This family-run estate has been making some great Barbera and Barolo in the heart of Piedmont since 1994, and one of the first vineyards they purchased from was a crusty old farmer of Barbera, tending ancient vines in Monforte d'Alba. This is a reserve Barbera in every sense, with 18 months maturation in Slavonia oak before bottling, it's a rib-sticking wine, with a nose of cherry or blueberry pie, orange oil, baking spices like nutmeg and allspice, a strand of clay earth and pepper. The palate is unctuous and full, with velvety tannins, jammy black and blue berries, calcareous clay earth, and burnt orange peel that comes with a subtle current of acidity that helps the wine land gracefully on the finish. This wine was made for cuts of meat cooked on the barbecue, but stash a few bottles away for the colder months too.