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• Score: 96 Vintage 2017 Wine Advocate The 2017 Barbaresco Riserva Montestefano is darkly concentrated and among the richest wines in this series of single-vineyard Riservas. Montestefano is angular, textured and bold with dark fruit aromas, dried blackberry, toasted almond and cured tobacco. With this vintage, you get an age-worthy wine that offers brawn and power for drinking in the medium term, but it will become increasingly silky and slender with time. Dusty tannins and crushed stone appear on the long finish. There were 14,486 bottles produced. Produttori del Barbaresco has been hitting it out of the ballpark these past years with a string of excellent vintages that resulted in the production of their entire line of Riservas. However, that good momentum comes to an end because the Riservas were not made in 2018. That vintage saw all the fruit blended into one non-MGA Barbaresco. And with the 2017 Riservas reviewed here, you might find these bottles hard to find. Production was 30% lower in this growing season because of a very careful fruit selection process. In fact, Aldo Vacca calls 2017 a "roller coaster vintage with frost, then hail, then a summer drought." Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 95 Vintage 2017 Wine Enthusiast New leather, camphor, cedar and dark spice aromas form the subtle but compelling nose. On the firmly structured palate, tightly knit, noble tannins support fleshy Morello cherry, crushed raspberry star anise and baking spice. Drink through 2029. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2017 Wine Spectator Dense and rich, if on the austere side now, courtesy of burly tannins, with black cherry, plum, tar and mineral serving as the main flavor themes. Reveals terrific energy and length, with a chalky feel on the finish. Best from 2027 through 2045. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2017 Vinous Media The 2017 Barbaresco Riserva Montestefano is a potent, savory wine. Today, the fruit is very much in the background. A brooding, backward Barbaresco, the Montestefano clearly needs time, it is a somber, imposing Barbaresco. Dark plum, earthiness, cloves, menthol and licorice infuse the finish with notable gravitas. There's plenty of Montestefano breadth and resonance. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 98 Vintage 2016 Wine Advocate This is usually the last wine in this series of nine, representing the most powerful and concentrated side of the Nebbiolo spectrum as interpreted by Produttori del Barbaresco. The 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Montestefano (with 12,516 bottles released) is rich and darkly saturated, with a plush and opulent bouquet that is redolent of red berry, dried raspberry and candied orange peel. This is a blend of fruit from vineyards owned by the Gonella, Maffei, Marcarino, Rivella, Rocca and Vacca families. You feel the density of the wine on the palate, thanks to firm tannins and lots of extra fruit weight and texture. Despite that extra muscle (and the usual 15% alcohol content), Montestefano also shows a soft and especially enriched personality. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 98 Vintage 2016 Vinous Media The 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Montestefano is another profound wine in this lineup. There is virtually no perception of tannin, as the fruit is so rich and so voluptuous. Dark cherry/plum fruit, spice, menthol, licorice and a whole range of balsamic inflections grow as the Montestefano shows off its class. This profound Barbaresco will thrill readers for years to come. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 96 Vintage 2016 Wine Spectator Dynamic. Singed by licorice, the plum, black cherry, tar and iron flavors are dense and tightly packed with the solid structure. The fruit component offers great purity and an intense midpalate, followed by a strong grip of tannins on the finish. Best from 2025 through 2045. 1,362 cases made, 300 cases imported. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2015 Wine Spectator This is supple and expressive, featuring strawberry, cherry, floral and freshly cut hay flavors on an elegant frame, undergirded by a stiff backbone of tannins, with racy acidity and a finish that melds the ripe fruity component with the structure. Tar, tobacco and licorice accents linger. Best from 2023 through 2045. 1,336 cases made, 275 cases imported Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2015 Wine Spectator This is supple and expressive, featuring strawberry, cherry, floral and freshly cut hay flavors on an elegant frame, undergirded by a stiff backbone of tannins, with racy acidity and a finish that melds the ripe fruity component with the structure. Tar, tobacco and licorice accents linger. Best from 2023 through 2045. 1,336 cases made, 275 cases imported. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2015 Wine Advocate This is the last wine I tasted in this group of nine from Produttori del Barbaresco. The reason I placed the 2015 Barbaresco Riserva Montestefano last is because it is usually considered to be the most powerful and determined in the flight. However, when you really get down to it, this vintage is more tight, streamlined and ethereal than expected. It is saving the best for later, and indeed, the wine is poised to evolve and open fully many years from now. There is a note of shyness here or restraint. Exactly 16,036 bottles were made, and this Riserva demands patience. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2015 Wine Enthusiast Balsamic aromas of camphor mingle with mature dark-skinned berry, leather, licorice and vanilla on this structured red. The full-bodied palate reflects the nose, delivering raspberry compote, star anise, crushed mint and hazelnut alongside firm, fine-grained tannins. Drink after 2023. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2015 Vinous Media The 2015 Barbaresco Riserva Montestefano is one of the deeper, wines in this range. Ample, broad and creamy, the 2015 has a ton of richness and power on display. It is also one of the wines in this range where the personality and style of the vineyard are very much in evidence. A rush of black cherry, plum, menthol, licorice and spice build into the racy finish as this powerful, beautifully resonant Barbaresco shows all it's got. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 96 Vintage 2014 Wine Enthusiast Forest floor, red-skinned berry, leather and tobacco aromas mingle with a balsamic note. The focused, structured palate delivers juicy Morello cherry, raspberry compote and licorice while a graphite note backs up the finish. A backbone of fine-grained tannins and bright acidity gives it an age-worthy structure. Drink 2021–2034. KERIN O’KEEFE Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2014 Wine Spectator Pure cherry flavors permeate the rich flesh of this red, backed by vibrant acidity and fine tannins. Eucalyptus, earth and tar elements add depth as this cruises to a lingering finish. Fine intensity. Best from 2021 through 2040. 1,183 cases made, 277 cases imported. — BS Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2014 Wine Advocate This is visibly the darkest in color and concentration of this series of wines from the well-known Produttori del Barbaresco cooperative. The 2014 Barbaresco Riserva Montestefano offers round and supple fruit with dark cherry, blackberry and some easy spice. Once again, the wine is a bit flatter than I had hoped, lacking that extra level of snappy freshness. Shelf Talker Full Page Review