Barbacarlo by Vasyl and Alessio

Sometimes, it happens. You find yourself in the right place, at the right time, and in the right condition. There was this small tasting at Mirali restaurant, after which the guys from Sabotage invited us to their work tasting, or rather, the after-party of that tasting. That beautiful wooden table at Cube was filled with a multitude of bottles not available in Ukraine. Seeing this, my friends only asked Ivan Om to make sure I got home safely, while they opted out of these Dionysian journeys to the depths of consciousness. As a simple person, I accepted the challenge.

Of course, the evening turned out to be long. Especially due to the good company, plenty of delicious wine and absence of curfew restrictions. Without referring to my notes, the event remains more vivid in my emotional memory than factual. But two wines stood out - a still Chardonnay from Cà del Vént and a powerful, syrupy wine from Barbacarlo. Since then, both have been on my radar, so when Alessio mentioned he was going to import Barbacarlo wines and Vasyl promised a tasting, I was genuinely excited about the opportunity to sample this winemaker's offerings again.

The story from here is simple and familiar. A cosy atmosphere at Lo, great company, funny stories, and interesting wines. Even power outages didn't disrupt the visitors' comfort. Either someone is attending church productively every Sunday, or we've done something good in a past life, but such evenings and opportunities feel like a gift. Especially now.

So, Barbacarlo. A legendary person who created legendary wines. Year after year, Comm. Lino Maga made two wines, the eponymous Barbacarlo and Montebuono, without changing the recipe or adapting it to the vintage's characteristics. Thus, his wines are completely different each year, which is an intriguing perspective on expressing terroir. The only difference between these two wines lies in the grapes. Barbacarlo is a blend of Croatina, Uva Rara, and Ughetta from their main plot on tufaceous and gravel soils. Montebuono, in turn, is a blend of Croatina, Uva Rara, and Barbera from vineyards on clay and limestone soils.

This time, we had the opportunity to taste two vintages of each wine. It is worth noting that Barbacarlo 2021 is a special commemorative release in honour of Comm. Lino Maga, who passed away before the New Year in 2021. This is the last release he was involved in, and it is the only time the label design has been changed (see photo).

Throughout the evening, we confirmed several things. Firstly, these are specific wines. Old-school, uncompromising, with a touch of an era that can only be uncorked in such wines or read about. Secondly, there is a drastic difference between vintages. Not in a bad way, but each bottle seems like a distillation of the entire year into one work. Thirdly, it's too early to drink these wines! I can only dream of what they will be like in decades.

The experience was great. So many thanks to everyone involved in this memorable evening.

Nicola Gatta Rosé de Noirs Brut Nature L09/22-E21 NV

Barbacarlo Montebuono 2020

Barbacarlo Montebuono 2019

Barbacarlo Rosso 2021

Barbacarlo Rosso 2020

Gino Pedrotti Vino Santo 2006

Raw scores