Barbaresco, the truth behind these Italian wines.

Barbaresco, the truth behind these Italian wines. – Episode 85

September 6, 2006

Wines tasted in this episode:

Watch today as Gary responds to his viewers and tastes and reviews four Barbarescos from Italy. Arguably, not as well known as other Italian wines it’s still one of Gary’s favorites. More viewer questions answered and a new QOD.

72 Responses

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September 7, 2006

DaBear
Gary,

Great Episode, though, I had the Tenuta Carretta 2000 also, and did not get the same reaction as you did. But, I did have it with a Porter House Steak so…

Just a suggestion, Whatever team beats the Jets, your next episode following the Jets loss(often)- you have to wear a t-shirt of the team that beat the jets….even the Dolphins…
September 7, 2006

TimF
Gary — Great show. I haven’t tried very much Italian wine, but I’m going to be on a mission to do so from now on. I’m an avid reader of wine books — can your recommend a good one that focuses on Italy?
September 7, 2006

TimF
Zerokreap: Regarding your question… There is so much information about wine — one could spend a lifetime learning about it and still only know 5% of what is out there. So I think some people are mislabeled as wine snobs when in fact they are just talking about what they know and love. I think the real wine snobs are those that say, “oh, I won’t drink that kind of wine because it stinks!” People who look down on others for liking Sutter Home White Zin. People who thumb their nose at Pinot Noir from Sonoma because they will only drink Burgundy. For example, I was telling my local wine merchant that I really liked a bottle of Keller Estates Pinot I tried. He stuck out his tongue, made a sour face and said, “Blah. I hate Sonoma Pinots.”. Those are the real wine snobs. BTW – I don’t think I’m going back to that store…
September 7, 2006

Lawrence Leichtman
Also loved the episode as always Gary. Barbarescos have always been a puzzle to me though. I have gotten bottle variation from several of what would be considered top producers and at $30-50 price range I expect at least 2 bottles to taste the same. when the wine is bough from the same place such as Wine Library I don’t expect storage conditions or shipping conditions to be the issue so why so much variation? As for me I cork the bottle overnite and use a nitrogen based system for more than one day storage. If wine snobbery is an issue do a whole tasting of 2 buck chuck or Rex Goliath.
September 7, 2006

Chris Stan
MIRIAM, correction: Gary only scored one wine (Ugo) higher that Parker in this episode (#85). Gary scored the Cantina higher than the Wine Libray, not Parker. SORRY! The others are correct.
September 7, 2006

Chris Stan
MIRIAM, You stated that Gary never scores higher than Parker. Generally, Gary(the Chuk) does not score higher than Parker, but not always:

-Today’s episode included 2 wines (Ugo & Cantina) that Gary rated higher.

-The “Renard Tres Ninos” meritage in episode #76 — Parker-91, Gary-94.

-The “Berite la Joie” meritage in Ep #1 — Parker had as 95, Gary said he’d rate it higher.

NOTE: I keep a spreadsheet of all of Gary’s “Recommended” wines from each episode, so it was easy for me to look this information up. I’d be happy to send it to you.

TONY DUNN, awesome photos…can almost taste the grapes just looking at your photos…and GREAT website. Your very talented!!
September 7, 2006

Kai
Hi Gary,

Great show again. Thanks for give me so much pleasure.

1) Have you ever check out the “bottle” next to the “Wines tasted in this episode:” ? It looked more like a short bottle of beer rather than a bottle of wine which it symbolizes. That is about the only thing needed on an otherwise excellent revamped WLTV site.

2)Do you have any plans on tasting Del Forno – Amarone ? A 100 point wine rated by you.

Still watching everyday from Hong Kong
September 7, 2006

Peter
Another great episode full of surprises and courage! It must be tough not to make excuses for popular wines that don’t show well – but there is so much great wine out there. A search feature just on WLTV content would be really helpful (it took me a while to find the show with the Match 2002 cab as that wine was not listed). I am going to the Giant game this weekend, any wine suggestions? On second thought I better stick with beer…
September 7, 2006

Kevin Mark
Hi Gary,
you note somewhere near the end of the show the time the wines have been left open to breathe. It seems to vary from 2 to 3 hours. Is there a general rule for this? And more to the point, when most folks eat at resturants, they dont have wine uncorked for 2 hours which from what I understand means the wines will not taste their best. So should you avoid wines when dining out, only drink wine at home when you have 2 hours or what?
kampai, cheers, solute,
Kev
September 7, 2006

Tony
Zerokreap, here’s your answer to the snob question: http://wine-thoughts.blogspot.com/2006/09/why-column-on-wine.html.

I’m not a wine snob, and don’t think much of wine snobs. Wine is a wonderful thing to be shared and enjoyed, not treated as a means for acting superior and putting other people down.

