Riconoscimenti

A solid and powerful Barbaresco with fantastic depth of fruit and layers of tannins. Full and so deep and focused, with great length and structure. Bark, berry, mineral and deep terroir and gravitas. Try after 2027.

There is a more depth to the 2019 Barbaresco Il Bricco, although it is equally potent in its expressive perfume of licorice, leather, turned soil, and wild berries. Medium-bodied, with more ripeness, depth, and purity in its notes of red berries, tea leaf, and turned earth, it is long and persistent and has a great finish with present tannins. Drink over the next 12-15 years. This is all about perfume and incense.

This is a very solid red for the vintage, with a medium to full body and extremely refined and focused tannins that run the length of the wine. Bitter-lemon, strawberry and spice flavors. Compact and long. Give it at least two or three years. Try after 2025.

The 2018 Barbaresco Il Bricco shows ample depth and intensity with dark fruit, smoke, toasted spice and cured tobacco. This is a production of 6,393 numbered bottles. This vintage shows a mid-weight approach with rich fruit weight and polished tannins.

The 2018 Barbaresco Il Bricco is a worthy follow-up to the stellar 2017. Menthol, licorice, gravel, incense and a range of deeply-pitched spice notes open first, but it is the wine's overall depth that I find especially alluring. Racy and complex, yet so refined, the 2018 has a ton to offer. Best of all, it can be enjoyed with minimal cellaring. It's a gorgeous Barbaresco that captures the essence of Treiso.

A rich, well-defined style, this red evokes cherry, raspberry, iron, menthol and tobacco flavors. Broad tannins announce the finish, yet this remains balanced, intense and energetic, with a lingering aftertaste. Best from 2026 through 2040.

Dried strawberries, ash, tar and dried flowers, such as roses, on the nose. Full-bodied and very tannic with powerful tannins and a savory finish. It’s spicy and intense at the end. A very structured red. Imposing tannins. Drink in 2024.

The 2017 Barbaresco Il Bricco captures all of the natural intensity of this Treiso site, but in a less forced style than in the recent past, which is a very positive development for this historic house. Readers will find a potent yet well balanced Treiso Barbaresco that hits all the right notes. Macerated cherry, spice, leather, tobacco and menthol build into the potent finish. The 2017 is just gorgeous

With fruit from the village of Treiso, the Pio Cesare 2017 Barbaresco Il Bricco shows a delicate and fine embroidery of small berry fruit, wild blueberry, blue flower, smoky ash and licorice. There is a tarry note in this vintage that is spurred on, I am sure, by the heat and drought of the summer season. Despite that extreme weather, the wine is gracefully contained and never too ripe or heavy.

A soft, fruity red with strawberry and smoke undertones, as well as spices. Full-bodied. Chewy, round and racy at the end. Very structured and linear. Give it time to open. Better after 2022 and onwards.

Intense aromas and flavors of cherry, strawberry, iron and tar are underlined by a steely structure in this linear, complex red. Balanced in its youthful way, with vibrant acidity driving a long fruit, earth and mineral aftertaste. Shows terrific potential. Best from 2023 through 2045.

The 2016 Barbaresco Il Bricco, from Pio Cesare’s vineyard in Treiso, is gorgeous. Sweet red cherry, kirsch, mint, cinnamon and star anise all flesh out in the glass, with an extra kick of warmth (not heat) that gives the wine a real sense of breadth. Best of all, the 2016 will drink well with minimal cellaring, although it certainly has the substance to age well for some time to come.

The Pio Cesare 2016 Barbaresco Il Bricco is a beautifully lightweight and lithe expression, with an enormously silky and subtle mouthfeel. Barbaresco is always a bit more open and accessible compared to Barolo, but this particular release of 7,000 bottles has benefited from an extra year in the bottle and has gained even more definition and traction in terms of mouthfeel as result. This wine speaks in long, slow and well-enunciated tones. Indeed, it whispers into your heart.

Only the most prized three plots from this lofty site are used for this cru, which is why production is no more than around 6,600 bottles. There's invigorating purity of fruit on the nose, with its poised raspberry and rose fragrance, and just a hint of sweet oak in the background. The attack is precise, showing good acidity that still needs time to integrate. This is a wine of elegance rather than power, and although there's still a slight grittiness to the tannins, they will soon resolve into a Barbaresco of charm and lift. Long, peppery, but polished finish.

Delicate garnet; aromas of tar, orange zest, morel cherry and sage. Full-bodied with excellent concentration. Excellent ripeness, very good acidity, ample wood notes, rich young tannins and notable persistence. The oak sensation is a bit strong now and this is quite rich on the palate and needs 2-3 years to settle down. This promises to be quite special in 10-12 years, and should peak a few years after that.

Red Rich and spicy, featuring cherry, plum and tar flavors, accented by vanilla and toasty oak notes. Firm and compact, yet balanced, this will need time for all the components to harmonize and find equilibrium. Best from 2021 through 2038.

