Barbaresco
The Piedmontese DOCG zone of Barbaresco is responsible for some of Italy’s finest wines. It occupies the same region and uses the same grape (Nebbiolo) as Barolo, but is a third of the size (only 640 hectares versus Barolo’s 1,700 hectares). It is also 50 years younger, having produced wine labelled Barbaresco since 1890. It earned its DOCG in 1980, largely thanks to the efforts of Angelo Gaja.
The Piedmontese DOCG zone of Barbaresco is responsible for producing some of Italy’s finest wines. It occupies the same region and uses the same grape (Nebbiolo) as its bigger brother Barolo, but is a third of the size (only 640 hectares versus Barolo’s 1,700 hectares). It is also 50 years younger than Barolo, having produced wine labelled Barbaresco since 1890.
Barbaresco earned its DOCG after Barolo in 1980, largely thanks to the efforts of Angelo Gaja. The soils are lighter here than in Barolo – both in colour and weight – and more calcareous. The slopes are also less favourably situated and (relatively speaking) yield earlier-maturing yet extremely elegant wines that require less oak ageing (normally one year in oak plus six months in bottle). The appellation’s key districts are Barbaresco, Treiso, Neive and Alba.
Recommended producers: Cigliuti, Gaja, Marchesi di Gresy
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Bottle
£46.30
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Gaja,
For laying down,
Lustrous mid ruby. Quite intense nose of red fruit and oak and perfectly integrated. Still quite closed and backward on the palate with bags of powdery tannins. Powerful structure on the finish. Very long and balanced, yet undeniably oaky for the moment.
Walter Speller - jancisrobinson.com, Oct 2016
Walter Speller - jancisrobinson.com, Oct 2016
Case price (Bottle 6 x 75cl)
Bottle 6 x 75cl 3cs
£1,694.94
Case price (Magnum 1 x 150cl)
Magnum 1 x 150cl 2cs
£650.00
Case price (D. Magnum 1 x 300cl)
D. Magnum 1 x 300cl 1cs
£1,400.01
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Gaja,
For laying down,
Round, supple and succulent, the 2011 Costa Russi is laced with dark red cherry, plum, mocha, cloves and new leather. The classic Costa Russi personality comes through in a soft, gracious wine with tons of near and medium-term appeal. The Costa Russi captures an attractive middle ground between the ripe, pliant style of the year and the medium bodied grace of Nebbiolo. I expect the 2011 will offer a long and broad drinking window of pure pleasure. Although Costa Russi is often the most precocious of Gaja's single-vineyard wines, it is the last site to be picked.
Antonio Galloni, Vinous, October 2014
Antonio Galloni, Vinous, October 2014
Case price (Magnum 1 x 150cl)
Magnum 1 x 150cl 3cs
£415.00
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Gaja,
For laying down,
Just mid ruby with orange tinges. A little more fruit driven than the straight Barbaresco. Cherry and raspberry with a cool edge to it and the merest suggestion of oak. Beautiful, supple, mid-weight palate of red fruit, and complemented with quite demanding tannins, at least for the moment. Precise.
Walter Speller - jancisrobinson.com, Oct 2016
Walter Speller - jancisrobinson.com, Oct 2016
Case price (Magnum 1 x 150cl)
Magnum 1 x 150cl 2cs
£650.00
Case price (D. Magnum 1 x 300cl)
D. Magnum 1 x 300cl 1cs
£1,400.01
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Punset, Piedmont,
Ready, but will improve,
The ground was hotter in 2010, built up over the long season (as compared to the freshness of 2011), combining to give richer, more balsam notes. A longer, 35-day maceration, without the use of pressed juice, gave a sumptuously suave, free-flowing Barbaresco from the highest, Campo Quadro part of the San Cristoforo vineyard in Neive. There is a distinct distilled tea-tree, rosehip, clove and black-tea core to this gorgeous wine. It's got beautiful lines, very svelte with mocha or coffee bean, along with redcurrant skins.
Destined to be an engineer thanks to a family construction business, Marina rebelled and headed to the vineyards on the family’s 17-hectare estate overlooking Neive, following in the footsteps of her grandmother. Trained in viticulture, she turned the property organic in 1982 (certified in 1993). All the vineyards are grassed over, with the fruit being vinified traditionally in both cement and stainless steel, before being aged in a combination of used French tonneaux and Slavonian botti. She has three Barbaresco vineyards: Basarin, San Cristoforo and San Cristoforo Campo Quadro.
