotte Likes this wine: 93 Points
Cellaraid Discovery Box; 5/19/2017-5/26/2021 (Delivered to Home): Seems a bit of garnet brownish hues on the edges. Pronounced nose of dried roses, twigs and smoked meat. While rather light on the body, the initial hit on the palate was intense, with sour cherries, rose, and tar smoke, and felt a lot of acids and tannins as well. Fair finish, like blooming roses. Aged pretty well, and still several years to come. Nice!
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11/12/2017 - CDT Likes this wine: 88 Points
Got lost in the cellar but still tastes pretty good considering 3 years past drinking window. Very impressive.
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11/26/2016 - KriLis Likes this wine: 90 Points
Still drinking beautifully, not even a hint at being 10 years old
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4/18/2013 - soyhead wrote: 92 Points
nose - blueberry, young leather per evan
mouth - very lively fresh fruit, and dark fruit, followed by licorice and broad tannins. quite delicious
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10/12/2012 - mdvino63 wrote: 91 Points
Pop and pour at this point in its lifetime (finally), but still beautiful (maybe even better) the next day from the 1/2 btl left corked on the counter. Brambly black raspberry and black cherry with a hint of menthol. Juicy with nice acidity. This is just flat out terrific Barbera d'Asti and a great value. Really nice food wine and on its own.
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1/29/2012 - Rich.Herbs wrote: 86 Points
Good to very good. Thick red bordering on purple, fruity nose and palate (cherries?), decent finish and good balance. Nice wine, if you drink it as an aperitif, or if you like jam with your pizza. Not what I look for in a Barbera; I'd prefer something more rustic and acidic with my food.
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3/25/2011 - socidelvino wrote: 90 Points
Deep purple color with prune and dried fruit aromas. Big juicy fruit in the mouth with blackberry and some cherry notes. Full body and long finish
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12/3/2010 - Wamrod Likes this wine: 94 Points
Stunning as usual, per previous notes. Sadly this was my last bottle of '05 - time to move on to the '06 and '07 bottles I've stashed.
Our host tonight was overwhelmed by this wine. Until we opened this, he had been nurturing a glass of 2006 Halls Cab - which is an excellent wine, if still rather young.
We opened about 5 or 6 bottles tonight, and by the end of the night, everyone was holding this Spinetta in their glasses till it ran out.
Fabulous juice.
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11/24/2010 - kfr01 wrote: 95 Points
I think this is absolutely outstanding considering its age, the fact it is barbera, and the price. This was the second to last bottle of my case. When is Rivetti coming back to Wisconsin? Anyone know a good internet retailer for La Spinetta?
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9/30/2010 - TrevorCandelino wrote: flawed
corked...second one out of my case....
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9/30/2010 - Badgerwino wrote:
Last bottle of the Ca di Pian. Found a great receipe for Lasagna and drank it along side the Boscorelli.
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6/22/2010 - ray13 wrote: 89 Points
Big blue/purple fruit on nose, acidity balanced with rich berry fruit on palate along with subtle notes of (surprisingly) leather and cedar... more complex than expected. Rather enjoyable with and after dinner. Glad I have another... will give second bottle six to eight months.
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3/4/2010 - GrandeSerataFuori wrote: 86 Points
Pruney - better with food - not searching it out but happy to drink it. Oddly best with some cumin seeds that were in my greens.
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10/8/2009 - The Kokopelli wrote: 87 Points
Discovering Wine: Ruby with a nose of rich black cherry and cedar. Round and soft in the mouth, with black cherries. Very fruity with decent acidity. The finish has black cherries, faint cedar and a hint of vanilla. The tannins are still a little chewy and the finish is on the hot side. Give it a few years.
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7/11/2009 - The Kokopelli wrote: 90 Points
Tasted Blind. A very rich nose of blackberry, blueberry and vanilla. Smooth on the palate and a little warm and acidic. Tastes or ripe cherry. The finish is complex with blackberry, anise with marshmallow and oak. The decent length of the finish closes the deal, this is a real winner.
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3/5/2009 - ElBun wrote: 90 Points
great example of the style
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2/22/2009 - winekitchen wrote: 86 Points
Past it's prime, but pleasant. Plums (Italian prunes?) on the nose, but the acidity kind of takes over on the palate--there's not a lot of "middle" to speak of. Will be better with food than on its own.
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2/7/2009 - goofy Yno wrote: 88 Points
nose of plum. mouth with the same, nice full body, plenty of fruit and some good acidity.
