Carmel Valley Barbera

Took awhile to open but didn’t wow. Supposedly a $70 wine but tasted like a $20

Very good. Some tannins. Earthy. Great accompaniment to steak.

An inky, dark wine with a purple hue. A big nose of cherry and cooked strawberry. The palate displays more tart cherry and cooked strawberry with mint, cedar, rhubarb, black pepper, and oak. Medium tannins, high alcohol, and high acid. This Italian grape cries out for pasta with sausage in a tomato sauce. It would be a bit more approachable with the alcohol toned down a tad.

Big fruit and spice, raspberry jam, cranberry, and vanilla. Lip smacking tannins with broad acid in the finish.

More going on with this vintage than the previous two years. Some barnyard funk on the nose. Big red fruit and spice to start with chewy tannins and acid to spare in the finish. This is a big wine that may soften with some time in the bottle.

A few years of aging has mellowed the tannins but the red fruit flavors are still there. At its peak.

Big fruit that pairs well with red Italian sauces.

I tried this vintage almost two years ago. The nose has matured and is more mulled and smokey. On the palate the wine has smoothed out some with tart cherry and cooked strawberry notes. It is still a good match with marinara sauce dishes, but drinks slightly better alone.

Raspberry and strawberry nose with alcohol poking through. Cherry and minerals on the palate with a spicy finish. This wine cries out for a spicy marinara sauce pairing.

Rasberry, blackberry and chewy with acid in the middle and tannins at the finish. I think this would match well with pasta and marinara sauce.