2018 Moccagatta Barbaresco

2018 Moccagatta Barbaresco

2018 Moccagatta Barbaresco is a soft, fruity wine to drink now and over the next few years. Crushed flowers, sweet red fruit, hard candy and spice give this pretty, nuanced Barbaresco lovely inner perfume to match its mid-weight personality. In 2018, the Barbaresco includes fruit from Basarin, which was not bottled as the vineyard was recovering from hail damage suffered in 2017. Drink it over the next decade or so. 90pts Vinous

Responsible for some of the most elegant and age-worthy wines in the world, Nebbiolo, named for the ubiquitous autumnal fog (called nebbia in Italian), is the star variety of northern Italy’s Piedmont region. Grown throughout the area, as well as in the neighboring Valle d’Aosta and Valtellina, it reaches its highest potential in the Piedmontese villages of Barolo, Barbaresco and Roero. Outside of Italy, growers are still very much in the experimentation stage but some success has been achieved in parts of California. Somm Secret—If you’re new to Nebbiolo, start with a charming, wallet-friendly, early-drinking Langhe Nebbiolo or Nebbiolo d’Alba.

A wine that most perfectly conveys the spirit and essence of its place, Barbaresco is true reflection of terroir. Its star grape, like that in the neighboring Barolo region, is Nebbiolo. Four townships within the Barbaresco zone can produce Barbaresco: the actual village of Barbaresco, as well as Neive, Treiso and San Rocco Seno d’Elvio.