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1/31/2009 - peternelson wrote: 90 Points
Rosso: Candied notes, sweet, beaut. smth nose, mth; swt ripe frt! round, almonds hints, good a’s, good effort, but not exactly my style--a bit ripe and frty, needs more Ital Character!
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11/21/2008 - ELH wrote: 89 Points
Black cherry.
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11/5/2008 - rjonwine@gmail.com wrote: 90 Points
La Spinetta Tasting with Giorgio Rivetti at Vin Vino Wines (Vin Vino Wines, Palo Alto, California): Very dark red violet color; focused tart plum nose with a sense of roses and cherry; tight, solid but refined tart cherry and red fruit palate with sap; medium finish 90+ pts.
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10/26/2008 - TrevorCandelino wrote:
with dinner at sala di pranza w/ carlsons
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10/23/2008 - rc@ughey wrote: 89 Points
Quite nice. Fresh red fruits and very silky. A nice drink with cheese and artichokes.
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9/14/2008 - smorris291 wrote: 89 Points
Slightly better than last bottle with less bitter, slight longer finish.
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9/6/2008 - smorris291 wrote: 88 Points
Nice cherry flavors and balance. Enough acidity to be very good with dinner. Slightly short finish.
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8/24/2008 - jtabor wrote: 91 Points
1h decant. Color: Dark. Nose: pure blueberries and cream. Flavor: Good Barbera. Silky mouthfeel. Well balanced with rich blueberries, milk chocolate and the pinot like gray/brown earth which stick around for a big finish. Very balanced.
Day 2: Nose: Medium-Full bodied. Floral overtones with cherries and blueberries. Very nice. Flavor: Big flavor profile of dark milk chocolate, all sorts of strawberry and blueberry flavors and a well integrated earth/clay mid-tongue component. A very soft milky mouthfeel. A little hot in the throat. Finish: Good, lively tannins and bitter chocolate stay on the tongue 30+ seconds. This really opened up on the second day.
Along with the Massolinos, Bruno Rocca d'Asti, Conterno Fantino, and La Ghersa this is a top 5 Barbera for me to this point.
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8/14/2008 - kfr01 wrote: 90 Points
An outstanding Barbera. Condensed berry (a touch too much so) .. but this wine has an excellent acid/tannin balance and is -very- easy to drink. This wine is outstanding for the price.
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8/10/2008 - LSussman wrote: 91 Points
tannins resolving and was very enjoyale with beer can chicken
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7/29/2008 - bvwino wrote: 88 Points
Drank at dinner party. No notes
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7/25/2008 - Cahill wrote: 88 Points
Drank over two nights. Nice nose of tar, licorice, and berries. Very angular acidity at first, not quite green, but not quite right either. The acidity loses its edge over time however, and the tar and blackberry flavors shine through. On the second night, a much better wine in my opinion - balance still leans toward acid, but much more typical with tar and blackberry flavors. Very tasty.
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7/19/2008 - kfr01 wrote: 87 Points
Nice fruit flavors on the attack - a bit condensed. A clean nose and a clean taste. The finish is a bit simple, but this is a very drinkable bottle of wine.
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7/17/2008 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
Jumpy pure cherry right out of the glass. This is shockingly delicious. I didn't remember this thing being so good. Wow, really quite tasty.
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6/24/2008 - jdoakpark wrote: 88 Points
nice
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6/15/2008 - wastedphd wrote: 92 Points
i thought this was really, really good. Dark fruits, a bit of leather and earth to balance. It was very nice, typical from La Spinetta.
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5/16/2008 - Ibetian wrote: 87 Points
My immediate reaction to the nose was red cherries. Secondary notes include mocha and spices, and I agree with swirls noted by others below. The nose is clearly better than the palate to me, with slight bitterness and a short, not entirely pleasant finish. A decent wine with a good nose for the price, but I won't buy more than the 2 bottles I've already tried.
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5/16/2008 - nschmidt wrote: 88 Points
Enjoyed with dinner at Leone's. Very nice Barbera. Not at the level of the Conterno but almost half the price.
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5/13/2008 - PDEVIN wrote:
Got better after an hour but big bold.
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4/26/2008 - Italiana wrote: 89 Points
Drank over two nights. First night, lots of fruit aromas, but very sharp tasting. Smoothed out by night two. Quite enjoyable both nights, with an edge to night two. At the price, wish this wasn't our only bottle.
