From: Piedmont, Italy
Varietal: Barbera
Winemaker Notes: This is THE typical Barbera d’Alba wine. Ripe, spicy black fruit nose with deep oak, framing a core of pure black berries and plums along with a very deep purple-black color. In the mouth, the wine is all dark fruits. This shows blackberries and raspberries, with a chocolate and cocoa powder midpalate and hints of cassis. Concentrated, generous and mouth-filling. The high natural acidity of Barbera gives freshness and balance to the exuberant fruit. The chewy mid-palate gives this wine excellent flexibility at the table, and the typical acidity of Barbera shines through to give the vine a vibrant, bright and long finish.
Blend: 100% Barbera
Critical Acclaim
RP 93 Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
This is a terrific value wine. Darkly saturated and rich, the 2020 Barbera d'Alba is packed tight with dark blackberry and plum. This hot-vintage Barbera is lovely to pair with grilled meats or easy chicken recipes. This is a luscious, generous wine from Piedmont.
WE 93 Wine Enthusiast
Sandrone brings its care and dedication to this big, bold and beautiful Barbera. The wine begins with aromas of spiced black plums, black cherry jam and savory herbs. The palate is very rich with flavors of roasted blackberry, smoked meats and savory herbs. Firm tannins and classic Barbera acidity will allow this wine to age well. Drink now to 2030.
Taste: From the moment it's poured, this wine bursts from the glass with a shower of rich, ripe red and blue fruits, warm spices, and elegant minerality. On the palate, the wine embraces its opposites, with a broad-shouldered and electric profile that is both chewy and fresh. The wine is full-throttle Barbera, with a kiss of oak that adds depth and complexity. The flavors are complex and nuanced, with notes of black cherry, plum, and blackberry mingling with hints of chocolate, cocoa powder and wildflowers. The wine's minerality is also evident, with a touch of earthiness that adds depth and complexity. The tannins are well-structured and provide a firm backbone to the wine, while the acidity keeps it fresh and vibrant. This wine is perfectly balanced and harmonious, with a long and pleasant aftertaste. All said and done, the 2020 Sandrone Barbera d'Alba is a wine that is both enveloping and nuanced, and it pairs beautifully with a range of foods, from grilled meats to rich pasta dishes. It's a wine that can be enjoyed now or cellared for several years, and it's sure to make your simple foods sing for the next half decade!
Pairing: The 2020 Sandrone Barbera d'Alba is a versatile wine that pairs beautifully with a range of foods. Its fresh acidity and well-structured tannins make it a great choice for a variety of dishes, from grilled meats to rich pasta dishes. We’re sharing a gorgeous pairing below for Maureen Abood’s Eggplant With Lamb, Tomato and Pine Nuts, adapted by Melissa Clark. This Lebanese dish marries a few of the concepts listed below and is fantastic alongside this iconic Barbera.
For general pairings, the Sandrone Barbera d'Alba 2020 pairs particularly well with hearty dishes like roasted or grilled meats, stews, and hearty pasta dishes. Its bold and complex flavors also make it a great match for aged cheeses, charcuterie, and hearty vegetable dishes like roasted root vegetables or mushroom risotto.
In terms of regional pairings, the Sandrone Barbera d'Alba 2020 is a natural match for the cuisine of Piedmont. Try pairing it with traditional dishes like Brasato al Barolo (beef braised in Barolo wine), tajarin (Piedmontese-style egg noodles), or bagna cauda (a hot dipping sauce made with anchovies, garlic, and olive oil).
For vegetarian options, the Sandrone Barbera d'Alba 2020 pairs particularly well with dishes that feature hearty vegetables or mushrooms. Try pairing it with a rich and creamy polenta topped with sautéed wild mushrooms, roasted eggplant or squash, or a hearty vegetable stew.
Maureen Abood’s Eggplant With Lamb, Tomato and Pine Nuts
Recipe from Maureen Abood
Adapted by Melissa Clark
About. Luciano Sandrone is one of the most iconic producers in Barolo, and his is both a well known and extraordinary story. He started to learn viticulture at the age of 14 or 15, and after years of work as a cellarman he depleted his life savings and purchased his first vineyard on the Cannubi hill in 1977, though he could only manage his land on the weekends while he continued to work. He made his first vintage in 1978, in the garage of his parents, and then spent years refining his ideas about how to make a wine of distinction and utmost quality that respected the traditions of Barolo while incorporating new ideas and understanding about viticulture and vinification. He made every vintage until 1999 at home, until the winery he constructed in 1998 was ready for use.
Sandrone's wines are sometimes described as straddling the modern and traditional styles in the region: elegant, attractive and easy to appreciate right from their first years in bottle, but with no less power and structure than traditional Barolos. Along with the extremely low yields in the vineyard and an obsessive attention to training, pruning and harvesting, Sandrone has a very rational approach in the cellar. This approach, however, is also unique and outside of simple classification: Sandrone subjects his wines to medium-length maceration period, shorter than traditional, but makes limited use of new oak in the maturation process, which takes place in 500 liter tonneaux, all signs of a more traditional approach in the cellar. The entire range of wines, all limited in production, are jewels of impeccably balanced concentration and precision, and the ability to age for long periods of time.
