December 9,
2005 This wine is a trip to Italy in a bottle. It is a very well made Barbera from the Piemonte region in northern Italy, and this particular bottle made the whole evening just that much nicer. Barbera is a widely planted grape in northern Italy and it is often served as a table wine. When it is "just a table wine" it is sometimes rustic and a bit acidic. The acids make it go well with food, but also make it too tart to enjoy on its own. Not this bottle from Michele Chiarlo. This is a well balanced wine that pairs well with food or is pleasant to drink alone. We had it with roast pork loin.
I found a new new wine tasting chart that I am using these days, and I decided to try it out with this wine. I scored it a 16.5/20 which translates to 91 points on the 100 point scale. This scale helped me focus on what I liked and where I saw weaknesses. For this Barbera it lost a point for not being big boold and fruity, but in fact that's how this wine is supposed to be made. It has 13% alcohol but is not hot or too acidic. The best thing about this wine? Well, the best
thing is that it tastes very good. A significant fringe is that
it sells for $10. I can't think of another wine that tastes this
balanced for this price. Those people who prefer big California
cabernets and zinfandels probably won't think it is as special
as I think it is. But give it a try, with food, with a pasta with
tomato sauce, and I think you'll really enjoy it. |
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This
wine is a deep garnet color, clear, with a soft aroma of raspberries
and cherries. It is medium bodied, very dry, with a taste that
develops over time. It isn't a big California fruit bomb, in fact
it is very subtle. But as you drink this wine it develops and
unfolds. 