Highlights from the 2022 Barbaresco Vintage

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Barbaresco

Barbaresco DOCG has four communes to Barolo’s eleven. The heart of the zone — the commune of Barbaresco itself — continues to be the heart of consistency for the DOCG. Proximity to the river; consistent altitudes, slopes and soils; and most importantly, institutional knowledge which has infused numerous multi-generational wineries, have all combined to make it this way.

2022 Morra Gabriele Barbaresco – Top Wine

     

What struck me about this wine (★★★★★) from long-time friends Gabriele Testa and Stefano Campaniello is the old-school nature of it. This is a vision of Barbaresco you only hear about from the past: restrained and measured, so floral and pretty. The age of climate change may have added more power and fewer green notes to Barbaresco, but experiencing this delicacy this early in a wine’s life cycle is very rare. Despite that, there was plenty of fleshiness to this wine — as well perfectly measured amounts of acidity and tannin, too — to lend it structure and poise. This is exceptionally skillful winemaking, with enough allowance for some natural surprises, like a trace of honeycomb on the nose, and minerality on the finish.

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2022 Castello di Verduno Barbaresco – Top Wine

         

Wait a second: what’s the famed Barolo village of Verduno got to do with Barbaresco? As is the case with many of the region’s historic winemaking families, the Burlotto and Bianco families behind this estate have ties to both places and produce wines from both places. This extraordinary Barbaresco  (★★★★★) is fermented in the village, and according to their importer, bottled and stored in Verduno, which is allowable under the DOCG rules. It is comprised of fruit from Faset and Rabajà, the latter being among the most beautiful vineyards in the zone.

What did I like so much about it? The ample amounts of sapidity, for one, which felt citric in nature as it zipped across the palate. But furthermore, the nose is iconic: wild cherries countered by pure tones of licorice, savory mushrooms and fresh mint. There is an even balance of Nebbiolo’s glorious elements here: the fruit supports the earthiness, the licorice seems to lend spice, the savoriness gives it a persistence and endurance that begs for cuisine pairings. “Who knew Nebbiolo could be seem salty?” I wrote in my notes.

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2022 Poderi Colla-Tenuta Roncaglia Barbaresco Roncaglie – Top Wine

       

Poderi Colla founder Tino Colla is the brother of Beppe Colla, who along with Gildo Cavallotto and Renato Ratti helped establish the original framework for the Barolo DOC in 1960. These wines have always shown an easy grace, as though they find their form intuitively. The Colla family’s Barbaresco property, Tenuta Roncaglia, takes its singular name from the historic and esteemed, southwest-facing Barbaresco cru of the same name. (Interestingly, the name Roncaglia translates to be pruning shears). The fruit of the 2022 (★★★★★) skews more towards a spectrum of raspberries than the usual Nebbiolo cherry, while gentle star anise tones complemented by light earthiness give the profile balance and intrigue. I thought this was simply a lovely wine: drinkable now, quenching, assertive and compelling, with excellent balance, refined acidity and soft, cotton-like tannins.

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2022 Luigi Giordano Barbaresco Montestefano

       

It can be a bit murky to sort out the distinctions from one cru to the next across the Barbaresco zone, but without a doubt, Montestefano has its hallmarks. It tends to offer up some of Barbaresco’s most intense wines, and many attribute this to the higher concentration of calcium in the soil.

Historic producer Luigi Giordano offered up the most profound Montestefano (★★★★ 3/4) in this tasting. Its beautiful blue-flower tones reminded me of the aromas often found in Barolo’s Serralunga d’Alba, but that nose is patient, refined and elegant, never over-eager. The wine kicks things up a notch on the palate: the acidity has quite a bit of acceleration, and the stern tannins and resounding finish feel far more intense than the aromas led on. I especially liked the earthiness on the finish, which felt distinctly like a product of the Langhe. “Nowhere else in the world do you get a finish like that,” I wrote in my raw notes.

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2022 Albino Rocca Barbaresco Ronchi

     

Adjacent to Montestefano is the lesser-known, east-facing cru of Ronchi, which Albino Rocca has a solid holding within. With climate change, there is increased interest in east-facing vineyards in the area, because they descend into shade in the late afternoon when it is often hottest. Albino Rocca’s 2022 from this vineyard (★★★★ 3/4) showed incredible precision and focus in a year where that afternoon shade was necessary. Aromas of cherries, dried mint and mushroom all come together like interwoven whispers, and this delicate and elegant wine maintains that refinement on the palate with brilliantly balanced flavors and controlled, cotton-like tannins. This feels like a wine with purpose, poise and a sense of direction.

