MONBIRONE Barbera d'Alba 2017 [Monchiero Carbone] 75cl

 Medium Body, Dry (Barbera). DOC. Alc 14.5%.

Single cru red from most celebrated hill in Canale (home to the sanctuary of Our Lady of MonBirone) by prestigious winemaker and president of Roero wine consortium!

MEET THE WINERY: Click here to read more background on this family-run estate.

There are many styles of Barbera (from within Piedmont and also outside the region) but perhaps the two most recognisable are Barbera d'Asti and Barbera d'Alba. This wine, being a Barbera d'Alba DOC, offers a richer and more concentrated expression of the grape.

MonBirone is packed with red and black fruit flavours; rich and deep; some sweet spices and chocolate notes; very long persistent finish. This will be great with a rich dish and will also age beautifully in the bottle for years! It is a superb example of a truly complex Barbera d'Alba.

From the winery:

"Mombirone is one of the hills surrounding the town of Canale, easily reachable on foot from the centre of the town and historically known for the sanctuary dedicated to the Madonna of Mombirone on its summit.

The Mombirone cru is where the family’s wine-making tradition originated. In 1918, great-grandmother Tilde bought the first small plot of land, which had already been planted with Barbera, as the excellent results given by the vine grown on its clayey-calcareous soil were widely known even then.

Our vineyards are located around the top of the hill, with a surface area that has expanded over the years reaching now 4 hectares. The East, South and West exposure allows for consistent quality, because the different exposures even up the grapes’ ripening time brought by each vintage.

It is here that, after more than a century, our best Barbera grapes grow, producing Barbera d’Alba MonBirone, a powerful wine of great elegance and structure, thanks also to the age of the vines which are now over 40 years old. The grapes are normally harvested in the first 15 days of October; after the pressing the alcoholic fermentation begins, carried out in the traditional way for a period of 15/20 days. After the racking the wine is put into 228 litre wooden barrels where the malolactic fermentation and the aging, which can last between 15 and 20 months, will take place. After bottling the wine rests for about 6 months in our underground cellars and is then released on the market about two years after the harvest."

Winery notes:

Colour: dark and deep with intense ruby tones, enriched by purple reflections. Nose: excellent intensity and finesse with aromas ranging from underbrush to cocoa, with spicy notes (juniper berries) blending into fruity notes of morello cherry and plum. Taste: the entry shows a great stratified and complex strength, the alcohol ensures an initial softness immediately balanced by the acidity, which gives lightness to the fruity pulp. The finish is long and fresh and delivers good harmony between fruity and woody sensations.

Food pairings: its richness in alcohol and good acidity recommend its consumption with all meats prepared with long cooking, but also enjoyable with medium-aged cheeses.

LEARN MORE: Follow this link to a podcast by Wine For Normal People that's useful for understanding more about the grape BARBERA!

Psst! Don't miss the chance to try the CENTENARY release of MonBirone ... the 2018 vintage ... available as limited-production 75cl bottle HERE or magnum HERE.