The July 2023 Auction: Part 4
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1 / 2Lot 558
Estimate: $440
This auction has ended. Bidding is closed.
Collection name
Reviews
95AG
"The 2008 Barbaresco Riserva Montefico hits the palate with a blast of fruit intermingled with copious acidity and pure structure. Montefico shares a boundary with Ovello, and shows many of the structural elements typically associated with that side, but with more depth in its fruit, probably because of the southern exposure. The high altitude of these parcels ensures there is plenty of freshness and vibrancy. The Montefico is dazzling, but it will require considerable patience. Anticipated maturity: 2020-2048. Produttori del Barbaresco, one of the worldâs top cooperatives, has been making terrific wines for five decades. As good as the wines were in the past, my feeling was that at times the full potential of these sites â widely considered among the very best in Barbaresco â wasnât being fully captured. The Produttori must have thought the same thing. Beginning in 2001, the Produttori began incentivizing their member growers to cultivate higher quality grapes. At the same time, the winery began a gradual process of rotating out their large 100-hectoliter casks and replacing them with smaller 50 and 75-hectoliter casks. The 2008 Riservas are the culmination of all of that work. I have been anxiously waiting to taste the Produttoriâs 2008 Riservas since the end of that yearâs harvest, when Managing Director Aldo Vacca told me the Riservas would almost certainly be bottled. Two recent tastings of the entire lineup were more than worth the wait. Simply put, these are the very best young Riservas I have ever tasted from the Produttori. The wines will require considerable patience, but they are stacked and packed with tremendous concentration of fruit allied to structure. It is a vintage Piedmont drinkers love to love, where the individual signatures of each terroir are clearly delineated. Best of all, the Riservas remain exceedingly fairly priced considering the quality of what is in the bottle. Congratulations to Aldo Vacca, longtime oenologist Gianni Testa and the entire team at Produttori del Barbaresco for this magnificent collection of 2008 Barbareschi."
Region
Red
Country
Score
"The 2008 Barbaresco Riserva Montefico hits the palate with a blast of fruit intermingled with copious acidity and pure structure. Montefico shares a boundary with Ovello, and shows many of the structural elements typically associated with that side, but with more depth in its fruit, probably because of the southern exposure. The high altitude of these parcels ensures there is plenty of freshness and vibrancy. The Montefico is dazzling, but it will require considerable patience. Anticipated maturity: 2020-2048. Produttori del Barbaresco, one of the worldâs top cooperatives, has been making terrific wines for five decades. As good as the wines were in the past, my feeling was that at times the full potential of these sites â widely considered among the very best in Barbaresco â wasnât being fully captured. The Produttori must have thought the same thing. Beginning in 2001, the Produttori began incentivizing their member growers to cultivate higher quality grapes. At the same time, the winery began a gradual process of rotating out their large 100-hectoliter casks and replacing them with smaller 50 and 75-hectoliter casks. The 2008 Riservas are the culmination of all of that work. I have been anxiously waiting to taste the Produttoriâs 2008 Riservas since the end of that yearâs harvest, when Managing Director Aldo Vacca told me the Riservas would almost certainly be bottled. Two recent tastings of the entire lineup were more than worth the wait. Simply put, these are the very best young Riservas I have ever tasted from the Produttori. The wines will require considerable patience, but they are stacked and packed with tremendous concentration of fruit allied to structure. It is a vintage Piedmont drinkers love to love, where the individual signatures of each terroir are clearly delineated. Best of all, the Riservas remain exceedingly fairly priced considering the quality of what is in the bottle. Congratulations to Aldo Vacca, longtime oenologist Gianni Testa and the entire team at Produttori del Barbaresco for this magnificent collection of 2008 Barbareschi."
Have questions?
Italy grows more indigenous grape varieties than any other country and produces wine in all 20 of its regions. From Piedmont's Nebbiolo to Tuscany's Sangiovese, its finest wines pair structure and bright acidity with a strong sense of place.
In Italy's northwest, Piedmont is home to Nebbiolo, the grape behind the powerful, perfumed and long-lived reds of Barolo and Barbaresco. Fog-shrouded hills and calcareous soils define its greatest wines.
Produces Nebbiolo of slightly more elegance and approachability than neighboring Barolo, offering perfume, finesse and firm structure.
Produces pale but powerfully tannic and perfumed reds with tar, rose and cherry notes. The grape behind Barolo and Barbaresco, it is among the most age-worthy in the world.