Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco 2016 Double Magnum

WA 95 / W&S 95 / WE 95 / VM 94 pts 

WA: The 2016 Barbaresco is a tight and beautiful wine that will require more time to unwind and soften. This beautifully balanced vintage is characterized by a tight inner core of fruit that underlines the graceful aging capacity of these wines. The 2016 is shaping up to be one destined for long cellar aging. Now in its youth, the wine offers wild berry, rose and licorice aromas.

95 points Wine & Spirits
Wine & Spirits : This is Produttori del Barbaresco’s flagship wine, produced with fruit selected from their 54 growers, who collectively farm some 250 acres of vines, and it is a stunner in the 2016 vintage. It’s ripe and precise, the vibrant red fruit lifted by fresh floral scents and subtle spice. The tannins envelop that fruit like a soft leather glove, as brisk acidity propels the flavors toward a vertical finish. There’s no better bargain in Barbaresco, and with 22,000 cases produced, this should be on every serious Italian wine list and in every nebbiolo lover’s cellar.

WE:  Enticing aromas of violet, woodland berry, loose vineyard soil, wild mint and a hint of spearmint shape the intensely fragrant nose. The tense, young palate is still nervous but already boasts finesse, showing wild raspberry, crunchy red cherry, white pepper and star anise. Firm, refined tannins and racy acidity give it a linear, almost austere elegance, while bright acidity keeps it focused and balanced. *Cellar Selection*

VM: Outer quote mark The 2016 Barbaresco is a stunning wine with tremendous richness for this bottling. Ample, deep and powerful, the 2016 exudes pedigree and class from start to finish. I can’t remember a straight Barbaresco here with this much fruit density and unctuous richness, and yet there is more than enough tannin and overall structure to give the wine its classically leaning feel. A blast of sweet red cherry fruit, tobacco, menthol licorice and smoke hits the potent finish. What a wine!