Sure CdP is my favorite wine, and I could be plenty pretentious about that, but I enjoy wine too much. It’s just not something to get all serious about. It’s something to be happy and open and sharing about. If I ever get to the point where I only drink 100 point RP wines, please come over and shoot me.
September 7, 2006

Darlene O.
Great episode, as always. I’m a newbie, in that the wines you showcased today I have never tried. So, this weekend…:}
September 7, 2006

GabrielG
Nice show about the Barbarescos.
Question: Could you review wines from the Baja California region on your show in the near future?. Thank you.
September 7, 2006

MarcT
BTW…I’m having an issue getting my gravatar pic to show up…any tips? Am I an idiot?
September 7, 2006

MarcT
Gary, Great episode. I liked the hammer.
As for the color of the wines…I find that I can see what you are describing when you swirl the wine in front of your shirt (especially white shirts) so maybe you could swirl the wine in front of your que/QOD sheet. That would give the viewers a white backdrop to the thin layers of wine that occur during the swirl. Thus we could all get at least a better idea of what color you are describing.
Katie Couric has nothing on you man!!!
Keep up the fantastic work.
September 6, 2006

Panman
Gary,

Great episode. You have me totally intrigued by the Cantina Vignaioli Elvio Pertinace.
September 6, 2006

Kevin C
Gary, this is off topic, but I know you mentioned that you’d provide free shipping codes to the city of the teams that beat the Jets this year. How about some love for your city, NYC? If the Jets win, will WE get free shipping?

Thanks and I love those Italians.
September 6, 2006

Justin
Gary, great show. Nebbiolo is one of my new favorite grapes. I was recently introduced to it by a friend, and WOW! It was nice to see this episode, so Thank you for it!!

As for Zerocreap’s QOD I love wine for an everyday drink. I hate wine snobs and people that think wine is too good to have with just an ordinary meal. Many have heard me say I was a tasting room host before and still work for a winery. Well today, I was doing a favor for my brother and taking some of his business associates out for tasting in the Carmel Valley. Anyway, total wine snobs, and they were rude about it too. I have had many chances to drink very expensive and nice wines and yes I appreciate them, but I also can appreciate more inexpensive and everyday wines. The people I took tasting however didnt. Many of the wines I liked were spit out in disgust by the people I was with. Just sorta made me mad, but atleast they tipped me well for being a nice guy. I used it to send some wine to a friend in Florida for their birthday. Anyway wine is a wonderful and mysterious thing, and I love drinking it and learning more about it each day.
September 6, 2006

zerokreap (kw)
yeah jaye, like you, i started on the cheap stuff…rossi was my poison when i first began. i too really love the enigma that is wine…and because it takes effort to understand i feel as though i am involved in something bigger than just a drink…which of course makes me feel as intelligent and deep as one could possibly feel while drinking a substance (which is not too deep, but better than the thoughts that arise during a coca-cola). i am not quite sure what go tme into the good stuff…i guess the time i spent living in spain and backpacking thereafter helped…that was about 7 years ago and i have progressively learned more about this great drink.
September 6, 2006

miriam
Hi Gary,

Great show.

I’ve noticed that you’ll often rate wines lower than Parker, but never higher. Do you think he is just over-enthusiastic?

I liked in tonight’s show when you described Castellizzano as smelling like fungi, and then said, “It’s like sticking your head in mud. Not fun, guys.” Tee.

Thanks,
Miriam
September 6, 2006

GregS
Great episode. Made me want to go out and try a Barbaresco.

I agree will Joe (above) that the scoring system should not include the price. That is where the QPR (quality to price ratio) factors in. Considering price into the score only adds confusion. It seems obvious enough that a 90 pt wine that costs $100 woudn’t necessarily have a good QPR. I realize that this must enter you mind when coming up with the scores based on the gut feel, does it seem worth the money type thinking. Following this logic, a wine producer could change an 88 pt wine into a 91 point wine just by lowering the price, and maybe making even more money based on the good score. The scoring system also seems pretty broken anyways considering really only about 12-15 points of a 100 point system are ever used. What would represent a zero score? A glass of Allegheny river water?

As far as red wine storage, based on my experiences (average about $12 cab,merlot,shiraz), most of these wines get distinctly worse using GaryV method of corking on the countertop. Many become harsh and more alcholic after only a day or so. Sometimes really “tight” wines will actually get better. I have had good luck with using Bloxygen type products and the Vacuvin + Refrigeration methods. Alternatively you can decant into a smaller bottle the amount you intend to keep (up to the neck) and refrigerate. That works well also.
September 6, 2006

Jim J.
Tony:

KILLER pictures. Thanks for the link.
September 6, 2006

Jaye
Outstanding episode Gary. I was in WL this afternoon and spoke with “Jim” on the floor. I picked up some of your recently reviewed and recommended wines today and am looking forward to tasting them. I was hoping to find a nice Barbaresco while there, but no one I saw there knew what you were tasting today, so I decided to hold off. I may pick up a bottle of the ‘98 Cantina Vignaioli . . . Castellizzano next time I stop in.