Destined to be an engineer thanks to a family construction business, Marina rebelled and headed to the vineyards on the family’s 17-hectare estate overlooking Neive, following in the footsteps of her grandmother. Trained in viticulture, she turned the property organic in 1982 (certified in 1993). All the vineyards are grassed over, with the fruit being vinified traditionally in both cement and stainless steel, before being aged in a combination of used French tonneaux and Slavonian botti. She has three Barbaresco vineyards: Basarin, San Cristoforo and San Cristoforo Campo Quadro.
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Roagna, Piedmont,
Ready, but will improve,
This is made with 55-year-old vine fruit from an exquisite site, right in the heart of a natural amphitheatre close to the village of Barbaresco itself, the soil rich in chalk. Blood-red colour, the nose seduces, as always, with gorgeous, sweet raspberry, kirsch cassis, a hedonistic, velvety texture – held tight with sinewy structure. The palate swells with sumptuous fruit, yet it is chalky and pure, sensational, with such detail – brimming with superlatives.
The father and son team of Alfredo and Luca Roagna are celebrating the completion of their new cantina in Castiglione Falletto, in the heart of La Pira vineyard, a prime location they’ve owned since 1989, but had bought fruit from since the 1950s. Both in their Barolo and Barbaresco estates (15 hectares in total), they pride themselves on their organic, grassed-over vineyards. They’re fortunate to have a wealth of oldvine fruit at their disposal which, of course, they vinify traditionally with extended maceration in large oak barrels.
The father and son team of Alfredo and Luca Roagna are celebrating the completion of their new cantina in Castiglione Falletto, in the heart of La Pira vineyard, a prime location they’ve owned since 1989, but had bought fruit from since the 1950s. Both in their Barolo and Barbaresco estates (15 hectares in total), they pride themselves on their organic, grassed-over vineyards. They’re fortunate to have a wealth of oldvine fruit at their disposal which, of course, they vinify traditionally with extended maceration in large oak barrels.
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Roagna, Piedmont,
For laying down,
The estate's most prized wine comes from a perfectly situated 0.52-hectare corner of the Pajé vineyard in the village of Barbaresco, whose old-vine fruit somehow conjures a wine of unbelievable beauty – especially with the superlative 2006 vintage behind it. In a word, sensational; this has cool raspberry and mulberry, the fruit's natural expression undimmed by eight years’ élévage. It seems to possess the same profound, deeprooted complexity enjoyed by the likes of Monfortino; yet it's more porcelain, more delicate and ethereal given its Barbaresco (and Roagna) DNA. Rose-water pure, with such harmony and purity, this is ‘drop-dead' gorgeous.
The father and son team of Alfredo and Luca Roagna are celebrating the completion of their new cantina in Castiglione Falletto, in the heart of La Pira vineyard, a prime location they’ve owned since 1989, but had bought fruit from since the 1950s. Both in their Barolo and Barbaresco estates (15 hectares in total), they pride themselves on their organic, grassed-over vineyards. They’re fortunate to have a wealth of oldvine fruit at their disposal which, of course, they vinify traditionally with extended maceration in large oak barrels.
The father and son team of Alfredo and Luca Roagna are celebrating the completion of their new cantina in Castiglione Falletto, in the heart of La Pira vineyard, a prime location they’ve owned since 1989, but had bought fruit from since the 1950s. Both in their Barolo and Barbaresco estates (15 hectares in total), they pride themselves on their organic, grassed-over vineyards. They’re fortunate to have a wealth of oldvine fruit at their disposal which, of course, they vinify traditionally with extended maceration in large oak barrels.
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£2,250.00
New To BBX
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£2,388.00
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Roagna, Piedmont,
Ready, but will improve,
At only 1.83 hectares, the Roagna family's plot of Pajé still represents nearly 50 percent of the entire surface of this fine Barbaresco vineyard. Close to the Tanaro river flowing by, refreshing the vines with cooling air currents, the chalky character of Pajé’s soil is expressed through its soft, red colour, a dreamy nose of peachy, red fruit, of charmingly pure, effortless, firm but fine fruit tannins, and an enchanting scent throughout.
The father and son team of Alfredo and Luca Roagna are celebrating the completion of their new cantina in Castiglione Falletto, in the heart of La Pira vineyard, a prime location they’ve owned since 1989, but had bought fruit from since the 1950s. Both in their Barolo and Barbaresco estates (15 hectares in total), they pride themselves on their organic, grassed-over vineyards. They’re fortunate to have a wealth of oldvine fruit at their disposal which, of course, they vinify traditionally with extended maceration in large oak barrels.
