The grape variety is Barbera and it seems useless to me – given the fame that accompanies it all over the world – to dwell on its history. Just a hint, to debunk some beliefs which consider Barbera as a non-suitable vine for our hills and also believe that here, on our hills, we – the winemakers – have invented it in recent years. Many unfortunately ignore the history of viticulture in our area: before the advent of phylloxera (late ‘800 – early ’900) the hills around Torrechiara, Arola and Barbiano were covered by vineyards, mostly Barbera, Malvasia di Candia Aromatica and Moscato Giallo (Yellow Muscat). After phylloxera, which literally devastated the vineyards, the large
landowners (counts and marquises) directed agriculture towards cattle breeding for the production of Parmigiano Reggiano also in the hills, considering it less risky.

So we already knew that planting Barbera vine on our hills would certainly have given excellent results. In fact, in my opinion, it can be considered the maximum expression of our territory as a wine from red grapes! Remarkable structure, great body, immense aroma typical of the vine, with high alcoholic content (14% – 15% by Vol) Precisely for these reasons it is advisable to start drinking it after at least one year from the harvest. With the passage of time it improves more and more releasing indescribable secondary and tertiary aromas and flavors and it can even withstand a long aging.

Pairing:
First courses with meat or mushrooms, strong red meat and game second courses and aged or blue cheeses. The most “explosive” combination with cheeses, is certainly with long-aged Parmigiano Reggiano.

Recommended serving temperature:
About 18°C

Recommended glass type:
Ballon