Here at Harry's we have enjoyed selling the Cascina Ballarin line of wines for the past 5 years. This producer offers a complete line of fine Piedmont wines. A perennial favorite is the Tre Ciabot Barolo. The 2001 has been a customer and staff favorite over the last year. Last Christmas I served the '01 Tre Ciabot with a braised short rib dish and I still remember how delicious the pairing was. As we all know "all good things must come to an end", we have just received our final delivery of the 2001 vintage of this wine. It's a "get'em while you can" situation.
That said, Not to worry! The 2001 is being followed by another extraordinary vintage - 2004. The 2004 exhibits a bit more of rusticity and really "bright" red fruit characteristics. Barolo wines are some of the most cellar-worthy wines in the world, they are constantly evolving and changing in the bottle. The polish and elegance of the '01 is just around the corner for the '04, personally I enjoy the vibrancy of the '04.
If you aren't sure Barolo is your thing, Ballarin also makes a Langhe Nebbiolo which uses the same grape varietal (Nebbiolo), but instead of barrel aging the wine is aged in stainless steel vats. This allows the winery to make the wine more affordable and able to get it to the public sooner.
2001 Cascina Ballarin Tre Ciabot Barolo - $34.99
2007 Cascina Ballarin Langhe Nebbiolo - $22.99
-Greg
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