Barbera Shop Quartet
Barbera is one of the most versatile grapes on the planet. This flight features the more natural and elegant side of Barbera. Find out which bottle is your favorite!
Forlorn Hope ‘Queen of the Sierra’
Grapes: Barbera, Zinfandel, Tempranillo, Trousseau Noir, Mondeuse
Place: Sierra Foothills - California
Process: Fermentation was allowed to begin spontaneously with native yeast. Most lots were fermented separately due to different pick dates. All lots were pressed at dryness, averaging 14-21 days total time on the skins, and placed into neutral 227L barrique. After racking they remained in a combination of neutral oak and stainless steel until being bottled unfined and unfiltered. As with all Forlorn Hope wines, no new oak is utilized, and nothing was added to the must or wine (no cultured yeast, ML bacteria, water, tartaric acid, enzymes, nutrients, etc) with the exception of minimal effective SO2.
Family: At Forlorn Hope Wines, we love the longshots. We love the outsiders, the lost causes, the people/projects/ideas abandoned as not having a chance in the world.
We love the little guy because we’re all about tenacity, we relish a challenge, and – we admit it – we love us a good tussle. Taken from the Dutch ‘verloren hoop’, meaning ‘lost troop’, Forlorn Hope was the name given to the band of soldiers who volunteered to lead the charge directly into enemy defenses. The chance of success for the Forlorn Hope was always slim, but the glory and rewards granted to survivors ensured no shortage of applicants. These bottles are our headlong rush into the breach. Rare creatures from the limestone slopes of Rorick Heritage Vineyard, these wines are our brave advance party, our pride and joy – our Forlorn Hope.
Bottle: $27 | Glass: $12
Tenuta il Nespolo ‘Vino da Sete’
Grapes: Barbera, Freisa, and Sangiovese
Place: Piedmont - Italy
Process: The grapes are harvested in early September and immediately delivered to the winery to be pressed together. They co-ferment in stainless-steel tanks with indigenous yeasts and without pump-over or further manipulation. Once the cap rises to the top, it is racked off while alcoholic fermentation is allowed to continue without further skin contact. The wine is then aged for 4-5 months in stainless steel on its fine lees before being bottled in a one-liter with a crown cap.
Family: Luca Amerio is a youthful man whose quiet demeanor belies his inventive winemaking style. His family’s ancestral lands are situated in Moasca, a tiny village resting on the southern flank of the province of Asti. Moasca is that rare spot where Asti’s two iconic DOCG zones, Moscato d’Asti and Nizza Barbera, overlap. Now at the helm of his family’s estate, Luca draws from his family’s old-vine plantings in the heralded limestone-clay soils of Asti to produce both classic, appellation-based wines and fresh, appellation-defying bottlings. Chief among the latter is “Vino da Sete,” the estate’s edgy riff on vin de soif composed of Barbera, Freisa, and Sangiovese. Today, Luca’s professional training and his ingenuity are on thrilling display as Tenuta il Nespolo marches into a bright new era.
Bottle: $29 | Glass: $13
Fuso ‘TÉH’
Grapes: : Barbera (60%), Freisa, Grignolino, Bonarda
Place: Piedmont - Italy
Process: Certified organic : 7-9 day maceration on skins depending on variety; fermentation in stainless steel and elevage in stainless steel and cement tanks. Native Yeast Fermentation. Minimal Sulfur added at bottling.
Family: The inaugural release of ‘Tèh’ comes from the Russo brothers at Crotin, located in Maretto municipality in the far west of the Monferrato Astigiano wine area. White marine limestone and sandy soils here accent Tèh’s punchy raspberry fruit profile with an aspirin-chalk stamp.
A palpable tension on the mid-palate – between Barbera’s vertical acidity and Freisa and Grignolino’s grippy tannins - remind of the Italian saying semplice ma non banalé: ‘simple but not boring’. Such is the way of’ Tèh,’ a humble Rosso Piemonte wine with both soil and grape variety clearly etched.
…FUSO is our project to search for and bottle Italy’s natural and characterful daily drinkers. We work with farmers and producer friends who are committed to organic viticulture, low-intervention, and terroir-driven wines.
Bottle: $23 | Glass: $10
Poderi Cellario E Rosso
Grapes: 100% Barbera
Place: Piedmont - Italy
Process: Hand-harvested into small bins. Spontaneous fermentation. Ten days maceration. Aged in 100hl cement tanks for one year. Bottled with minimal sulfur (~10ppm) and without sterile filtering or fining.
Family: Fausto and Cinzia Cellario are 3rd generation winemakers in the village of Carru` on the western outskirts of the Langhe. The family believes in only working with local, indigenous Piemontese grape varieties and fiercely defends local winemaking traditions both in the vineyard work and the cellar practices. The Cellario vineyard holdings cover some 30 ha between 5 different vineyard sites covering the southern Langhe. With holdings in Novello and Monforte, the Dogliani plot is arguably the family’s most prestigious land and I would consider them Dolcetto specialists. Vineyard work is organic (soon to be certified) and all the fermentation take place with indigenous yeasts. Sulfur is only added in tiny quantities at bottling if necessary (a practice not common with a winery in this mid-size range).
Bottle: $25 | Glass: $11