Small Growers from Barbaresco
A small journey to Barbaresco.
By Boris · Hosted by Serhii Bohatyrchuk
Of course, at heart, I'm a Hobbit. I enjoy sitting in my burrow, playing video games, eating delicious cheese, and drinking the blood of Christ, occasionally chasing it with something stronger. However, one cannot ignore the world around them. And in this world, many adventures sometimes deserve a response. Serhii set himself a task (likely inspired after tasting Piercarlo Culasso) to bring to Kyiv different Barbarescos from small family-run wineries, which are mostly consumed locally. So, everyone forges their own path. The ultimate destination was Lo Bar, an underground temple of Nebbiolo, where we met to answer an important question - are these small charming bottles worth the effort? To make it more interesting, we shuffled the wines and served them blindly in pairs (meaning we drank two bottles, then opened them - all to avoid overtaxing our brains trying to remember everything, but still wanted to keep the intrigue until the very end). The main six wines were known in advance, while Pajè and a bonus bottle from Vasyl remained a mystery until the end.
That was the adventure. And Serhii, through persistent emailing (what a gift that is), came back with a trove of stories from winemakers to share with us.
| Wine | WAVG | SD | Price | QPR | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Buteo 122017 Michael Gindl | – | – | – | 1,299 ₴ | – | |
 Cascina Alberta | 🥈 | 4.17 | 0.17 | 2 | 1,959 ₴ | 1.05 |
 Barbaresco Currà2016 Roberto Sarotto | #7 | 3.92 | 0.16 | 1 | 1,500 ₴ | 0.72 |
 Silvio Giamello | #8 | 3.75 | 0.11 | – | 1,701 ₴ | 0.48 |
 Barbaresco Pajè2016 Roagna | #5 | 4.00 | 0.23 | – | 5,500 ₴ | 0.44 |
 Barbaresco2020 La Vedetta | #4 | 4.04 | 0.13 | 2 | 2,045 ₴ | 0.79 |
 Cascina Masseria | 🥇 | 4.23 | 0.18 | 5 | 1,744 ₴ | 1.25 |
 Barbaresco Casot2020 Cascina Piccaluga di Abellonio Roberto | #6 | 3.99 | 0.11 | – | 1,744 ₴ | 0.76 |
 Cascina Chicco | 🥉 | 4.08 | 0.20 | – | 1,426 ₴ | 1.03 |
 Il Pettirosso2017 Arpepe | – | – | – | 1,799 ₴ | – |
Cascina Alberta Barbaresco Giacone 2020
Cascina Alberta is located in the Langhe region in Treiso and covers a total of 19 hectares, 7 of which are vineyards, and the remaining are meadows, orchards, and forests. It is a splendid project that originated from the passion for viticulture and the world of wine of two brothers. The project started in 2010, and it included the renovation of old farmhouses for new cellars. The winery produces 30,000 bottles annually, with only 5,000 dedicated to Barbaresco.
The winery practices organic viticulture. The vineyards are not weeded, allowing a variety of herbs and plants to grow. In the cellar, they avoid using selected yeasts and sulfur until after malolactic fermentation. The winery keeps barrel ageing in Slavonian oak to a minimum, as required by regulations.
In Treiso, harvesting is manual and done into small crates throughout October from vines aged 40 years, depending on grape ripeness. The vineyards' altitude is 350 meters, facing south and southwest, with a yield of 50 hectoliters per hectare. The soil is limestone, leaning towards sandy.
Upon arrival in the cellar, grapes are gently pressed. Fermentation starts with local yeasts in stainless steel tanks at a controlled temperature with daily pumping over 30 days. The wine then moves to large Slavonian oak casks for malolactic fermentation. The winery produces 5,000 bottles annually.
Cascina Flori Barbaresco 2020
In the early 1900s, a family of winemakers established Cantina Flori in Treiso, on the right bank of the Tanaro River. Today, four generations later, the family still produces classic local wines: Langhe Nebbiolo DOC, Dolcetto d'Alba DOC, and Barbaresco DOCG. The Flori family has always taken great care in managing their vineyards and cellar work, passing down their love and passion for creating exquisite Langhe wines. Currently, the work in the vineyards is carried on by 27-year-old Michael Flori.
Unfortunately, at the time of writing this document, the winemaker did not respond to any correspondence and did not provide any technical information. We hold no grudge. The tasting is blind.
Ah wait, the bottle was corked. So we replaced it with Roberto Sarotto Barbaresco Currà 2016. And also the winemaker answered all the questions just a few hours before the event. Funny world.
