Tasting Notes
A deep garnet hued Barbera with vibrant aromas of black cherries and prunes with chocolate and toasty oak undertones and a touch of mint. An abundance of vibrant red currants, black cherries and a touch of spice show through on the palate, which has a rich, voluptuous texture balancing taught acidity and fine oak tannins.
Producer details
This exceptional estate in the Monferrato hills was bought by Araldica in 1999. After 15 years of replanting, 60 hectares of the 102 have now been reclaimed and are in full production. The warmer, southwest facing slopes are used to grow Barbera, Merlot and Cabernet while those facing northeast give fresher growing conditions, ideal for aromatic varietals such as Brachetto and Moscato as well as Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir. The 'Il Cascinone' range is produced with grapes sourced from Araldica’s most prized vineyards, both on the estate itself and from other selected sites. Il Cascinone aim to make expressive, yet uncomplicated wines from good quality grapes. Attention to detail ensures the production of good quality wines.
In the vineyard
The Barbera fruit in Rive Barbera is sourced mainly from the Rive (Piemontese for 'very steep')and the Baldizzone vineyards. These vineyards are in the communes of Montabone and Castel Boglione respectively. The Rive Vineyard is situated at an altitude of 450m with south facing slopes and clay soils, producing low crops, around 50 hl/ha, from 50 year old vines. The Baldizzone Vineyard also faces south, but is more gently sloping, with 70 year old vines producing low cropped fruit from clay soils.
In the winery
The grapes for Rive Barbera are hand-picked, de-stemmed and crushed then inoculated with selected yeasts. The must is fermented in temperature controlled, stainless steel vats with pumping over four times a day. The wine is pressed just before dryness and then racked to a mixture of new (2/3) and one year old (1/3) French oak barriques, where it undergoes malo-lactic fermentation and is aged for 18 months. The wine is left to develop in bottle for 6 months before being released.
Food Recommendations
Mature hard cheeses, pepperoni pizza, gnocchi with pesto and sun-dried tomatoes, smoked gammon with onion mash.
