Annata 2019
This is a very typical Barbaresco, with a solid core of fruit. Lots of strawberries, cedar and chewy tannins. Full and structured. Excellent length, with the tannins kicking in at the end. This needs at least four or five years of bottle age. Try after 2027.
A pale and youthful ruby, the 2019 Barbaresco Pio is elegant and lifted with fresh raspberry, fennel, dusty earth, and orange peel. Medium-bodied, with fine tannins, and angular acidity, it has vibrant fruit throughout. with a spine of tension notes of wild strawberry and dried apricot, and savory salinity. Drink 2025-2040.
Annata 2018
Strawberries with hints of walnuts, asphalt and bark. Dried flowers, too. Full-bodied with fine, racy tannins and a very long, pretty finish. Refined tannins. Shows excellent length for the vintage. Beautiful now, but better in two or three years.
Pio Cesare excels when it comes to the classics, and this wine is one of those. The 2018 Barbaresco (released one year later compared to its peers) delivers some mild candied raspberry ripeness with lilac, tarry smoke, cedarwood and spice. The mouthfeel is silky smooth with softly integrated tannins.
A rich, earthy style, this red evokes cherry, raspberry, iron and tobacco flavors. Broad tannins announce the finish, yet this remains balanced and lingers. Best from 2025 through 2040. 2,500 cases made, 600 cases imported.
Annata 2017
Aromas of dried orange, berry and hazelnut with hints of dried flowers. Tar, too. Full-bodied with chewy tannins and a juicy finish. The tannins are very fine and integrated. Chewy and encompassing flow across the palate. Very structured. Try after 2024.
The 2017 Barbaresco Pio is dark, fleshy and intensely spiced, all of which make it quite appealing. I would give the tannins time to soften, but there is enough fleshiness to allow the 2017 to drink well for a number of years. Bright red-toned fruit, cinnamon, blood orange, rose petal and mint are all laced into the super-classic Nebbiolo finish.
The Pio Cesare 2017 Barbaresco is subtle and fine in personality, yet there is plenty of Nebbiolo elegance and complexity. Past vintages of this wine have shown enormous consistency when it come to their inner finesse, and this hot, more challenging vintage is no different. That's quite an accomplishment on its own. Tart cherry and cassis segue to spice, campfire ash, tobacco and dried lavender flower. Perhaps the tannic power of the wine is more robust but not by too much.
Annata 2016
Pio Cesare’s 2016 Barbaresco is, quite simply, everything Barbaresco should be. Medium in body and translucent, with a firm backbone of youthful Nebbiolo tannin, the 2016 is captivating from the very first taste. Rose petal, lavender, mint, blood orange and red berry fruit open effortlessly. This is textbook Barbaresco. I loved it.
The Pio Cesare 2016 Barbaresco offers a subtle approach to Nebbiolo with a silky and graceful presence. The bouquet shows a nice and fanciful embroidery of wild berries, blue flowers and white licorice. Yes, these are the standard Nebbiolo traits, and this classic wine strives to deliver nothing more and nothing less than varietal purity. Any signs of the oak have been neatly folded into the delicate fiber of this Barbaresco. The wine represents a blend of fruit from Cascina Il Bricco, San Stefanetto, Bongiovanni and Rocche di Massalupo. Some 30,000 bottles were made.
From the Cesare family's plots in the Treiso and Alba communes of Barbaresco, this 2016 is lively and red-fruited. its Bing-cherry flavors accented by notes of cedar, menthol and warm spice. Its freshness and taut structure suggest good ageing ptential
Fragrant with floral, steeped cherry and licorice aromas, this red is elegant and supple. The flavors are a touch darker, revealing black cherry, black currant, earth and tobacco. It firms up on the long finish, ending with the essence of sweet fruit. Best from 2023 through 2040. 1,600 cases made, 725 cases imported.
Sourced from the firm's vineyards in Treiso. The nose is pure charm and delightfully fragrant, with aromas of strawberries and violets. The attack is initially sweet and supple, but the tannins soon kick in. Right now, this is somewhat austere and lacks a little flesh, but it does have lift and piquancy. It gained in richness and texture with aeration, and still needs some time to harmonise. Long.
Delicate garnet; aromas of morel cherry, orange zest and hints of tar and sage. Medium-full with very good concentration. Beautiful varietal character, medium-weight tannins that are well refined, nicely intrgrated wood notes, very good acidity. Beauitfully made, with excellent harmony. Enjoy over the next 5-8 years, perhaps longer. One of the winery’s best versions of this wine in several years.
