2016 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Rabaja Riserva [WA98][V98]WS97][JG95+]

Producer: Produttori del Barbaresco
Region: Barbaresco, Piedmont, Italy
Varietal: Nebbiolo
Year: 2016 

Wine Advocate, 98 Points 

"Rabajà is known for its precision and extreme balance, and these qualities are especially pronounced in this excellent vintage. The Produttori del Barbaresco 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Rabajà is a gorgeous wine, and one that is offered at an unbelievably low price, especially considering the quality and depth you are given here. Sheer elegance is the impression you get upon first inspection, and the bouquet opens gradually to embrace wild berry, cherry, white stone, light spice, tar and hint of toasted hazelnut. Quite a few families contribute fruit for this blend: Antona, Arossa, Bianco, Casetta, Lembo, Lignana, Manzone, Vacca and Vezza. 12,826 bottles were made this vintage." 

Vinous, 98 Points 

"The 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Rabajà is brooding in its intensity. Swaths of tannin, acid and mineral notes infuse the 2016 with striking gravitas. A wine of staggering proportion and breathtaking beauty, the Rabajà is the sort of wine I wish every Vinous reader could taste because it captures the essence of place and vintage with so much pedigree and so much class. Black cherry, sage, crushed rocks, menthol and lavender are some of the many nuances that linger on the eternal finish." 

Wine Spectator, 97 Points 

"There’s purity and definition to the rose, cherry, strawberry and spice aromas and flavors that are draped on an elegant profile, with a terrific mineral underpinning. Harmony and finesse renders this red approachable now, yet this should improve with a few years of aging. *Collectible*" 

John Gilman, 95+ Points 

"The 2016 Barbaresco “Rabajà” Riserva from the Produttori del Barbaresco is everything one would expect from the synthesis of one of the world’s greatest red wine terroirs and a great vintage. The bouquet is youthful, but already very complex, wafting from the glass in a precise blend of red and black cherries, sweet dark berries, fresh herb tones (mostly bay leaf and sage), roasted meats, a very complex base of soil, woodsmoke, licorice and a spicy topnote that seems likely to shade towards curry with further bottle age. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, chewy and impeccably balanced, with a rock solid core, ripe, firm tannins, tangy acids and stunning length and grip on the nascently complex, extremely promising finish. This will be brilliant wine once it is ready to drink, but it is a long-distance runner and will need many, many years in the cellar before it starts to properly blossom." 

Alcohol: 15% 

*Discounts do not apply to items like this one in the Fine & Rare category. Price and availability in store may vary.