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4/24/2008 - LPskeleton wrote: 88 Points
Coffee plum stemminess meats and teas (brunello like w time open) figs, red cherry
Softer and plumper than 04 cherry tobacco combo again short stemmy finish 88+ for different reasons, starts plush but doesnt carry it to finish.
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4/17/2008 - warres wrote: 86 Points
A nice burst of early fruitiness (cherry-ness) was, unfortunately, followed and somewhat outlasted by a mild bitterness. Not the most complex wine but a nice drink once it aired a bit.
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4/10/2008 - Claudio161 wrote: 90 Points
LPSkeleton Visits the Windy City Barolo Tasting (Downtown Chicago): This was part of LPSkeleton’s visit to the Windy City. My tasting notes were based on drinking the wines from a Pinot Noir specific glass.
Sight: Medium dark red (darker than the 2004 of the same); Medium viscosity
Nose: Oak influenced vanillins; dark fruits; ‘smelled’ more balanced than the 2004
Taste: Less tannic than the 2004; Great flavors of cherry and mocha…. Stressing lots of cherry flavors
Overall: Fine wine. (90 points)
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4/10/2008 - KeithAkers wrote: 88 Points
LPSkeleton comes to town (chicago, IL): nose: bigger and racier nose then the 04 with ripe cherries, mocha tones, vanillians, with some herbs and earth tones underneath. getting more of an oak influence on this one as opposed to the 04
taste: nice and plush feel with tart cherries, mocha, herbal spices, and some fig and twiggy green flavors
overall: nice easy and smooth barbera with a nice filling feel on the palate. Again, I think the room temperature was messing with this as the acidity was a bit higher then I'm used to for a barbera, but that didn't bother me as much as it did for other people
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4/5/2008 - duchamp wrote: 90 Points
Dark ruby red, elegant and perfumed nose of wood, raspberry, black cherry and violets with hints of char and glycerin, wonderful on the attack with a perfect peacock like palate, suave but gripping, rich tannins, deep and satisfying, solid QPR
Opened up and became even more satisfying with air
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2/28/2008 - jdoakpark wrote: 87 Points
good with decent qualities....soft floral nose....fruity
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2/13/2008 - rjonwine@gmail.com wrote: 87 Points
Dark red violet color; earthy nose with a touch of prune; tight, black fruit, tangy palate; medium finish 87+ pts.
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1/25/2008 - VinLancaster wrote: 89 Points
C: Dark, rust edges. N: Soft fruit, light scents of earth and plum. P: Approachable, cassis, blue berries, ripe plum, some complexity. Finishes nicely with fruit & spicy plum.
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1/21/2008 - jdoakpark wrote: 88 Points
nice silky mouthfeel and lots of bright fruit.
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1/17/2008 - DLighto1 wrote: 88 Points
very solid barbera. silky mouthfeel in a modern style. Deep dark fruits, concentrated and pretty hedonistic. Points off for some overbearing alcohol, but a very enjoyable wine. A barbera to seek out undoubtedly.
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12/27/2007 - davidandrose wrote: 84 Points
Pop and pour: Two different wines. As soon as this was opened, it was quite pleasing. Somewhat simple, but a nice core of soft fruit over a smooth tannic base. 89pts at this time. However, within 45 mins the wine began falling apart. Not closing down, but minerality increased and it actually gained a slight effervesence that was off-putting. I'll admit that we're not Italian fans and bought this on reco from a friend, but we just didn't find anything here unless its to be downed quickly in a large group. And for that, I can do a lot better for the $$
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12/19/2007 - theoves wrote: 90 Points
Nice fruit and a pleasant taste of dark fruit. Long finish and some tannins so should age for several more years. Full bodied.
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12/14/2007 - LSussman wrote: 89 Points
nice with pasta and shrimp
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12/8/2007 - Veloman wrote:
Dark purple/ruby; lots of ripe red fruit aromas with a hint of something like menthol or mint; med-bodied, red fruit continues on palate with decent acidity/structure, plummy finish, noticeable ripe tannins. Will leave other 2 bottles alone for a couple of yrs.
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12/2/2007 - DanSm wrote: 85 Points
The nose is reminiscent of times in Italy. Sweet cherry flavors and floral notes. Below average QPR due to the oversupply of quality New World Merlot and Merlot-blends available in the US.
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10/4/2007 - Haltermr wrote: 89 Points
Rose and violets float above a core of sweet black cherry, followed by hints of tar and oregano. Fruity and smooth palate, medium low acidity, finishing with abundant but smooth tannins. Everythng a $25 Barbera should be, great with pizza. Really enjoyed this.
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