NADA FIORENZO, BARBARESCO 'MONTARIBALDI'

PIEDMONT, ITALY 2014

Do yourself a favor - permanently etch the name of this Barbaresco superstar into your memory. The Nada family is an icon, one of those "legacy wineries that has won too many Gambero Rosso 'Three Glass' awards and scored 90+ in Wine Advocate and Wine Spectator too many times to count. Their bottlings of Barbaresco belong to the pantheon of Langhe wines" (Vintus). Their range of ethereal Nebbiolos will suit even the most discerning palates. Built on textural depth, the wines personify Barbaresco with a slant that is not quite traditional and not quite modern, resulting in a beautifully ripe and restrained style.
 

With three generations of the family currently working: Fiorenzo Nada, his son Bruno (nearly sixty years old), and Danilo, who is slowly taking over the reins and ushering in the new generation at this iconic estate, these wines are an ultra-pure expression of Barbaresco and a testament to the greatness of the region. As one of our favorite Italian critics, Antonio Galloni, notes, "Bruno Nada is one of the most underrated and overlooked growers in Piedmont...his are among the few wines that actually deliver on the vision so strongly advocated by the modern school in Piedmont, which is to say wines that drink well early and age." Farming 7 hectares of hillside vineyards in the commune of Treiso, they use no chemicals and pesticides on their two southwest facing plots that are tended by hand. The wine is aged in their cellars using no new oak, offering a purity of flavor with a characteristic Barabaresco elegance and finesse that is unmatched.
 

With Gaja and Giacosa's 2014 Barbarescos scoring 96-points at the $200 range, Nada Fiorenzo's Montaribaldi cru is in good company as it garnered a 95-point score for its 2014 vintage, and at just under $50, it's an absolute steal. A newer wine to Nada Fiorenzo, this wine comes from a vineyard in the Cru of Montaribaldi called Cascina Quinto. Located at the heart of the region, the vines are planted on a steep south-facing ridge with the perfect exposure and terroir for perfectly balanced, complex Barbaresco. Ranking at the top of the vintage, this is "one of the best and most privileged spots in that site" (AG, Vinous). A wine that is "just as impressive from bottle as it was from barrel..the 2014 possesses remarkable inner sweetness and resonance" and is an absolute must-have for Barbaresco lovers!