Barbaresco’s Soaring 2020s & 2021s

I was deeply impressed with the wines I tasted on my most recent trip to Barbaresco. Both 2020 and 2021 are terrific vintages with plenty of highlights. Best of all, so many wines remain reasonably priced within the context of today’s market, something that is increasingly evident as wines from other regions become quite pricey. THE 2020 GROWING SEASON & WINES The core of this report focuses on the 2020 Barbarescos. A dry winter and warm spring got the growing season started early. The year remained mostly warm and dry, with true summer heat appearing later than the norm by present-day standards. Temperatures remained warm throughout September, but by then, cooler evenings and nights began to set in, ideal conditions for Nebbiolo. Forecasts called for 20mm of rain on Friday, October 2. Instead, nearly 100mm of rain fell. Ordinarily, that much rain in the middle of harvest is not ideal, but temperatures cooled, and conditions remained benign for the rest of harvest. Growers who had already begun picking paused for a few days, but some pushed up their harvest dates to avoid the rain. The majority of the Nebbiolo harvest was finished within the first ten days of the month. In tasting, the 2020s are beautifully balanced. The wines show mid-weight structure and a fine sense of harmony. Although 2020 was warm throughout most of the year, there were no periods of excessive or prolonged heat, which likely explains why the wines are so harmonious, even in the early going. Overall, the 2020s come across as having less structure than the 2021s. It is a vintage of extreme pleasure without excess or opulence. --Antonio Galloni, Barbaresco’s Soaring 2020s & 2021s, October 2023 To take an in-depth look at the 2020 vintage, discover what makes a great Barbaresco vintage and look to the future, check out the full article on Vinous now . Enjoy a few of Antonio’s tasting notes below.