It’s youthful now, effusive in its perfume of red and black cherry, rosemary, thyme, and juniper berry yet retaining a breezy, fresh-air quality. The palate is juicy and sharp, the fruit skewing red and lean. This is not so much a tannic wine as an acid-cleansing one, solidly made for food, its articulate astringency serving as a foil for rich fare: cured meats, aged cheeses, spicy pork sausage, tomato dishes, ragù. It was outstanding with a chorizo red sauce spiked with paprika.
2015 Cascina Fontana Barbera d’Alba
13.5% abv | $27 | Imported by Grand Cru Selections
