The latest episode in the Barbera: In The Glass series is now live at MyNameIsBarbera.com, and in it I continue my conversation with Vinchio and Vaglio‘s Tessa Donadieu. This time, we focus on the next “level” of the Barbera quality pyramid in Monferrato (which, as I have written before, I don’t think is a “pyramid” per se, but whatever): Barbera d’Asti.

This will, of course, be the level of Barbera with which the majority of those reading these words and viewing this vid will be most familiar. And with good reason; it’s basically the Michael Jackson of Italian red wine (hell, maybe of fine red wine, period).

For the record, I don’t actually moonwalk in this vid. But rest assured that I’m diligently working on it…

Cheers!

So, like, what is this stuff, anyway?
I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes with you via twitter (limited to 140 characters). They are meant to be quirky, fun, and easily-digestible reviews of currently available wines. Below is a wrap-up of those twitter wine reviews from the past week (click here for the skinny on how to read them), along with links to help you find these wines, so that you can try them for yourself. Cheers!

• 13 Le Salette La Marega Amarone (Veneto): Definitely more versatile than your average Amarone; no spoon required to enjoy this one. $99 A- >>find this wine<<
• 15 Le Salette I Progni Valpolicella Ripasso (Veneto): From the Ripasso perspective, this is laying down some beats fresh AF. $36 B+ >>find this wine<<
• 13 G. Milazzo Maria Costanza Rosso (Sicilia): From a dark-juiced Nero d'Avola clone comes a thrilling, authentic, & unique treat. $NA A- >>find this wine<<
• 16 G. Milazzo Maria Costanza Bianco (Sicilia): A long – loooong! – walk down a very floral – and very, very pretty – vinous path. $NA B+ >>find this wine<<
• 14 Robert Mondavi Winery Maestro (Napa Valley): A BDX-style blend that's conducting itself with powerful, plummy, plush aplomb. $50 A- >>find this wine<<
• 16 Terlato Pinot Grigio (Colli Orientali del Friuli): Peach, pear, perkiness, and, ok, probably some persimmons, too? Yes, please. $23 B+ >>find this wine<<
• 13 Bird In Hand Nest Egg Shiraz (Adelaide Hills): Blackberries, cloves, mint, & silk; that's a whole lotta sexy in 750ml format. $85 A- >>find this wine<<
• 16 Bird In Hand Two In The Bush Semillon Sauvignon Blanc (Adelaide Hills): A gentle, light-touch tickle of nettles and passion fruit. $16 B >>find this wine<<
• 14 Steven Kent Winery BDX Collection Cabernet Franc (Livermore Valley): Can spiciness show sexiness? Certainly this makes a case. $48 A- >>find this wine<<
• 16 Vietti Roero Arneis (Piedmont): Carrying its delicate and elegant perennial torch into yet another tasty vintage expression. $20 B+ >>find this wine<<

Here we are again… and by “we” I mean “me,” waxing not-so-poetic about some of the samples that I receive that cannot be imbibed (at least, not without the use of a blender and several thousand dollars in resultant medical bills).

This month, I’ve got two items to recommend, though I do so with slight reservations.

image: amazon.com

First up, there’s the recently-released 3rd Edition of The Complete Bordeaux: The Wines, The Chateaux, The People (Mitchell Beazley, $75) by the venerable Brit Stephen Brook. Brook (with whom I’ve judged in wine competitions) has thirty-five years of writing experience – and about the same number of published books – to his credit, and if one reads carefully through The Complete Bordeaux, one will be able to tell that he is a master of the English language. At first, his writing style might seem downright reticent; it’s certainly restrained. But as the paragraphs unfold in pages of the detailed profiles of pretty much anything that is of vinous significance in Bordeaux, you come away with the sense that Brook has mastered his subject, and is presenting it in the most concisely efficient prose possible. It helps that he has coverage of the topic that is both wide and deep; Brook has tasted back vintages of just about every Bordeaux house that has ever mattered.

If The Complete Bordeaux suffers from anything, it’s a relative lack of photographs and detailed maps for a tome of this size (over 700 pages) and price. It also suffers from a wine market in which Bordeaux has arguably never been less relevant, at least when it comes to a now-prevalent younger generation of drinkers. That’s hardly Brook’s fault, of course; so if you’re a Bordeaux lover, this is as comprehensive and as valuable a reference as you are likely to find…

Read the rest of this stuff »

For my latest entry over at MyNameIsBarbera.com, we return to some video action for the Barbera: In the Glass  section. In this short episode, I get schooled by Vinchio and Vaglio‘s Tessa Donadieu on why the wine that forms the base of the Monferrato Barbera quality pyramid – the Piemonte Barbera DOC – ought to be my go-to daily red wine.

As I lay out in the introduction to the vid, Tessa has a (very) good case; not just for me, but probably for you, too, if you dig zesty Italian reds.

You can check out the vid in the embed below, and see more in the Your Daily Wine (Piemonte Barbera) article over at the MYiB site.

Cheers!