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2022 Carlo Giacosa Barbaresco Asili

     

If there is one word to set a Barbaresco lover’s heart aflutter, it is Asili, often considered the single greatest vineyard in the appellation. Bruno Giacosa, Produttori del Barbaresco and Roagna make the most famous versions, but it is always good to remember that many producers have some rows on this great hill, and great wines can come from any of them. Such as Carlo Giacosa with this wine (★★★★ 3/4).

It offered a more modern taste of Asili than I am used to, as there were some oaky touches here and there, but they’re all very gentle and in service to the pure Nebbiolo character at play. The finish on this wine seemed to be the most Asili trait of all … like a sustained piano note.

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2022 Musso Barbaresco Rio Sordo

       

Amidst the 2022 Barbaresco, it was rare to find “a strong, silent type,” but that’s how Musso’s Barbaresco from the Rio Sordo cru (★★★★ 3/4) came across. Subdued and soft with enticing aromas of cherry and rose countered by a black tea-like highlight, this was a Barbaresco for Pinot Noir drinkers. While it was more elegant than powerful on the nose, the structure and alcohol on the palate felt confident and poised.

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2022 Montaribaldi Barbaresco Sorì Montaribaldi

     

Montaribaldi has a fairly large operation, with 19 wines in production total, but this Barbaresco from their eponymous MGA (★★★★ 3/4) confidently spoke of craft and precision. The nose was classic Nebbiolo, a trilogy of red fruit, earthiness and wild florality. I appreciated how measured, evocative and fresh it felt on the palate, and while there is still some complexity to be revealed, I was quite happy with how dialed-in and direct as this wine was. “Leads with licorice and citrus, finishes with astringent, wooly tannins,” I summarized in my notes.

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Neive

While fundamentally different in terms of elevation and size, Neive is in a way like Barolo’s commune of La Morra in that diversity is its greatest defining attribute — which makes generalizations a fool’s errand. Vineyards stretch from near the river at the Albesani MGA to furthest away at the Bricco di Neive MGA, and in between we find Barbaresco’s greatest diversity of soils. Many of the vines east of Neive have a sandier composition, which seems to yield a more sprightly texture.

2022 Ugo Lequio Barbaresco – Top Wine

   

The very best wine of the 2022 vintage that I tasted is this Barbaresco from Ugo Lequio (★★★★★). Normally this estate only makes a Gallina MGA and a Gallina Riserva wine, but in 2020 they debuted a standard Barbaresco made from younger vines. And goodness gracious does the 2022 sing.

This is classic Barbaresco, offering those aromatic highlights of grace and beauty and hedonism that only this place can provide. What was interesting was how a savory element mingled with the wines florality to create something memorable here. The cherry-like flavors were absolutely pure, and the balanced tannins and acidity had a superb persistence. This wine literally turned off my mind and had me thinking with my stomach for a moment — what more could you ask from a wine?

At the moment, Ugo Lequio only imports the Barbaresco Gallina from older vines into the United States. Let’s hope by publishing this, we give them a nudge to send some here.

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2022 Poderi Luigi Einaudi “Bric Micca” Barbaresco

   

Luigi Einaudi was the first president of the newly formed Italian Republic post World War II, and so he has a “founding father” status in Italy that looms large over this estate.

Poderi Luigi Einaudi has sizable land holdings across the Langhe, with 160 hectares total, and they produce 18 different wines. While the wines have always struck me as technically sharp and accurate, they’ve never thrilled me until I tasted the 2022 “Bric Micca” (★★★★ 3/4) in this blind tasting. With a forward mix of minty and mushroomy aromas, and just a faint trace of flowers, this Barbaresco feels classically styled on the nose. Well structured — and a bit burly on the palate — I felt like I could have easily been convinced this was a Barolo. In fact, that happened often during the blind tasting, likely because of those oppressively hot vintage conditions in 2022. Of the wines that came across as big and robust, Poderi Luigi Einaudi navigated it best.

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Treiso

The differences from commune to commune in Barbaresco are more subtle than we often find in Barolo, but there are some noteworthy differences with Treiso. For one, it is a slightly cooler climate thanks to the higher mean average of elevation, and the river comes into play less. However, I haven’t noticed too much difference in the wines commune wide because of this. Like Neive, the majority of terroir differences are on a vineyard by vineyard level.

