Barbera, Larigi Langhe, 2014
Open, juicy fruit, more immediate and generous than previous vintage, red berries with that telltale kick of Larigi salt on the finish. A stunning 65 year old, south-facing single vineyard Barbera aged for 18 months in new oak barriques. 3000 bottles a year are made.
critic reviews
Barbera loves the warm vintages, although the 2014 Langhe Larigi does a good job of capturing the heat that finally arrived during the very last weeks before harvest. That said, the acidic vein in this vintage is more prominent and was surely developed during the many cooler weeks during the first half of the summer season. The wine is plump and juicy with dark primary fruit flavors. The mouthfeel is robust and thickly textured. The finish shows a point of sour cherry or bitter cranberry.
The 2014 Larigi is an attractive, slender wine that recalls some of the more delicate vintages of the early 1990s. The flavors are bright and aromatic, with plenty of lift from the high acidity of the vintage. The 2014 is pretty, but it is also naturally quite restrained, as most Barberas are in this vintage, with good silkiness and balance for the year. I expect the 2014 will age well - as virtually all vintages have - but it will never develop into a truly outstanding wine.