From the Bricco di Treiso MGA, the 2015 Barbaresco Il Bricco is a rich and nicely layered red wine that shows the warm characteristics of the vintage with dark berry fruit, cherry and light touches of exotic spice. I paired this wine with lightly aged salami that worked beautifully, thanks to the oily nature of the food and the fresh nature of the wine. Some 7,000 bottles were made.

This shows phenomenal structure to it with fantastic linear tannins that take this wine deep and long on the palate. It’s buttressed by a beautiful balance of ripe fruit characterized by strawberry and orange-peel undertones. Chewy and focused. Needs four or five years to soften and show its true greatness. Available in February 2019. Try in 2022.

The Bricco vineyard in Treiso is known for producing solid, ageworthy wines. Combined with Pio Cesare’s use of stainless steel for vinification and then botti and barrique for maturation, the result is an elegant, fresh yet structured wine with hidden power. The broad palate has a chocolate edge to it, with oak astringency and plummy hedgerow fruit in tow. The fine, delicate tannins give grip but there’s a lovely juicy character just waiting to break out. If you need to drink this right away it deserves decanting. Approximately 5.000 bottles produced.

A beefy version, with rich, dense tannins, evoking flavors of cherry, wild herbs, menthol and tobacco. A hefty dose of oak adds sweet spice details and tannins. Needs time to absorb the oak. Best from 2022 through 2038. 450 cases made, 230 cases imported.

A beefy version, with rich, dense tannins, evoking flavors of cherry, wild herbs, menthol and tobacco. A hefty dose of oak adds sweet spice details and tannins. Needs time to absorb the oak. Best from 2022 through 2038. – B.S.

Coffee, licorice, leather and sweet spices are the main flavours, with ripe chery notes lurking underneath, all underscored by a mineral element. Best from 2022 through 2035. – B.S.

Concentrated aromas, packed with dark cherry fruits, savouriness and floral hint confirmed on the palate. Powerful and generous with a mineral, long finish.

Some 70% of the fruit harvested from this single vineyard goes to the classic barbaresco. The rest of the fruit is directed to the 2013 Barbaresco Il Bricco. Some 6,000 bottles are producted. This is a fantastic wine that offers a concise portrait of Nebbiolo from Barbaresco in a cooler vintage. The wine is a elegant and impactful with thick layers of cherry and fragrant rose at its core. It boasts a firm tannic structure. Those aromas soften as the wine warms in the glass to become more ethereal and elegant with time. Licorice, smoke and pressed violets appear on a second, more subtle wave of aromas.

The 2012 Barbaresco Il Bricco offers good structure and pretty aromatic layering. Having said that, this vintage does not seem to exhibit the same depth nor the sheer intensity of past vintages. The wine offers distinct, oak-driven notes of cinnamon and tobacco, and these tones will require more time to integrate and soften. Dark fruit and dried cherries remain at its core. The mouthfeel is shapely and generous.

Spicy, warm and dense, with a firm structure lending austerity. Cherry, strawberry, tobacco and earth notes join together on the tight and vibrant finish Best from 2019 through 2032.

The 2011 Barbaresco Il Bricco is Pio Cesare’s top Barbaresco, and, as the name implies, emerges from the top of the family’s estate in Treiso. The Bricco also gets more barrique, although in recent years the malos have been done in steel rather than French oak, which gives the Bricco a greater element of classicism. Although less famous than either Barbaresco or Neive, Treiso is home to a number of stellar vineyards. The reality is that this fruit needs very little makeup. Powerful, rich and structured, the 2011 Bricco possesses explosive energy and firm tannins that need time to soften. A host of dark spice, iron, smoke, French oak and tobacco wrap around he intense finish.

Boasting an elaborate style, the 2011 Barbaresco Il Bricco delivers a soft and luscious interpretation of Nebbiolo. It’s a wine with a modern approach and soft, enriched contours. The wine is aged in barrique for 18 months and then settles in large oak casks for one more year. It stands out for the density and vigor of its fruit. This Barbaresco finishes with pretty tones of ripe fruit, tobacco and tarry resin. Drink: 2016 – 2028

Balanced and elegant, this red evokes cherry, rhubarb, tobacco, tar and white pepper hints. Linear and firmly structured, with dusty tannins on the finish. Best from 2017 through 2029.

The 2010 Barbaresco Il Bricco is quite a bit deeper than the straight Barbaresco. Dark red stone fruits, menthol, spices, leather and cedar are all laced together in a powerful, textured Barbaresco built on volume. It will be interesting to see if the 2010 opens up with more time in bottle. I suspect it will. Pio Cesare has made significant strides in quality over recent years. The Bricco appears to still be a bit of a work in progress. In 2010, the Bricco was aged approximately 75% in cask and 25% in barrique.

This is extremely floral, with violets and roses and hints of ripe fruit. Full body with an intensely savory, succulent fruit-acid combination. Mineral and earthy. Powerful. Try in 2017.

