Barbera d’Alba Superiore “Carolina”
The Carolina vineyard takes the name from Mario Roagna’s mother. It is a tribute to the vision and hard work that Mario’s parents, Lino and Carolina, shared for so many years. As sharecroppers they invested their limited resources and enormous passion into these vineyards. While most of the local farmers left their homes and land to find employment in the factories of Turin, Lino and Carolina stayed behind because the love for their vineyards was stronger than a chance at a better paying factory job.
Appellation: Barbera d’Alba DOC Superiore
Type: Red, dry
Varietal: 100% Barbera
Certified Organic
Color: Deep, dark red.
Bouquet: Rich notes of ripe, dark fruit, bramble, and a hint of vanilla.
Taste: Full and elegant with deep and powerful dark fruit, hints of herbs, spice and chocolate with a soft tannic grip.
Food Pairing: First courses with meat and/or cheese sauces, bagna cauda, braised meats, roast lamb, game and dry cheeses.
Production Zone: Priocca, Cuneo.
Vineyard: The Carolina vineyard extends for 5 acres. The vineyard is bio-dynamically fertilized.
Soil: Clay with sand veins, alkaline pH.
Elevation: 250 meters (820 feet) a.s.l.
Exposure: South.
Vine age: 30+ years old.
Density: 5,000 vines per hectare.
Training System: Vertical trellised.
Pruning: Guyot.
Harvest: Beginning of October, by hand.
Vinification: Alcoholic fermentation and maceration on the skins for 25-30 days in stainless steel tanks with 4-5 daily pump-overs, malolactic fermentation occurs in oak.
Aging: 12 months in 25 hl oak barrels and 6 months in bottle.
2009 Barbera d’Alba Superiore, “Carolina” – 92 Points - R. P. Wine Advocate (#197 Oct. 2011)
"The estate’s 2009 Barbera d’Alba Superiore Carolina shows off layers of jammy dark fruit, spices, licorice and new leather. French oak gives the wine much of its shape and volume. The Carolina shows lovely balance and harmony along with a generous, inviting finish.” ~ A.G.
