Layers of smoke, ash, crushed walnuts and cranberries on the nose. It’s medium-to full-bodied with sleek, tight tannins. Lots of ripe and dried red fruit on the palate with citrus peel and tobacco, too. Precise and tight finish. Lots of old-vine magic here. Drinkable now, but better in two or three years.

This is the top red wine made by Pietradolce, and its striking black label is meant to underline its importance in the estate portfolio. The 2017 Etna Rosso Barbagalli offers a pretty garnet color and a lean to mid-weight approach. Made with fruit from pre-phylloxera vines from one of the highest elevation vineyards in the appellation (at 950 meters above sea level), this is always a study in elegance, and the integrity of the fruit transcends most problematic vintage variations thanks to the hearty resilience of the vines and their extended root systems. This wine shows composure and equilibrium with an incredibly glossy or silky quality of fruit with berry, smoke, tar and campfire ash. That old-vine concentration and power (with 15% alcohol) also comes through clearly. Only 2,500 bottles were released. ML

Deeper in colour than any of the other 2017 wines, but this is Nerello Mascalese from 100-year-old alberello vines, which grow small bunches with tiny grapes, hence the deeper colour.
Cask sample. Perfumed, concentrated dark-fruit nose. Lots of perfumed dark fruit on the palate too, and only of medium-bodied weight. Enormous tannins that are supporting the long fruit finish. Not ‘Burgundy’ but ‘Barolo of the south’.
Walter Speller Jun 2018
Drink: 2022-2030