Subtle, complex aromas of flowers, minerals and blueberries. Dark cherries, too, and maple leaves. Full body yet tight and compact with super-fine tannins and a tangy, intense finish. It lasts for minutes. Hints of new wood. Better than 2008: more layers of fruit. Will melt together wonderfully. Try in 2018.

Dark raspberries, flowers, mint, licorice and cinnamon all flesh out in the 2009 Barbaresco Il Bricco. Fresher and more vibrant than the straight bottling, the 2009 impresses for its juiciness and generosity. This beautiful Barbaresco from Pio Cesare will drink well for the next decade, perhaps beyond.

A modern muscle is flexed with the 2009 Barbaresco Il Bricco that shows more evident oak spice on the bouquet. Juicy layers of dark fruit and dried cherry are pressed between layers of spice, cardamom and toasted almond. The tannins are on the sweet side and are surrounded by thick layers of ripe fruit. It’s a wine with a very likeable and approachable personality.

The 2008 Barbaresco Il Bricco is impressive. It boasts a serious core of fruit backed up by equally imposing yet well-balanced tannins. Despite its voluptuous, expressive fruit, the Bricco is a wine that truly captures the cool, insistent minerality that is the hallmark of the vintage. There is serious structure here…

Wonderful aromas of flowers and dark fruits with a hint of stones. Full-bodied, with wonderful structure yet the tannins are polished and beautiful. Sweeter and rounder tannins. Balanced wine.

Smoky and polished, this modern-style Barbaresco boasts cherry, plum, vanilla and bacon fat aromas and flavors, with licorice and tar notes underneath. Fine length.

Deep full red. Much deeper and more brooding on the nose than the classico, showing burnished, slightly medicinal aromas of redcurrant, raspberry and white truffle. Deep, rich and hugely ripe if a bit youthfully imploded, with nicely integrated acidity. At once chewy and fine-grained, and strong on the finish. This wine has a fairly low pH of 3.28, according to Pio Boffa, and should age extremely well.

The 2007 Barbaresco Il Bricco is a powerhouse. Layers of black cherries, espresso, mocha and spices emerge from this large-scaled, powerful wine. The oak is beautifully integrated in this vintage, always an excellent sign for how the wine is likely to evolve over the coming years. There is plenty going on in the glass, as this dark, mysterious Barbaresco continues to develop with air. This is another strong showing from Pio Cesare.

Fragrant, delivering sandalwood, incense and floral aromas as cherry and plum notes emerge on the palate. This is open and lush, despite its dense tannins. Very suave and harmonious, needing time to really come together. Excellent finish.

The 2005 Barbaresco Il Bricco is a very elegant wine. Layers of perfumed dark red fruit, spices, French oak and roses come together with notable depth on a classic, sturdy frame of impeccable balance.

The 2005 Barbaresco Il Bricco is a very elegant wine. Layers of perfumed dark red fruit, spices, French oak and roses come together with notable depth on a classic, sturdy frame of impeccable balance.

Shows pure plum on the nose, with a combination of violet and smoke. Full-bodied, with layers of ultrafine tannins and a very long finish. Caresses the palate. A wine of strength and elegance.

Il Bricco is a blockbuster wine with extraordinary intensity and impressive concentration. It’s a dark, spice-driven wine with oak aromas of vanilla, cinnamon and powdered spice backed by black currants, forest berry, pressed flowers, curry and turmeric. Austere and brooding, it’s the kind of wine you’ll want to pair with a heavy winter dish that can stand up to its thick, luscious mouthfeel.

It bursts from the glass with tons of fruit and a generous, expansive personality buffered by firm, yet elegant tannins. The wine offers outstanding potential, yet it also requires cellaring before offering its finest drinking. …The oak is especially well used in the 2004, and this is a very beautiful Barbaresco. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2024.

This is wonderfully floral and fruity on the nose. Full-bodied, with supersilky tannins and a long, long finish. Chewy yet polished. Plenty of ripe blackberry, light toasty oak and vanilla on the finish. Best after 2011.

The single-vineyard 2003 Barbaresco Il Bricco is made in big, powerful style loaded with dark fruit, spice and sweet toasted oak….Anticipated maturity: 2008-2018.

Losts of plum and blackberry aromas, with hints of wood. Full-bodied, with vanilla and fruit character and a long, flavorful finish. Layered and impressive. Best after 2008

The 2001 Barbaresco Il Bricco, from a vineyard in Treiso, is richer and rounder, with sweet notes of vanilla, toasted oak, earthiness and a lovely core of fruit framed by a balsamic note on the finish. It, too, will benefit from a few years of additional cellaring and will mature later than the normale. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2021.”

Smoke, licorice and berry character. Full-bodied, with rich, ripe and round tannins and sweet berry fruit character. Long and caressing. Delicious already, but well-structured. Best after 2008.