2009 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco

I am not at all an Italian wine expert and I don’t have a ton of experience aging Barolos and Barbarescos. Historically I have been more into French wine but that has changed over the last half dozen years. This was purchased on release and stored 55 deg. Starting to brick around the edges (almost orange). I get a little (as best as I can describe) stewed prune flavor profile. Is this normal or could it have been slightly heat damaged? It does not seem damaged. Could it just be over the hill?

I have not had that vintage of the wine, but since 2009 was warmer year, it could be a characteristic of the wine.

As Justin said, 2009 was a very ripe year. I’ve found a number of '09s a bit cooked and hot for my tastes, though the Produttori wines rarely go in that direction. I haven’t had any of their wines since release, but I never bought any '09s.

Nebbiolo has a fairly bricky hue even when young, so that color is normal at ~10 years.

My note from a couple months ago mentions a roasted quality. I think the warm vintage is showing.

  • 2009 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco (12/12/2018)
    Aldo Vacca recommends drinking the 09’s so I figured I’d open one. I popped one open a month ago, and that one was corked, so I though I’d try another. Popped and poured. This has changed quite a bit over the last couple of years. Some rusty, orange color on the edges. The tannins have dissipated and the wine is soft and very drinkable. Some hints of smoke, leather and orange rind on the nose. I like how this smells. The fruit is on the ripe, candied, almost roasted side.

With air, a little more tannin emerges, and it becomes quite fruity.

I know the Classico is known to age for a long time, and I have no experience with these wines with more than 15-20 years of age, but I struggle to see how this might improve from here. It will certainly hold for a while, but I think I will drink these in the next few years.

I had the ‘09 Produttori Ovello in June at the winery, and it was also bricking. It did not seem stewed, but it was pretty close to peak drinking. That’s fast for a Produttori wine.

My note from may of 2018 (seemed a bit roasted, but with lots of air it came together):

Overall a lovely middle aged, warm vintage Barbaresco that despite some concerns is a lovely drink. Some cooked black fruit aromas were apparent immediately out of the bottle, but that dissipated with an hour or two. Really this wine still needed a lot of air. The warmth of the vintage was apparent with darker fruit… Sweet, dried black cherry and black licorice, garden herbs, and floral perfume. Further decanting gave it a very agreeable assortment cured meats, leather and dry flowers.

The palate was sweet black fruits, menthol, and a tingling bitter finish. Still a bit of lingering tongue coating tannin and some freshness

My first impression was that this was a clunkier vintage that won’t necessarily find its footing with more time in the bottle. Though Nebbiolo is tricky to predict that way, and time and air helped assuage those concerns. The next day the wine was even more ‘complete’ and balanced, with still gripping tannin.

definitely agree with this statement. 09 is a vintage that will likely be ready earlier than some others, but Produttori wines are typically not wines I am worried are going over the hill quickly. even the normales from the good vintages in the 60s and 70s are still doing really well from my experience.

Exactly. 2009 is an anomaly. Aldo Vacca said as much when I visited last year.

I drank this yesterday. It’s drinking very nicely but I wouldn’t be in any particular rush to drink them up.

I opened a 2009 Pora over the weekend. Lacked intensity, surprisingly so. Ready to drink, but disappointing.

Not sure what you were seeking, but Pora tends to be one of if not the lightest, most elegant of the riservas.

Elegant maybe, perhaps. But there was so little there there it would be hard to tell.

That does not sound like a proper bottle. Subtly corked perhaps?