2022 Ca’ del Baio Barbaresco Vallegrande

       

Ca’ del Baio’s wines always need more time than their counterparts, but that comes with a caveat: few wineries can better harness the power of Nebbiolo from Barbaresco as beautifully as the Grasso family of Ca’ del Baio do. With the 2022 Vallegrande (★★★★ 3/4) I found an assured and confident wine that doled out ample suggestions of fresh cherries, soft mint and anise seed on the nice, while following through with momentous, juicy acidity and omnipresent, assertive tannins. Even with all that power, it felt open and accessible, which isn’t always the case with potent Nebbiolo wines.

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2022 Orlando Abrigo di Abrigo Giovanni Barbaresco Meruzzano

   

Along with the Bricco di Neive MGA, the Meruzzano MGA lies the furthest distance from the Tanaro River. Orlando Abrigo’s single-vineyard wine from here (★★★★ 3/4) was — like Luigi Einaudi’s — among the most potent, powerful and austere wines in the blind tasting. It stood out to me for its remarkably savory character, its burly tannins and the incredible earthiness on the finish. This wine will take many years to settle into its most expressive form, but I found this combination of traits to be very promising.

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2020 Riserva

Here we are, five years on, still looking back on the globally weird year of 2020. With the COVID-19 pandemic putting much of Italy on strict lockdowns, the year will forever be remembered by winemakers for its operational obstacles as much as the weather. Already, the 2020 Barbaresco’s have been showing beautifully, as it was actually a fairly solid vintage despite the hurdles. Warm temperatures and cool nights led to good phenolic maturity and a slightly earlier harvest. The following three wineries are showcasing this vintage as a Riserva.

2020 Punset Barbaresco Basarin Riserva – Top Wine

     

This highly acclaimed estate only releases its Barbaresco as a Riserva. And why not? As a whole, Barbaresco always needs a little more time in bottle to show its best, and that is indeed what has happened with Punset’s 2020 Barbaresco from the southeast-facing Basarin cru (★★★★★). The purity of the fruit on display here made this wine standout significantly. It is a wine you want to happily spend an evening with, as it reveals complex layers of earthiness, soft herbs and even an edge similar to the spicy-vegetal feel of wild fennel. Despite its weight and structure, which is substantial compared to its peers, winemaker Marina Marcarino is able to preserve a sense of elegance, too.

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2020 Giacosa Fratelli “Vigna Gianmate” Barbaresco Basarin Riserva

   

Yet another brilliant wine from the Basarin cru, the 2020 “Vigna Gianmate” Riserva from Giacosa Fratelli (★★★★ 3/4) showed classic, seductive Barbaresco aromas: purity of cherries, soft herbs and delicate black licorice. That promise from the nose carries through to the palate, as the fruit is exceptionally pure here, with rich layers, vibrant complexity and coarse cotton tannins. If there was a critique, it was the emphasis on the alcohol in this wine, however, while amply felt, it didn’t interfere with the presentation and complexity. Give this wine another five to eight years.

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2020 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Ovello Riserva

     

Finally, we come to the great Produttori del Barbaresco, the legendary cooperative winery that has not only given rise to the Barbaresco DOCG, but which has redefined what a cooperative can achieve. I have an enormous respect for their work, but at times their wines can feel closed and very reserved in youth, which was once again the case with the 2022 Barbaresco Ovello Riserva (★★★★ 3/4). The classic notes on Barbaresco were there on the nose, but not particularly forthcoming: faint menthol and cooked mushrooms awash in cherry perfume. The wine is straightforward at first, with noticeably high alcohol, but then the earthiness and herbaceousness shows through the mid-palate, revealing a sense of promise. As always with Produttori’s Riserva wines, best to wait this out 10 years if you can, or seek out an older vintage. It needs time to emerge.

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Captions (all photos ©Kevin Day/Opening a Bottle)

Featured image: The entrance to Ca’ del Baio in the Treiso commune of Barbaresco. Top to bottom: a selection of top Barbaresco wines at ALBEISA headquarters; the Vallegrande MGA; the duomo of Alba; sunset and haze over the Rio Sordo MGA; vineyards near Treiso in the fall; Poderi Luigi Einaudi’s “Bric Micca;” the iconic tower of Barbaresco; Punset’s Barbaresco Riserva.

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Note: My travel expenses were largely covered for this trip, as I was a guest of the ALBEISA consorzio for the first several days. I did, however, pay for my own accommodations and coordinated transport to the wineries selected by me for the remaining days. Learn more about our editorial policies.