ANNATA 2015
Offers ripe, almost jammy fruit, featuring cherry, raspberry, licorice and wild herb flavors. Balanced, with a firm underlying structure and fine, spicy length. Best from 2021 through 2036. 1,600 cases made, 500 cases imported.
The Pio Cesare 2015 Barbaresco offers a mid-weight approach and a solid core of fruit. That dark fruit center is surrounded by supple but delicate tones of exotic spice, smoke, tar, licorice and crushed stone. This is a fragrant and elegant expression that drinks beautifully straight out of the gate. This is a classic Barbaresco with an easy and approachable personality.
A dense and layered red with plums, dried orange and lemon peel and a long and flavorful finish. Beautiful. Such impressive layers and a fantastic finish. Very exciting. Love the length. Available in February 2019. Drink in 2020, but already beautiful.
The label states: ‘Please don’t call it “Regular”. Pio Boffa doesn’t see this as a ‘basic’ or ‘regular’ bottling of Barbaresco, rather referring to it as the estate’s ‘classic’ bottling, as opposed to the single-vineyard Il Bricco. And it’s certainly ‘classic’ in outlook: the wine is maturated for 24-30 months is mostly large oak botti, with a small amount in barrique. Sourced from four vineyards, three of which are in Treiso – the most elevated Barbaresco village – this has very fine, ripe yet fresh tannins with some gentle, savoury-edged red fruits. There’s a slight strawberry plushness on the finish. A great match for lamb served pink. Drinking window 2019 – 2032
ANNATA 2014
Strains of sweet vanilla shine through the cherry, menthol and iron flavors in this austere, tensile red. Needs time for the fruit to assert itself, yet the aftertaste finds equilibrium. Best from 2022 through 2033. 1,600 cases made, 500 cases imported. (Sep 30, 2018)
ANNATA 2013
The 2013 Barbaresco sees fruit sourced from four separate vineyard sites across the appellation. The wine is aged in a combination of small and large oak barrel and is released one years later tan its peers. Those extra 12 months of a bottle aging have done a lot to improve the wine’s integration and elegance. It also gives the wine more immediate appeal. In fact, this Barbaresco is ready to drink pretty much out of the gate. The mounthfeel is silky and soft and the bouquet offers a continuos stream of small fruit, cherry and licorice aromas.
ANNATA 2012
The Pio Cesare 2012 Barbaresco offers evident fruit ripeness that takes away from the deeper complexity of the wine. This is an approachable expression of Nebbiolo with a simple delivery and a pretty bouquet that is composed of dark fruit, spice and herbal-balsam elements. Sweet tobacco and leather appear on the close.
ANNATA 2011
Pio Cesare’s 2011 Barbaresco is gorgeous. The super-classic bouquet laced with sweet red cherry, orange peel, mint, spice and white pepper is enticing. Generous and layered on the palate, the Barbaresco captures plenty of the warm resonance that is so typical of the year. The 2011 is a blend of fruit from several sites in and around Treiso mostly done in cask. It is the more traditional of the estate’s two Barbarescos and also less expensive than the flagship Il Bricco, but here I find more personality, charm and tons of the allure that makes Barbaresco so compelling. The 2011 should age gracefully for years based on its depth, but it is absolutely delicious today
A red with beautiful clarity and purity plus dried strawberry, mushroom and dried flowers. Full body, fine tannins and beautiful fruit. Makes you want to drink it now.
Pio Cesare’s 2011 Barbaresco is a tight and compact Nebbiolo that reveals an attractive level of aromatic intensity and energy. This is a well-composed wine that delivers wild berry, toasted almond and black licorice aromas. Softer fruit flavors appear on the finish. The wine is almost ready to drink now and in the medium-term. Drink: 2015 – 2026
ANNATA 2010
Perfumed and structured, this opens with a beautiful fragrance of intense violet layered with bright raspberry and balsamic notes. The palate has nice depth, delivering juicy wild cherry accented with vanilla, cinnamon, mocha and a note of Mediterranean herbs. It’s nicely balanced with bright acidity and firm tannins that give it an age-worthy structure. Drink through 2030.
Bright red cherries, plums, spices, orange peel, tobacco and leather are some of the many notes that meld together in the 2010 Barbaresco. Lifted and aromatic on the palate, the 2010 impresses for its balance and total sense of class. Firm tannins support the classic-feeling finish. All of the classic Nebbiolo signatures are on display. Pio Cesare’s Barbaresco is made from three sites in Treiso.
