2016 Barbaresco Montefico Riserva

98 VM / 97 WA / 96 WS

This Riserva pours from the bottle with a medium dark appearance, showing more color saturation and fruit concentration than the other wines in this series. The Produttori del Barbaresco 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Montefico (with 10,136 bottles released) is a wine of power and density, and you sense this clearly in the aromatic determination and heft delivered here. (Like the other Riservas in this group, it clocks in at a 15% alcohol content.) The fruit tones veer toward dark purple and black, with plum and wild blackberries. There are earthy tones as well, with potting soil and iron ore. This wine plays its cards of volume and width with an expert hand, thanks to a blend of fruit from the vineyards of the Casetta, Grasso, Rocca and Vacca families.--Monica Larner, The Wine Advocate

The 2016 Barbaresco Montefico is a jewel of a wine. Freshly cut flowers, minerals, crushed rocks, rose petal and lavender are all finely cut. As always, the Montefico is tense and chiseled in style. Its sense of transparency is simply beguiling. Sage, mint and sweet pipe tobacco are some of the nuances that linger. The Montefico is a Barbaresco that will thrill readers who enjoy taut reds. It blends the fruit richness of the Montestefano with the verve of Ovello.—Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

There is some weight and richness to this red, allied to cherry and plum flavors. Flourishing notes of iron, tobacco and black pepper add detail, while the dusty, nervous tannins emerge on the long finish. Shows more structure today, yet this has all the components in the right place. Best from 2025 through 2047. - Wine Spectator

2016 Barbaresco Montestefano Riserva
98 WA / 98 VM / 96 WS

This is usually the last wine in this series of nine, representing the most powerful and concentrated side of the Nebbiolo spectrum as interpreted by Produttori del Barbaresco. The 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Montestefano (with 12,516 bottles released) is rich and darkly saturated, with a plush and opulent bouquet that is redolent of red berry, dried raspberry and candied orange peel. This is a blend of fruit from vineyards owned by the Gonella, Maffei, Marcarino, Rivella, Rocca and Vacca families. You feel the density of the wine on the palate, thanks to firm tannins and lots of extra fruit weight and texture. Despite that extra muscle (and the usual 15% alcohol content), Montestefano also shows a soft and especially enriched personality. --Monica Larner, The Wine Advocate

The 2016 Barbaresco Montefico is a jewel of a wine. Freshly cut flowers, minerals, crushed rocks, rose petal and lavender are all finely cut. As always, the Montefico is tense and chiseled in style. Its sense of transparency is simply beguiling. Sage, mint and sweet pipe tobacco are some of the nuances that linger. The Montefico is a Barbaresco that will thrill readers who enjoy taut reds. It blends the fruit richness of the Montestefano with the verve of Ovello.-- Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

Dynamic. Singed by licorice, the plum, black cherry, tar and iron flavors are dense and tightly packed with the solid structure. The fruit component offers great purity and an intense midpalate, followed by a strong grip of tannins on the finish. Best from 2025 through 2045. - Wine Spectator

2016 Barbaresco Ovello Riserva
97+ VM / 96 WA / 95 WS

The 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Ovello is the most severe and angular of these wines. It will appeal most to die-hard classicists. Chalk, white pepper, mint and sweet red cherry fruit all grace this chiseled, beautifully translucent Barbaresco. As always, the Ovello needs a number of years in bottle to reveal its charms, which in 2016 are many. It is a positively stellar wine in every way.-- Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

With exactly 16,090 bottles made, the Produttori del Barbaresco 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Ovello is another stellar experience in this series of nine single-vineyard Riserva wines from Barbaresco's most successful wine cooperative. The Ovello is quite sharp and defined in terms of its aromas of wild cherry, dried violet and powdered licorice. Those mineral tones are very clear in this classic vintage. However, the Ovello finishes on a slightly softer note (compared to the Pajè) with a finer and more approachable tannin. The blended fruit for this cru is supplied by the Audasso, Cavallo, Cravanzola, Gonella, Grasso, Maffei, Odore, Sarotto, Unio, Vacca and Varaldo families. --Monica Larner, The Wine Advocate

Opulent, this red combines cherry, plum, tar and tobacco flavors with a round profile. Menthol and wild herb accents emerge as do the muscular tannins on the finish. Overall, this is balanced and built for the long haul. Best from 2025 through 2043. - Wine Spectator

2016 Barbaresco Rabaja Riserva

98 WA / 98 VM / 97 WS

Rabajà is known for its precision and extreme balance, and these qualities are especially pronounced in this excellent vintage. The Produttori del Barbaresco 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Rabajà is a gorgeous wine, and one that is offered at an unbelievably low price, especially considering the quality and depth you are given here. Sheer elegance is the impression you get upon first inspection, and the bouquet opens gradually to embrace wild berry, cherry, white stone, light spice, tar and hint of toasted hazelnut. Quite a few families contribute fruit for this blend: Antona, Arossa, Bianco, Casetta, Lembo, Lignana, Manzone, Vacca and Vezza. 12,826 bottles were made this vintage. Monica Larner, The Wine Advocate