Lovely pics Tony!

Zerocreap, thanks for taking the initiative and coming up with such a thoughtful QOD. I actually started drinking wine because I couldn’t stand beer or coffee, and I didn’t want to be a total loser in social situations. It started with the old B&J wine coolers, moving on to Beringer White Zinfandel and Rieslings. Eventually I started stopping in at wineries while on vacations, and then one day I tasted a well-aged Bordeaux. I was completely hooked and amazed how many variations there were in wine, and even how a wine can differ in taste from hour to hour, day to day, and bottle to bottle. The alchemy that is wine is truly unique in my opinion, and I can see myself being continously surprised and delighted with new sensations over my lifetime. I don’t think I drink or collect wine for “snob appeal” but rather as a student and admirer of the enigma that is wine.
September 6, 2006

Matty Van
one thing that I just realized is were up to episode 85 and how many entire regions and types of wine have not been a topic yet, just goes to show how much there is out there to try.

QOD from zerokreap – I dislike wine snobs, it is why I dont hang o ut on wine spectators message boards. Wine is something we are supposed to drink among friends and have a good time with…and thats it. To me my thirst for more wine knolledge is just so I can pick out the bottles that I and those around me will like, and I like discovering new things.
September 6, 2006

Ed R
Gary,
I agree point system based on dollar value is confusing, maybe you should continue saying it’s a good everyday wine or would make a excellent house wine. I know you covered CDP’s, any chance you will cover Northern Rhone? Not to mention I fully expect you to use one of my sign offs.
ED
September 6, 2006

Tony
Gary,

I think it makes more sense to people if 90 points equals 90 points at any price. Although I understand the motivation – “this is a great wine for $10; but that isn’t a great wine for $40″ – it’s easier overall for 90 point to just be 90 points.

Actually, I pretty much ignore your scoring system. No offense, but it doesn’t match anyone elses, nor does it really make a lot of sense. Here’s what I’ve taken away on your scores from watching you from the beginning:

85-87: Crap wine, a poor effort, not into it, unbalanced, sucks.
88: A decent, but not all that great wine. OK.
89: Pretty good, not mind blowing, but this is a good wine.
90: A really solid effort. Typically recommended, but some ambiguity. 90 points is probably your most used score, sometimes you love 90 pointers, sometimes you’re luke warm.
91: A really solid wine, to even great. At this point you start to be “a fan of this wine”.
92-93: Really great wines. Wow! You’re typically pumped about wines at this score and higher.
94+: Fantastic wines. You’re bubbling over with enthusiam about the wine.

So, like I said, I don’t give too much credence to your scores. Like joe said, its your DESCRIPTIONS that keep me watching WLTV. Well, that and your facial expressions. And your honestly. And enthusiasm. But not your scores. In fact, here’s how I score you (price independent):

Enthusiasm: 98 (a few off episodes)
Honesty: 100
Descriptions: 93 (some are better than others)
Facial expressions: 100+
Scores: 81

I know we all went around on scores many episodes ago, and personally, I would say to just drop them. They don’t mean much to me and they just give people something to argue about.

BTW, I got back from my wine tasting weekend. As you may know, I’m a landscape/nature photographer, and I spent a lot of time in the vineyards shooting the ripe grapes (here’s a link: http://adunnphotography.com/galleries/new.asp?date=9/5/2006). I’d never actually tasted ripe wine grapes before. I thought they’d be bland given that they’re not for eating. But wow! Wine grapes are amazingly sweet and tasty!! I’ve really never tasted anything so good. I spent hours walking through syrah and cabernet and zinfandel vineyards tasting the grapes and fell in love with wine all over again. It’s absolutely magic how you can take something so sweet and pure and delicious and turn it into this amazingly complex and delicous but totally different liquid.

I also tasted some pretty decent wines while I was there (and a lot of 85-87 point GV score wines ). There are some people doing some interesting things in the Sierra Foothills, especially with Rhone varieties. Just avoid the zins like the plague!

As always, keep it up Gary!

P.S. It was on August 9th (comment #15) that I first asked about heat and wine. It’s now 18 episodes and exactly 4 weeks later. The longer I wait for the heat episode, the better I KNOW it’s going to be. I hypervenilate just thinking about it! I think when you finally do the heat episode, my head will literally explode!!