Ca del Baio Barbaresco Valgrande 05
winery: Ca del Baio
Ca del Baio Barbaresco Valgrande 05 - Aromatic roses, cinnamon and licorice-accented cherry shows itself as fresh and bright on the nose. Austere on the palate, with structured black cherry and berry that presents a darker profile than the 2004. The most traditionally-styled of Ca del Baio's Barbarescos, the 05 Valgrande will age gracefully for well over a decade.
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate 90 points:
"The 2005 Barbaresco Valgrande is the freshest and most perfumed of these offerings. There is an attractive floral lift to the bright red cherry fruit as this wine continues to develop positively in the glass. The tannins remain a bit prominent, but the wine offers outstanding length and a pretty, refreshing finish. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2017.
It's great to see Ca del Baio and proprietor Giulio Grasso follow up their highly successful 2004s with this set of wines".
MORE INFORMATION
2004 Vintage Tasting Notes
Three Glasses (Tre Bicchieri) Top Rating from Gambero Rosso 2008 Guide to Italian Wines.
Three Glasses rating given to only 305 wines out of 18,000 reviewed!
The 04 Valgrande embodies everything I love about Barbaresco. Complex aromas of spiced vanilla, sweet fruit, leather, tar, and cedar with a gorgeously pure core of sappy cherry fruit with blueberry and plum accents. Plush fruit shows on the entry, with excellent grip on the lingering finish. This is truly an "utterly tempting" Barbaresco that can be enjoyed upon release (we've gone through a six pack at home already!) although it is built to age for more than a decade.
The 04 Valgrande received the highest honor in Italian wine, a Three Glasses (Tre Bicchieri) rating from Gambero Rosso 2008 Guide to Italian Wines. The signifiance of the Three Glasses rating cannot be overstated; the selection process is rigorous. From nearly 25,000 wines, just 1500 are selected for the Three Glasses taste offs. All tasting are blind.
Only 305 of the 25,000 wines were given the Three Glasses rating, of which the Ca del Baio was one!
Gambero Rosso writes: "The 2004 vintage saw (winegrower) Giulio produce three superlative selections, each with its owen well-defined personality... Three Glasses went to Ca' del Baio for an utterly tempting, admirably distinctive Barbaresco destined for significant evolution."
Suggested retail $52 - exceptionally good price here because this wine is direct imported to Oregon.
Wine Advocate says of the 2004 Ca del Baio wines: "These 2004 Barbarescos are by far the finest wines I have tasted from Ca del Baio. Hopefully they represent a level of quality the estate will be able to maintain going forward because the wines are terrific. Ca del Baio is located in Treiso, but has holdings across the Barbaresco zone, including a plot in the prestigious Asili vineyard. The estate favors a soft, fruit-driven style of Barbaresco that seems best suited to mid-term drinking."