A refined, polished Barbaresco with strawberry, cherry and cedar character. Extremely elegant and pretty. Depth to it as well. Juicy and intense. Wonderful length. Wonderful finish. Better in 2015.
ANNATA 2009
Aromas of shaved chocolate, some nuts and red berries. Full body with compacted tannins that are soft and velvety. Serious intensity on the finish.Savoury. Black-truffle character. Chinese spices.
The 2009 Barbaresco is an attractive wine to drink over the next few years. This is an especially big, rich wine for the vintage. Sweet tobacco, leather, spices, menthol and dried cherries wrap around the incisive, powerful finish. The aromas and flavors are already a touch forward, which suggests the 2009 is best enjoyed sooner rather than later.
In true Nebbiolo fashion, the 2009 Barbaresco brings out all kinds of delicate nuances with licorice, tar, anisette and pressed rose. The wine shows elegance and nicely firming tannins that are smooth and fine. Pio Cesare has done a good job of taming down some of ripeness of the warm 2009 vintage.
ANNATA 2008
Juicy dark plums, tobacco, spicebox and leather all come together nicely in the 2008 Barbaresco. Proprietor Pio Boffa has crafted a lovely, mid-weight Barbaresco with enough juiciness to drink well for another decade, perhaps beyond.
A firm red with spices and berries and hints of cherries. Roses. Very stony. Full and chewy.
Moderately saturated medium red. Perfumed, high-pitched aromas and flavors of raspberry, redcurrant, rose petal, tobacco, orange peel and exotic spices. Juicy, dense and suave, with a light touch thanks to superb inner-mouth energy. Finishes firmly tannic, long and perfumed, with the structure for a slow evolution in bottle.
ANNATA 2007
The 2007 Barbaresco is a gorgeous, inviting wine graced with exquisite dark fruit and a supple personality. Fine tannins frame the fruit through to the finish. The Barbaresco is already quite open and accessible, but the tannins remain a touch firm and there is enough freshness in the glass to suggest the wine will be even better in another year or two. This is a very typical 2007.
This is racy and detailed, showing raspberry, cherry, floral and oak spice aromas and flavors. Taut and well-structured, with a lingering aftertaste of sweet fruit, spice and mineral.
Good full red. Aromas of dried flowers and menthol dominated by coffee oak; raspberry and currant slowly emerged with air. Sweet, lush and broad, with very good freshness of fruit. Finishes with substantial ripe tannins and good subtle length. ‘Two thousand seven is a great, forward, rich, plummy vintage, but not ’97-like,’ notes Pio Boffa. ‘You can drink the wines now with food but they will age.’
ANNATA 2006
The 2006 Barbaresco is an attractive, mid-weight wine. Red berries, sweet spices and crushed flowers are some of the nuances that emerge from this plump, juicy Barbaresco. With a little air, this is already drinking quite nicely. Sweet notes from new oak linger on the pretty finish.
ANNATA 2005
The 2005 Barbaresco is a very pretty wine that combines elements of flowers, sweet spices and dried cherries in a firm, structured style.
Rose petal and berry aromas follow through to a full body, with chewy yet velvety tannins and a long finish. Offers a serious depth of fruit.
ANNATA 2004
Bright and fruity, with plum, flowers and fresh mushroom on the nose. Full-bodied, with soft, round tannins and lots of stylish fruit. Pretty and refined. Has wonderful balance and richness. Best after 2010.
The 2004 Barbaresco is a beautiful wine endowed with expressive aromatics and an attractive core of ripe red fruit. Subtle notes of spices, smoke, tar and licorice add complexity. The wine possesses outstanding length and refined tannins that will only become more elegant with further bottle age. …Anticipated maturity: 2009-2024.
ANNATA 2003
The 2003 Barbaresco is sweet and perfumed with pretty notes of smoke, flowers, cinnamon and ripe red fruit. This medium-bodied, focused wine offers outstanding length and remarkable freshness for the vintage. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2018.
Fresh and grapey, with light plum and flowers. Full-bodied, with delicious fruit, vanilla and strawberry character and a long finish. Hard not to drink it now. Best after 2008.
ANNATA 2001
Shows some wood touches, but the fruit sings loudest in this light and silky yet tannic Barbaresco. Cedar and caramel notes accent cherries, herbs and spice. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2018.
The 2001 Barbaresco normale is a lovely effort that displays a classic, perfumed profile of roses, menthol, tobacco, wet earth and red fruits on a structured frame with excellent length and a nice sense of freshness on the finish. It should be at its best between 2009 and 2016. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2016.