I realize I’m opening this at a bit of an awkward time. But I was in the mood for Nebbiolo, and this was one of the few I had on hand.
This wine makes me a little sad. And not because it’s bad, but because it’s so good. It’s a very youthful, beautiful, lean, and linear expression of Nebbiolo. Red cherries, dusty florals, lively acidity, still relatively aggressive tannins, though manageable. I thought it was delicious, and there is a clear upside for years to come.
What makes me sad is how these Produttori wines have skyrocketed in price in just the past few years. Produttori used to be one of my reliable go-to producers when I wanted something that was reasonably priced that I knew would perform well. Now, the wines are still reliable, but no longer nearly as affordable. Other than the Langhe, these are firmly in “special occasion” territory. And as nice as this is, I don’t they’re worth $70-$80 or more.
The regular Cru is $35. You can find most of the 2017 Riservas for $60-65, including Rabaja. Yes, 2016 was often $80+ but that was because of huge demand for 2016. Multiple stores on W-S show 2014 ovello for <$65, which I don’t think is much higher than initial release.
I recall single vineyard bottles from PdB at just under €20 in Alba, which was probably ~ 15 years ago.
If you’re getting the standard Barbaresco for $30 I’d say that’s decent value and $25 is good value (in vintages that suit the buyer). It’s the single vineyard wines that for me have edged out of value, even on the numbers quoted for 2017 vintage. Whilst some of that is people taking the profit they can in the supply chain, the prices have also elevated in Italy. Still good wines - but no longer the bargain they were (IMO).
i think there was a really big price bump for 16 at some shops because it seemed like the rollout was very weird. like one store got it at a time. combined with the high demand, it meant that prices were really high every time a shop got it. i think that most people responded the same way you and I did, and so now some of it is sitting. the price has cooled off just a bit. the 16s even seemed like they kinda dragged other vintage prices up a bit for a while there, but all those other vintages sat at the higher prices. you can still regularly find 15s and 14s at release price that never sold.
one thing I would add though, is if it was a deal at $70 before, its really probably priced correctly at $85. with other nebbiolos topping several hundred dollars pretty regularly, can we really say that Produttori Riservas arent worth $90-100? sure, theyre not Guiseppe Rinaldi, or Mascarello, but but heck those producers base level Langhe is more expensive than Produttori Riservas at this point.
So… what bargains are left in Barbaresco (IYO)? La Ca’Növa? I liked the normale, although not as much as PdB, but haven’t tried any of my Montefico or Montestefano yet. Any others you’d recommend?
Comparing pricing from 15 to 20 years ago, and also in country versus exported bottles, and using that to assess current value is more than a little disingenuous.
At the winery or perhaps still in Italian enoteche - absolutely La Ca Nova. Paying secondary market prices for it resulting from Galloni getting over-excited as usual? Much less so.
My advice will sound rubbish, but the very best thing to do is to get yourself to the region and taste. That will help you make your own mind up on what’s value, but more importantly it gives you access to wineries that aren’t being bigged up by wine critics. When we visited La Ca Nova in 2012, they would barely have got a mention here. The wines impressed, as did the understated manner of the whole setup. That trip also allowed us to discover that Albino Rocca made a cortese that appealed greatly (as did their Moscato), whereas we might not have bought either blind, whilst another winery clearly liked new oak much more than us. We were also there for Barbaresco a tavola, which is a nice way to taste 20 different new vintage Barbaresco wines at the table with food. Making the effort to try beyond the well-known producers has served us well.
Failing that, find retailers that don’t just rely on buying in whatever the critics talk about, retailers that have the confidence in their own judgement and who actively refresh their books. That’s no guarantee that you’ll like the wines, or indeed be value for your money, but I do think they’ll have a better chance of being value for money than the critics’ darlings or hot new thing. Any value is quickly stamped out by the demand from their followers and the distribution chain making sure they get good profits when they can. One example was a local retailer selling the 2006 Serradenari Barolo for £21 a bottle up until about 3 years ago, seemingly cheaper than you could get it in Italy. Not a name that gets huge coverage, and one where the tannins demanded time in the cellar (and I like cellaring such wines). He was also the source of a brilliant 2011 Langhe nebbiolo from a very much under the radar Barbaresco producer that was a screaming bargain at £10 a bottle. CT says we got through 28 bottles of it, persistently going back for more.
There is often change in the region, with a new generation changing the approach, or new people setting out on their own. There will have been significant change since our last visit, with I’m sure some fantastic value wines to discover.
I feel you on the pricing for the Riservas, but how often would we say to ourselves:
$55 a bottle is stupidly low for it
Of course I wish I bought it by the case at those prices, but I also feel that the current prices will look very cheap within 5-8 years as well. The pricing is just kinda catching up to the quality imo
PdB Normale is still a bargain to me. Even the 2017 was very good qpr.
Not Barbaresco but all of these below fill that void for me and are great QPR
Ar.Pe.Pe. Valtellina Superiore Il Pettirosso (2016 is amazing)
Ceretto Bernardina Nebbiolo D’Alba
Tenuta Carretta Roero Riserva Bric Paradiso (keep an eye on Last Bottle for these… as they seem impossible to find in the US otherwise)
G.D. Vajra Barolo Albe
Schiavenza Barolo del Comune di Serralnga d’Alba
It is a solid rec! But he asked for a recommendation of a specific category. You didn’t have one, so you went to a different, albeit similar, category. Which is a in my book. How about a Barbera? They are from red wines from Piedmont too. Or even a Timorasso? That’s an Italian wine. Or maybe an Italian sparkling water? That’s a liquid from Italy. Is that feisty enough?
Thanks. Have a Verduno but haven’t tried it yet. I think there’s more “value” options on the Barolo side - I like Oddero (haven’t tried their Barbaresco), Vajra, Fenocchio, and F. Rinaldi.
![[scratch.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/4/42a16863a8714da3c1604419e3eb9206bb87aa50.gif "scratch"){kind=small}
![[wink.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/04707e6a7bbb03e0153e349d8a9270d30e1e9525.gif "wink"){kind=small}