The father and son team of Alfredo and Luca Roagna are celebrating the completion of their new cantina in Castiglione Falletto, in the heart of La Pira vineyard, a prime location they’ve owned since 1989, but had bought fruit from since the 1950s. Both in their Barolo and Barbaresco estates (15 hectares in total), they pride themselves on their organic, grassed-over vineyards. They’re fortunate to have a wealth of oldvine fruit at their disposal which, of course, they vinify traditionally with extended maceration in large oak barrels.
Bottle 6 x 75cl 2cs
£340.00
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£349.00
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£350.00
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Roagna, Piedmont,
Ready, but will improve,
Only about 1,500 bottles were made from Roagna's south-west-facing plot that adjoins that of Bruno Giacosa. The sandy talc element of the calcareous soil gives an intriguing clementine-skin character, along with rose-petal purity. Crunchy-cool poise, packed with harmonious detail, a glint of kirsch cassis and red cherry-stone, impeccably dressed; it sets the pulse racing.
The father and son team of Alfredo and Luca Roagna are celebrating the completion of their new cantina in Castiglione Falletto, in the heart of La Pira vineyard, a prime location they’ve owned since 1989, but had bought fruit from since the 1950s. Both in their Barolo and Barbaresco estates (15 hectares in total), they pride themselves on their organic, grassed-over vineyards. They’re fortunate to have a wealth of oldvine fruit at their disposal which, of course, they vinify traditionally with extended maceration in large oak barrels.
The father and son team of Alfredo and Luca Roagna are celebrating the completion of their new cantina in Castiglione Falletto, in the heart of La Pira vineyard, a prime location they’ve owned since 1989, but had bought fruit from since the 1950s. Both in their Barolo and Barbaresco estates (15 hectares in total), they pride themselves on their organic, grassed-over vineyards. They’re fortunate to have a wealth of oldvine fruit at their disposal which, of course, they vinify traditionally with extended maceration in large oak barrels.
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Roagna, Piedmont,
Ready, but will improve,
Also produced in tiny quantities, as all Roagna old-vine wines naturally are, the Pajé version remains true to the bright, cherry-red intensity of the denominazione (versus the paler colour for Barolo): it's open-hearted, engaging with joyful tea-leaf freshness, fabulous tension, fleet of foot, with ballerina poise and balance – a pearl of sweet red cassis.
The father and son team of Alfredo and Luca Roagna are celebrating the completion of their new cantina in Castiglione Falletto, in the heart of La Pira vineyard, a prime location they’ve owned since 1989, but had bought fruit from since the 1950s. Both in their Barolo and Barbaresco estates (15 hectares in total), they pride themselves on their organic, grassed-over vineyards. They’re fortunate to have a wealth of oldvine fruit at their disposal which, of course, they vinify traditionally with extended maceration in large oak barrels.
The father and son team of Alfredo and Luca Roagna are celebrating the completion of their new cantina in Castiglione Falletto, in the heart of La Pira vineyard, a prime location they’ve owned since 1989, but had bought fruit from since the 1950s. Both in their Barolo and Barbaresco estates (15 hectares in total), they pride themselves on their organic, grassed-over vineyards. They’re fortunate to have a wealth of oldvine fruit at their disposal which, of course, they vinify traditionally with extended maceration in large oak barrels.
New To BBX
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£995.00
New To BBX
Magnum 3 x 150cl 1cs
£1,050.00
D. Magnum 1 x 300cl 1cs
£575.00
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Special 1 x 675cl 1cs
£695.00
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Roagna, Piedmont,
Ready, but will improve,
It is fascinating to see how site and soil composure can play such a role is determining the fruit character and quality of the final wine. Roagna’s 0.22 hectare plot in Asili sits high up on a well-ventilated, sand and limestone site overlooking the river Tanaro below, which combines to give us a beautifully fine, scented, spicy red fruit nose, all prim and pretty, with prefect poise. Harvested on the 10th October 2009, it’s packed with intricately detailed groseille (red currant) essence fruit and pulsates with exciting energy. Very fine.
David Berry Green
Luca Roagna has captured the pure essence of one of Barbaresco’s aristocratic vineyards. This is the Musigny of Barbaresco, with the 50-plus year old vines producing a wine with an ethereal cherry and raspberry-infused nose. The wine has a powerful grace to it, with a sense of the sweet red fruit mid-palate before layers of black tea, crushed herbs, hints of mint and sandalwood add complexity. A star and a wine that will drink for 20 or 30 years should you choose.
