Barbaresco Riserva 'Rio Sordo' Produttori del Barbaresco 2013

Barbaresco Riserva "Rio Sordo" from Produttori del Barbaresco winery is an elegant, pleasant-drinking red wine produced in the hills surrounding the town of Barbaresco, in the province of Cuneo, Piedmont. It comes from Nebbiolo vines from the "Rio Sordo" vineyard, an additional geographic mention located at an altitude of about 270 meters above sea level, on hills with a southwest exposure. The vines, which are trained using the traditional espalier method with guyot pruning, are planted on soils characterized by clay-limestone soils with veins and a sandy bottom. The winery is a historic social cooperative that can currently count on more than fifty contributing members and has about one hundred hectares of vineyards, equal to about 1/6 of the entire area of origin, exclusively planted with the Nebbiolo variety and managed with great care and attention to ensure a consistently high level of quality.

Riserva "Rio Sordo" is a Barbaresco made from grapes harvested by hand and carefully selected generally around the first ten days of October. The bunches, brought to the winery, are destemmed and softly crushed and then undergo alcoholic fermentation in the traditional way in stainless steel containers with maceration on the skins for about 30 days, with frequent pumping over and punching down. This is followed by racking and pressing of the skins, after which the wine is aged for at least 36 months in large Slavonian oak barrels and at least 12 months in bottle before release.

The "Rio Sordo" Barbaresco Riserva shows a beautiful bright ruby red color with slight garnet hues. Intense aromas of red fruit and ripe fruit appear on the nose, including cherry, black cherry, plum and currant, floral notes of red flowers and dried flowers, spicy hints of licorice, tobacco and a slight balsamic imprint. In the mouth, it is full-bodied, enveloping and fine, characterized by intact, well-calibrated tannins and a long persistence. This Riserva from Produttori del Barbaresco is perhaps one of the most approachable right from the start, a red of great refinement, integrity and balance.