Vietti Barbera d'Alba Tre Vigne 2021
Vietti must be one of the most impressive labels representing Barbera. This wine is all about taking a very historic variety and then producing the best wine you can.
They made wine here back in the 1800s, but it was not until 1919 that Mario Vietti turned the family farm to viticulture and Vietti labels first appeared on the Italian market. The winery grew through the 1950’s, when new export markets opened and Mario’s daughter and son in law Alfredo Currado pioneered what was later to become a defining regional idea - single vineyard Barolo and Barbaresco. Today Vietti remain a towering name, with a portfolio occupying the top tier in most Piedmontese categories - particularly their profoundly important expressions of Cru Barolo. But history will also remember Vietti and Alfredo Currado for something quite different: the survival of the Arneis variety. It was Currado who almost single-handedly revived this hitherto ignored and abused grape and, appreciating its inherent qualities, not only persuaded others but led from the front to create the first, the most beautiful and still the most classic examples of what is now enshrined as the Roero Arneis DOCG.
"The 2021 Barbera d'Alba Tre Vigne is a fabulous, explosive wine. Sumptuous dark cherry, ripe plum, mocha, licorice and new leather are all dialed up to the maximum. This racy, deep Barbera is tremendous. For its quality-to-price ratio, the Alba Tre Vigne might be the wine of the year at Vietti." Drink 2023 - 2029 92/100 Vinous, Antonio Galloni