Matthew Tipping - Private Account Manager
David Berry Green
Luca Roagna has captured the pure essence of one of Barbaresco’s aristocratic vineyards. This is the Musigny of Barbaresco, with the 50-plus year old vines producing a wine with an ethereal cherry and raspberry-infused nose. The wine has a powerful grace to it, with a sense of the sweet red fruit mid-palate before layers of black tea, crushed herbs, hints of mint and sandalwood add complexity. A star and a wine that will drink for 20 or 30 years should you choose.
Matthew Tipping - Private Account Manager
New To BBX
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£660.00
New To BBX
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£995.00
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Carton
Magnum 1 x 150cl 1cs
£2,400.00
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Punset, Piedmont,
Ready, but will keep,
Typifying the refined, soft sandy and herbal character of Neive’s Basarin vineyard, one that lies at 320 meters above sea level, Marina’s 2010 vintage is finely poised, but with darker presence; the nose showing neat cinchona bark, clove and strawberry fruit aromas. It is pulpy and sensual, with delicious rose-hip notes and pacy, broader, fleshy red fruit that stems from only free-run juice, the firm but molten fruit tannins providing ample support. The product of 28 days on the skins and 24 months in 100% large 25hl slavonian oak botti. Emphatic.
David Berry Green
David Berry Green
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£265.00
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Gaja,
Ready, but will keep,
The grapes for Gaja's flagship Barbaresco are sourced from 14 unique vineyard sites across Barbaresco. The wine spends an average of 12 months in barriques followed by 12 months in large wooden casks. A very elegant wine which ages well, it can be appreciated within a few years of bottling.
David Berry Green
David Berry Green
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£775.00
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£840.00
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£999.00
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Gaja,
Drink now,
The complexity of this classic Barbaresco is the result of combining Nebbiolo from 14 estate-owned vineyards. A wine of infinite finesse, it displays the hallmark Barbaresco nose of forest fruits, plums, licorice, mineral notes, coffee and tar. Gaja Barbaresco is known for its dense structure, full-bodied and complex finish rich in silky tannins. Each Gaja Barbaresco is the expression of its vintage and has a long ageing potential.
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£700.00
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Gaja,
Ready, but will keep,
Almost always the most powerful and austere of Gaja’s five single vineyard wines, it requires a longer time to fully develop. Highly concentrated fruit in addition to fine herbs, minerals and exotic spices. A very focussed, concentrated wine with a long, lingering finish and refined tannins, it has excellent ageing potential.
“Notes of honey, marzipan and kirsch; lots of rose-water, some Turkish Delight and orange blossom on the nose. The palate reveals graceful soft fruit, quite new-world in style, leading to a modern-Langhe style finish. Firm, but fine tannins on the finish, where the oak takes a back-seat to the fruit”
Gary Owen – BBR Fine Wine
“Notes of honey, marzipan and kirsch; lots of rose-water, some Turkish Delight and orange blossom on the nose. The palate reveals graceful soft fruit, quite new-world in style, leading to a modern-Langhe style finish. Firm, but fine tannins on the finish, where the oak takes a back-seat to the fruit”
Gary Owen – BBR Fine Wine
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Roagna, Piedmont,
Ready, but will keep,
This wine is effectively the ‘Ca d’Morissio’ of the Roagna ‘stable’: combining power, grace and longevity. Located just below the Roagna cantina itself, up on the left, in the heart of the village of Barbaresco, Crichët boasts the Pajé vineyard’s oldest vines, all grassed over, that serve up pitifully small (Michet?) bunches of great natural concentration.
Unsurprisingly Luca and Alfredo only make c. 2000 bottles of this wine a year; the 2004 was aged for 8 years in large oak prior to bottling. I was fortunate to try the 2004 vintage on two occasions in spring/summer 2013. It was a classic vintage, in the mould of 1982, ’88, ’96…with decades ahead of it.
Tasted in June2013 the wine struck me for its herbal aromatics, iron-fisted power, strident character, while in July it showed a meatier side, still very serious, refusing to reveal itself, with a deep-seated, rosemary scented brooding persona. The 2001 tasted alongside seemed more succulent and slight by comparison, while the 1982 remains totally fresh and pinpoint.
David Berry Green
Unsurprisingly Luca and Alfredo only make c. 2000 bottles of this wine a year; the 2004 was aged for 8 years in large oak prior to bottling. I was fortunate to try the 2004 vintage on two occasions in spring/summer 2013. It was a classic vintage, in the mould of 1982, ’88, ’96…with decades ahead of it.
