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2005 PIEDMONT WINE ADVENTURE: Heart & Soul of Barbaresco PIEDMONT: Harvest in Barbaresco Parallels to Burgundy As some of you know, Piedmont is the home of Italy’s most noble grape, Nebbiolo. Similar to Pinot Noir in Burgundy, Nebbiolo is difficult to grow, prefers particular soil/climate conditions, and the premier wines produced from it--Barbaresco and Barolo-- are made in very small quantities, and can be expensive. Like Pinot Noir, Nebbiolo is a great conveyor of terroir, and as in Burgundy, Piedmont vineyards are often delineated in tiny parcels with very distinctive characteristics that are transmitted through the wine. The more you know about the region, its wine, and its exquisite food, and traditions, the more the fascination grows. ALDO VACCA, Director, TWO BARBARESCOS: Tradition and the Avant-Garde
All over Italy, antiquity and modernity live side-by-side in harmony – so too in Piedmont, where traditional methods and technological advances co-exist with authentic, delicious results. The wine cooperative PRODUTTORI DEL BARBARESCO is the embodiment of tradition in the village of Barbaresco. Started in 1894 by a group of local growers who gave the Barbaresco wine its name, the Produttori is now a cooperative of 55 grower-members who get top dollar for their high-quality grapes, and share in the overall profits. Our friend, Aldo Vacca, the Director of the Produttori, carries on the traditions (his father Celestino was the former director), as well as continuing to improve the quality and the renown of their excellent wines. The story of the Produttori is Terroir. The Produttori is unique in Barbaresco in that it has substantial holdings in nearly all of the top cru vineyards– not just one or a few like most estates. This advantage enables them to present the clearest and most complete picture of the distinct characteristics of the terroir of Barbaresco. Further, the Produttori continues the tradition of aging in large oak casks, not new barrique, to preserve the true character of both vineyard and vintage. These are not wines created to appeal to a mass market, but are authentic expressions of a place. The nine crus are: Montestefano, Asili, Pora, Rabaja, Rio Sordo, Ovello, Moccagatta, Montefico, and Paje. Cru wines are made only in the best vintages, and are aged for nearly five years before release. The Produttori also makes a “base level” Barbaresco DOCG blended from the nine top crus and other vineyards across the zone, which we consider to be one of the best wine values in Barbaresco.
While the wine press heaped praise on the 2000 vintage, most critics and wine producers maintain that 2000 was just one (and not even the best) of six exceptional harvests, each with their own characteristics. With the 2001 wines of Barbaresco and Barolo just arriving in the market, there is a wide range of Piedmont wine for consumers to enjoy now or to cellar for 40+ years. During VINTAGES’ visit to Piedmont, we were fortunate to taste several older bottlings of Barbaresco from Produttori del Barbaresco, including 1967, 1976, and 1982. These mature wines show the greatness of nebbiolo, incredibly rich in aromas and flavor, very fine and elegant in style, and amazingly vibrant still with many years ahead of them. They underscored the tremendous aging potential of the recent vintages, since vineyard and winemaking techniques have only improved in recent decades. Produttori del Barbaresco Wines at VINTAGES
PRODUTTORI DEL BARBARESCO 1996 BARBARESCO RISERVA “PORA” $55 Vigneto Pora is located just southwest of Barbaresco, bordered by Asili and Martinenga. Pora produces some of the most elegant wines in Barbaresco, with silky fine tannins and beautiful, complex aromas. Until the 1999 and 2001 vintages, 1996 was the greatest vintage in Piedmont since 1971. Intense ripe fruit and color, firm tannins, very long finish. Will cellar gracefully for 20+ more years. Aged 36 mos. in large oak
PRODUTTORI DEL BARBARESCO 2001 BARBARESCO DOCG $38 Produced every year with nebbiolo from the nine top crus and other vineyards across the zone, this wine reflects the character of the vintage across Barbaresco. 2001 is a great vintage loaded with intense fruit and powerful tannins. Complex and long finish. Aged 18 mos. in large oak casks. Best between 2006-2020. Enjoy with rich pastas, meat, game and cheese. One of the best wine values in Barbaresco.
RENATO VACCA, winemaker at rising-star winery CANTINA DEL PINO in Barbaresco, bottled his first harvest in 1997. His 1999 BARBARESCO “OVELLO” won the prestigious “Three Glasses” Award by the Gambero Rosso, rare for such a new producer. Yet, Renato and his family have a long history in Barbaresco; his grandfather was a charter member of Produttori del Barbaresco, producing grapes for the cru “Ovello” Riserva Barbaresco from their prime hillside vineyards until 1996. The ties are even closer; Renato is a cousin of Aldo Vacca, the Produttori’s director.
