Aldo Conterno Conca Tre Pile Barbera D' Alba (Piemonte) 2012

We all know the story….boy meets girl, boy and girl fall in love….wait; that’s the wrong story. The story I’m talking about is that of the Conterno boys, little Aldo and Giovanni; whose differences on how the family's Barolo should be made; in the traditional style with long macerations, or in the modern style with a shorter maceration time, drove them mad…well apart at least. The Conterno brothers split-up back in the late sixties to create their own styles of Barolo, Giovanni (who continued to run the Giacomo Conterno Estate) produced the more traditional style of the two. Aldo Conterno, who continues to produce prized wines in a more modern vein, is known as the "King of Barolo" in Italy. Poderi Aldo Conterno is situated in Monforte d'Alba on the prized Bussia Soprano vineyard, in the heart of the Barolo region. His “Conca Tre Pile” is from a hilly area in Bussia Soprana whose main vines are Barbera with vineyards having a maximum age of 45 years. The barrels (“barriques”) in which the wine is aged are 100% made of new wood. Completely super-fantastic, delicious and smooth.  Fine drinking.

Vietti Barbera d'Asti Tre Vigne 2014

A great everyday Barbera from a brilliant multi-generational family winery. The grapes for this wine are grown in Agliano d’Asti in the La Crena site, with the oldest of those vines used for Vietti's Cru La Crena. The wine is vinified in stainless steel tanks, and at the end of the malolactic fermentation, the wine is moved into French oak barrels and Slovanian casks for 16 months, then into steel tanks 2 months before bottling. Unfiltered. A striking red/purple color, strong fruit nose, fresh acidity to perfectly compliment food, and a long, smooth finish. Albeisa bottle. Ooga-booga label.