2016 Piero Busso Albesani Viti Vecchie Riserva Barbaresco, Piedmont

Very fine and expressive with lovely red cherries, spice, amazing purity and texture. Concentrated and fine with nice balance and a sense of freshness and finesse. Quite thrilling.

97 points Jamie Goode wineanorak.com

Only bottled in the greatest years, this cuvée is crafted exclusively from vines planted in 1948 by Guido Busso, winemaker Pierguido Busso’s great-grandfather. The vines surrounding the cantina on the steepest section of the Albesani slope are of the Michet selection of Nebbiolo, highly valued for its quality and the concentration of the wine produced. The tiny yields here are fermented naturally and the wine spends up to 60 days in skins. It’s then aged for 36 months in a 10-hectolitre oak botti, then goes to bottle (unfined and unfiltered) for another year. 2016 produced 1001 bottles.
 
This really is super; a Barbaresco equivalent of a Grand Cru Burgundy. It has intensity, depth, incredible perfume and finesse, and very fine tannins. Again, the style of the maker is immediately evident, in that the wine is classic and somewhat old-school in both flavour profile and structure. Expect waves of sweet, red and blackcurrant fruit shot through with earth, leather, beeswax and sandalwood complexity. Very, very long, and very classy.