PHOTOS: In Barbaresco at CANTINA DEL PINO: Left, Renato Vacca and his father Adriano empty buckets of ripe nebbiolo grapes into the crusher at the winery. Above, Renato with VINTAGES Carolyn Kemp. CANTINA DEL PINO makes a classic range of Barbaresco wines: their top-of-the-line Barbaresco “Ovello,” Barbaresco normale (made with grapes from Ovello and Starderi), Langhe Nebbiolo, Barbera d’Alba (old vines from Ovello), Dolcetto d’Alba, and the rare, lightly sparkling red Freisa. Renato is a modernist opting for small French oak barrels, instead of the traditional botti grande (large oak casks). But he also has a profound understanding of the supreme elegance and fine-grained quality of Barbaresco. You won’t find overly oaky wines; he never uses 100% new oak. His wines are always balanced, complex and fine. Produced in a clean, modern style, yet full of character and personality, Cantina del Pino wines emphasize purity of fruit, and ripe, fresh flavors that reflect their favorably-sited vineyards. It’s a small operation—Renato, his father, and a part-time college student handled the busy days during the harvest and produce just 3,000 cases per year. Cantina del Pino Wines at VINTAGES 2000 CANTINA DEL PINO BARBARESCO “OVELLO” $38 1,200 cases of this single-vineyard Barbaresco were produced, displaying all of the characteristics of the hot 2000 vintage. Dark garnet color, deep tarry and baked red fruit aromas. The palate shows captivating intensity and warmth, robust tannins and a long flavorful finish. Special case price: $29.99/btl ($359). 2001 CANTINA DEL PINO BARBARESCO $29.99 2001 is an outstanding, classic vintage for Barbaresco. In aging this wine, Renato uses 40% new barrique with light toast. The use of oak is for oxygenation, not for vanilla flavors. Ripe, chewy, and velvety nebbiolo tannins. A classic example of old vines Barbaresco that can be enjoyed now or cellared for 10+ years. 2003 CANTINA DEL PINO BARBERA d’ALBA $19.99 Renato’s Barbera comes from old vines planted in Ovello. It is a beautiful dark cherry color, with lush barbera fruit, excellent balance and richness of flavor, and a long, zesty finish. 2004 CANTINA DEL PINO DOLCETTO $14.99 After the rich and atypical 2003, the 2004 Dolcetto returns to a more classic Alba style – elegant, deep red cherry flavor with dolcetto’s signature bitter almond notes. One of the finest examples of Dolcetto for the price. 2004 CANTINA DEL PINO FREISA $14.99 VINTAGES EXCLUSIVE One of our favorite produ Renato Vacca in his new wine cellar.
Eric Broege admires the beautifully ripened Nebbiolo grapes from the prestigious Montestefano vineyard in Barbaresco. Grower Julio Rocca delivers his family’s harvest of nebbiolo to the Produttori’s winery. VINTAGES’ Eric and Carolyn visited the Piedmont region in September 2005 and were treated to the sights and sounds of an earlier-than-expected harvest! Tractors pulling loads of grapes rolled into the center of Barbaresco, where members of the Produttori del Barbaresco waited in line for their grapes to be weighed, analyzed for quality, and crushed. These ripe bunches of nebbiolo from the 2005 harvest will be pressed, fermented, aged and bottled – and ready for release in late 2010!
The old winery in the center of the village becomes a bustling center of activity during harvest, with tractors arriving around the clock to deliver their loads of just-picked Nebbiolo grapes. These growers are part of the Produttori del Barbaresco, a cooperative of 55 farmers in Barbaresco producing exceptionally high-quality wines. Notice the chestnut baskets -- made from chestnut bark stripped, dried and woven into baskets. In a sea of orange plastic containers, these baskets are as distinctive as the Montestefano grapes they contain.
These Montestefano grapes are destined to become one of the PRODUTTORI DEL BARBARESCO’s reserve wines, also known as “crus.” There are nine different crus, made with grapes from the nine top vineyard holdings. Reserve/cru wines are not made every year; only the best vintages are vinified into distinctive cru wines.
©2005, VINTAGES-Adventures in Wine ITALY ADVENTURE - 2004
Lunch with Fabrizio Ciuffoli at Poggio Bertaio
1997 "Toni" Montepulciano Ris. at Cataldi Madonna Winery
Amphora at Lispida »
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producers. 
barrels. 1,500 cases made. 
THE AVANT-GARDE: CANTINA DEL PINO
cers in Barbaresco. Known for their superb Ovello Barbaresco (at $38 one of the greatest wine values in Italy), RENATO VACCA makes a tiny amount of Langhe Freisa, a lightly sparkling red from the Freisa grape. Every September we implore Renato to send a small portion of his Freisa to VINTAGES- we find it simply irresistible! Offering saturated strawberry-and-flower flavors, it’s curiously refreshing, and perfect for the transition from summer to fall. Serve a bit chilled with antipasto or charcuterie.
Harvest in Barbaresco! 
