Barbera is a grape I just keep coming back to. It can be a great way to try wines from top producers in Piedmont without forking out for Barolos and Barbarescos, and there's something so food-friendly about its flavour profile and snappy acidity. It is subject to a lot of differing interpretations, and this wine wasn't perhaps what I was expecting.
The brightness is in there, with some red cherry fruit, aromatic orange peel and mint aromas. However, it's overtaken by savoury aromas that dominate the nose - to be more specific, leather and clove. Brett is an element here, with a definite whiff of the stable which puts it over the 'complexity' threshhold into 'slightly off-putting'. The palate is punchy and chewy with forthright acidity and a lingering, gamy finish. It's good, but I would love to trade in some of those dry, old-school flavours for an ounce more charm and generosity. That's what Barbera is good at, right?
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