Tasted in June2013 the wine struck me for its herbal aromatics, iron-fisted power, strident character, while in July it showed a meatier side, still very serious, refusing to reveal itself, with a deep-seated, rosemary scented brooding persona. The 2001 tasted alongside seemed more succulent and slight by comparison, while the 1982 remains totally fresh and pinpoint.
David Berry Green
New To BBX
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£3,000.00
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Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£2,800.00
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Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£1,000.00
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Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£1,500.00
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Gaja,
Ready, but will improve,
Crushed flowers, tobacco, sweet spices and red berries lift from the glass in the 2011 Barbaresco. Soft silky and accessible, the Barbaresco is already wonderfully open and expressive, as so many wines are in this vintage. Kirsch, hard candy and floral notes add nuance over time. The style is mid-weight and gracious, with gorgeous aromatic complexity and plenty of brightness, especially within the context of the year.
Antonio Galloni, Vinous, October 2014
Antonio Galloni, Vinous, October 2014
New To BBX
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£675.00
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Bruno Giacosa,
Ready, but will keep,
The 2004 Barbaresco Riserva Asili is even more compelling than the Rabaja. It floats on the palate with an ethereal core of sweet fruit that calls to mind a profound Musigny, but with the unmistakable structure of Nebbiolo. The perfumed purity of the fruit carries all the way through to the deeply satisfying, resonating finish. Made in a soft, seductive style, this remarkable wine is decidedly more approachable and easy to appreciate today than the Rabaja... Bruno Giacosa says his 2004 Asili Riserva will turn out to be just like his 2000 Asili Riserva, the wine he still thinks is the best he’s ever made. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2025.
Antonio Galloni - Wine Advocate - Oct-2007
Antonio Galloni - Wine Advocate - Oct-2007
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£2,500.00
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Punset, Piedmont,
Ready, but will keep,
Bought straight from Punset’s cantina overlooking Neive, Marina’s 2004 Barbaresco San Cristoforo ‘Campo Quadro’ perfectly reflects this classic, slow-developing Nebbiolo vintage. It was a textbook season, coming after the baked 2003, with rain at regular intervals, giving classically ‘shaped’ Barbareschi and Baroli.
As you would hope this wine, the top of her range, commands a wonderful presence, with delicate tea leaf and almost iron-like depth. Clos de Vougeot-esque? It’s certainly very assured, complete, with a deep garnet colour, and generous with constant, savoury, salato (salty) red fruit. Very impressive, with beef.
David Berry Green
As you would hope this wine, the top of her range, commands a wonderful presence, with delicate tea leaf and almost iron-like depth. Clos de Vougeot-esque? It’s certainly very assured, complete, with a deep garnet colour, and generous with constant, savoury, salato (salty) red fruit. Very impressive, with beef.
David Berry Green
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£295.00
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Roagna, Piedmont,
Ready, but will keep,
There is no mistaking the charmingly gentle, broad fleshy appeal of his Pajé wine from the two hectare single vineyard below his home in Barbaresco. It is so pure and delicate, with beautifully ripe tannins, pretty red fruit and a modest 13.5% alcohol. This is very much the family’s signature Barbaresco that can be appreciated relatively young, especially in this charming vintage.
(David Berry Green)
(David Berry Green)
Bottle 6 x 75cl 1cs
£775.00
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Roagna, Piedmont,
Ready, but will keep,
Asili is rightly regarded as one of Barbaersco’s and the Langhe’s great vineyards; a Vigna Grande (Grand Cru) site if ever there was one. Located high up, on an exposed ventilated steep slope overlooking the river Tanaro, there’s a predominance of lime-stones in this near vertical site. Consequently it’s completely different to the velveteen feel of Montefico; instead it’s more austere, sinewy, a bit po-faced you might think coming across it the first time, a mesh of crunchy stones, compact, square and profound…perfect material for a cellar then! Drinking 2017 – 2030.
David Berry Green
David Berry Green
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One of the oldest, and finest Barbaresco estates, Cascina Luisin is located close to the village itself, overlooking its prime vineyard of Rabajà. Son Roberto is gradually filling the shoes of his father Luigi Minuto: there has been a renovation of the large oak botti, with Austrian Stockinger oak, along with a new family reserves cellar for all those magnificent old bottles. Alongside the pretty Barbaresco Paolin and more structured Rabajà, this year we are offering the first release of their old-vine Asili.