The 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Rabajà is brooding in its intensity. Swaths of tannin, acid and mineral notes infuse the 2016 with striking gravitas. A wine of staggering proportion and breathtaking beauty, the Rabajà is the sort of wine I wish every Vinous reader could taste because it captures the essence of place and vintage with so much pedigree and so much class. Black cherry, sage, crushed rocks, menthol and lavender are some of the many nuances that linger on the eternal finish.-- Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

There is purity and definition to the rose, cherry, strawberry and spice aromas and flavors in this red. Draped on an elegant profile, with a terrific mineral underpinning. Harmony and finesse renders this red approachable now, yet this will improve with a few years of aging. Best from 2025 through 2047. From Italy. - Wine Spectator

2016 Barbaresco Rio Sordo Riserva
96 WA / 95 WS / 94 VM

The 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Rio Sordo takes it up a notch if you consider the tasting of each one of these single-vineyard wines tasted in order. With the Rio Sordo, you really start to feel the textural richness and fruit weight that can be achieved with Nebbiolo in a great vintage. This vintage is compact and tightly woven together, suggesting a forecast for an extra long drinking window. The Alutto and Marengo families farm the fruit used in this blend. This wine will live long, and I love that touch of candied licorice that appears on the close (especially when you come back to the open bottle 24 hours later). Production is 11,355 bottles. –Monica Larner, The Wine Advocate

Eucalyptus, cut hay and licorice accent the cherry, plum and mineral flavors in this suave red. Firm and powerful, with assertive, nervous tannins and vibrant acidity. A bit jumbled today, yet there is energy and length on the finish indicating its future potential. Best from 2025 through 2045. - Wine Spectator

The 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Rio Sordo is a serious, somber wine. Black cherry, plum, lavender, spice and menthol show off the darker side of Nebbiolo to great effect. In most vintages, Rio Sordo is an easygoing wine, but not in 2016. Readers will find a potent, brooding yet mid-weight Barbaresco that screams with character. What a way to start this tasting!-- Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

2016 Barbaresco Asili Riserva
97 WS / 97 WA / 97 VM

Pure, exuding rose, cherry, strawberry, currant, mineral and wild juniper aromas and flavors. Intense and driven by the vibrant structure. The tannins are present yet refined, finishing long and resonant. A contrast of power and finesse. Best from 2025 through 2045. From Italy. - Wine Spectator

The Produttori del Barbaresco 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Asili (with 9,029 bottles produced) is distinguished by its elegance and the very smooth and silky delivery of fruit managed here. Seamless transitions are made between wild berry, blue flower, limestone, earth and crushed stone. The wine is expertly stitched together and ever so polished and glossy, just like a ruby gemstone. The Conti, Lembo and Viglino families take credit for supplying the Asili fruit for this blend.—Monica Larner, The Wine Advocate

The 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Asili marries power and sensuality the way only Nebbiolo can. Soaring aromatics, beautifully pliant red-toned fruit and tons of pure depth emerge in a stunning Barbaresco that captivates all the senses. Silky, refined and exceptionally beautiful, the 2016 is quite simply one of the most complete Asilis I have tasted from the Produttori. It is an unforgettable wine.-- Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

2016 Barbaresco Pora Riserva
95 WA / 95 VM / 95 WS

Starting off this tasting of new Riservas from Produttori del Barbaresco is the 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Pora. This is a beautifully elegant and silky wine with a soft entry of wild berry fruit, lilac and wild rose. The bouquet opens gracefully with a fluid, slow-building intensity that feels silky and delicate to all the senses. It holds back from showing any overt or determined level of power, remaining instead silky and smooth throughout. It treads quietly and softly. Production is 13,403 bottles, and fruit is sourced from the Dellaferrera and Manzone family vineyards. I came back to this wine 24 hours after the bottle was open and added one more point to my score.—Monica Larner, The Wine Advocate

The 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Pora is a brooding wine, its mid-weight structure notwithstanding. Iron, smoke, tobacco, cedar and dried flowers add a feral, earthy quality that is so appealing. Pora is often one of the more approachable Riservas in this range, but the 2016 is an exception. Readers should be prepared to cellar it for at least a few years.-- Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

This red is saturated with bright cherry, strawberry and currant fruit. Mint, iron, tar and green, vegetal elements peek through as this evolves on the palate through the long finish. Assertive tannins put the grip on the finish, yet the intense fruit will come forward with time. Best from 2025 through 2045 - Wine Spectator