With its focus exclusively on Nebbiolo, all grown by its 53 farmer members within the commune of Barbaresco, Produttori del Barbaresco is a model cooperative making some of the best wines of the appellation today.
The wines are made in a traditional style, fermented in stainless steel and aged 30 months in large casks of 2,500, 3,500 and 5,000 liters. They are released after an additional six months in bottle. The single-vineyard riservas debuted in 1967; since 1998, there has been an incentive program for the growers to deliver the best-quality grapes.
I recently sat down with Produttori director Aldo Vacca in the office of Vias Imports to taste the 2019 Produttori del Barbaresco single-vineyard riservas from nine MGAs. The wines, bottled in June 2023, were tasted non-blind; formal blind reviews will be published later this year in Wine Spectator's Insider Weekly, as well as in the magazine.
“It’s crucial to have warm days and chilly nights in September, that’s what Nebbiolo loves,” explained Vacca. “The acidity stays there, the sugars accumulate and the aromas and flavors develop.” Two weeks in September, the second and fourth, were ideal, he said, with cool nights and warm days. The first week was too humid, and the third week was a little too hot during the nights.
In the end, the wines have beautiful ripe fruit, with plenty of red cherry, floral and spice aromas and flavors, with slightly darker fruit in certain crus. They also reflect their sites well, with round, balanced and charming Nebbiolos from the lower elevations (such as Pora and Rio Sordo), and more structured and reticent versions from sites with higher calcium content in the soils (Montefico and Montestefano, in particular).
Medium in body, the 2019 Produttori riservas are similar in character to the 2013s and 2017s, though not as austere as the former, nor as powerful as the latter. And they have the structure to age, especially the Pajé, Muncagota, Asili, Rabajà, Montefico and Montestefano.
2019 Produttori del Barbaresco Single-Vineyard Riserva Scores and Tasting Notes
We started with the 2019 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Pora Riserva. Each Produttori riserva bottle features the names of the grapegrowers on the back label; just three growers are responsible for the 2019 Pora. It’s round, boasting cherry fruit, with floral and white pepper accents, very precise and pure. This is charming and approachable, with lovely harmony (93 points, non-blind).
The 2019 Pajé is more delicate and reserved than Pora, offering rose and strawberry notes, with a line of firm tannins underneath and higher acidity giving tension. This has fine length and earth and mineral aftertaste (94 points, non-blind).
Rich and deep, revealing a darker expression of fruit, the 2019 Muncagota evokes black cherry and black currant. It's a tad brooding and dense, with fine length and more breadth to its tannins. There is some power here, but also reserve, and a long aftertaste (94 points, non-blind).
Rio Sordo is a warm site, with south- and southwest-facing exposures at low elevation, close to the Tanaro River. The 2019 Rio Sordo is round, with richness, delivering ripe cherry with hints of flowers, earth and spice; fine intensity and length (94 points, non-blind). Vacca noted that Rio Sordo is “an evolution of the Pora—bigger, riper.”
Ovello's northern exposed hillside is cooler. Its soils are diverse, but in general they contain more clay. The 2019 Ovello features macerated cherry, strawberry, rose hip and peppery spice, all the while vibrant, with dense tannins and a sturdy profile (95 points, non-blind). Its tannins are dense, yet better integrated at this stage than Pajé for example.
I find Asili always the most elegant and linear of the range. The 2019 Asili displays bright strawberry, cherry and orange peel flavors, very vertical and sleek. This has fine structure and finesse; it's the most closed of the range at this stage, but it's long, with terrific potential (96 points, non-blind).
The 2019 Rabajà is round and deep, with a beam of pure cherry, along the line of Pora and Rio Sordo, but it delivers more power and structure. This is complex, with a saline, mineral element, and it's super long (96 points, non-blind).
Montefico faces south-southeast, with cool winds from the north. The high level of calcium in the soil contributes assertive tannins and an austere character. The 2019 Montefico exhibits ripe cherry and raspberry flavors, rich, yet with a swath of dense, dusty tannins underneath, leaving a chalky feel on the finish. Overall, there's fine energy and persistence, with an underlying mineral component (95 points, non-blind).
Montestefano's soils also carry a lot of calcium, however, these wines tend to be broader, with better-integrated tannins. The 2019 Montestefano offers a lot of cherry, strawberry and mineral, backed by dense tannins. Somehow, this is gentler than Montefico, with accents of earth and wild herbs on the finish. (96 points, non-blind).
The 2019 growing season was uneventful, according to Vacca. Winter was dry, but not as dry as the previous two years. There was a good amount of rain in March and April. Summer was warm, occasionally hot, and by the end of August, the vines had reached a good point for the final ripening of the Nebbiolo grapes.
Two weeks in September delivered the ideal conditions for developing the aromatic and flavor profile of Nebbiolo, while at the same time achieving ripe tannins. Harvest began Oct. 8, and the last grapes were picked Oct. 20. Green harvesting hadn't been necessary in 2019, and yields were normal.
At a suggested retail price of $90, Produttori del Riservas single-vineyard Nebbiolos represent a tremendous level of quality for less than $100 a bottle, and they remain benchmark wines for the region.
