Longtime customers may remember us touting the wines of Scarpa years ago. Well, they were out of the market for some time, but are back with new vintages of old favorites. For those of you unfamiliar with the Scarpa wines, they are as “old-school” as it gets these days in Piedmont. The 2023 Barbera d’Asti Briccomora is a wonderful reminder of what really good Barbera was like pre-2000 before wineries started trying to turn them into 15% alcohol overripe behemoths. The nose offers enticing earth-driven scents with notes of red cherry and rosemary. The medium-bodied palate offers more of the same with correct, food-friendly acidity and a wonderful savory quality. This is the best deal in authentic Barbera we’ve seen in a long time. Enjoy now and over the next four years with mushroom risotto, sausages, burgers or any kind of pasta or pizza you can think of.