Roberto Sarotto Barbaresco Currà 2016
This wine was prepared as potential extra bottle or a replacement in case of cork taint.
Silvio Giamello La Licenziana Vicenziana Barbaresco 2020
Silvio Giamello is the owner of a winery located in Barbaresco, near the Vicenziana cru, from which the estate's name is derived. In the 1990s, Silvio took over his father's winemaking role and decided to shift the approach to making wine by using his own grapes instead of selling them to third parties as before. His wife Marina supports him in this endeavor.
The winery's vineyards, which cover slightly over one hectare, are located directly in Barbaresco at altitudes of 180-220 meters above sea level. The vines are 50 to 60 years old on average, with a small part of the vineyard replanted in 2017.
For the 2020 bottle, the yield was 6,000 kg per hectare, producing 5,500 bottles. The producer adapts the production method depending on the harvest to achieve the best result. For the Barbaresco 2020, after alcoholic fermentation with a 20-day maceration in stainless steel vats, the future wine is moved to Slavonian oak barrels of 20-25 hectoliters for 22 months of malolactic fermentation before bottling.
Roagna Barbaresco Pajè 2016
This famous wine requires no introduction, right? We popped it just to show the difference between the unknown producers of a small scale and something magnificent. Result? Well, you can see the board.
La Vedetta Barbaresco 2020
La Vedetta is a young company founded in 2016 by Marco and Swantje to revive Marco's family vineyards. With the help of his uncle Michele, an expert of Langhe, and winemaker Piero Ballario, they have been making modern and progressive wine.
Their vineyards are located in Barbaresco, in the Frazione Tre Stelle commune, at an altitude of 250 meters. The vines are planted with a spacing of 2.50×0.90 m and a density of 4,400 plants/ha. The vineyard area is 0.6 ha, and the average age of the vines is 30 years. They yield 7,000kg/ha, and their annual production is 3,600 bottles. The soil is marly and contains 15-20% fine sand.
The grapes are harvested in the first week of October, and the selection is done in the vineyard during harvest. The alcoholic fermentation occurs with spontaneous yeasts, followed by approximately 10 days of maceration in stainless steel tanks. Then, the malolactic fermentation occurs.
The wine is aged in 25-hectoliter oak barrels for about 20 months. Bottling takes place in summer, and the bottles are allowed to rest for at least 8 months before release.
Cascina Masseria Barbaresco Montersino 2020
Cascina Masseria is a family-owned business that has been running since 1960. It all started when Lorenzo Giordano and his wife, Justina, purchased a cellar. Initially, they sold the grapes they grew, but in the early 2000s, the third generation of the family decided to produce their own wine. The vineyard follows an integrated pest management system, which significantly reduces the use of chemicals. They strive the same in their cellar.
The Barbaresco produced by the winery amounts to approximately 8,000 bottles each year. For the 2020 vintage, 4,500 bottles were produced from the Montersino vineyard and 6,000 bottles from Montersu. The Montersino vineyard has 19-year-old vines situated at altitudes of 250/280 meters in different parts. The yield is 40 hectoliters per hectare. The wine is produced using prolonged maceration for 30 days under a closed lid at a controlled temperature, followed by ageing in barrels.
Cascina Piccaluga di Abellonio Roberto Barbaresco Casot 2020
Cascina Piccaluga, which means "pick the grapes" in the Ligurian dialect, was established in the late 1800s when a doctor from Genoa bought land in Altavilla, on a hill between Treiso and Barbaresco, and built a farm on it. In the early 20th century, Carlo Abellonio, who was initially a manager and later became the owner, planted the first Dolcetto and Nebbiolo vineyards. In 1996, Roberto Abellonio took over the business, significantly improving it by expanding the planting areas, production, and variety of cultivated grapes and wines. Currently, Cascina Piccaluga has approximately 10 hectares of vineyards, primarily located in Alba-in-Altavilla, Treiso, Barbaresco, and Santo Stefano Belbo.
The vineyard is located in the municipality of Treiso, at an altitude of 350 meters. Fermentation takes place in a temperature-controlled stainless steel tank, equipped with an automatic and computerized pumping system, for 15 to 28 days. After malolactic fermentation, the wine is aged in barrels for 26 months, 12 of which are in 400-litre French oak barrels, followed by 14 months in Slavonian oak barrels. The soil is clay-limestone, and the harvesting method is manual, with the harvest taking place in September-October. The bottle type used is albeisa.