2000 Barbaresco Crichet Paje
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Tasting notes
The 2000 Barbaresco Crichët Pajé, made by Alfredo Roagna, takes us back to another era for Roagna and for Piedmont. Dried cherry fruit, worn-in leather, game and dried herbs lift from the glass in this decidedly old-school Barbaresco. One of our guests asks if these are sound bottles. It’s a great question, because it opens a discussion of how wines used to be made in Piedmont. Quality has exploded to such a degree over the last two decades that many wine lovers don’t remember how common it was to encounter wines with Brettanomyces, oxidation and old barrel funk. These qualities weren't always obvious at the outset, but often became more pronounced over time, as is the case here. Fortunately, I have an extra wine prepared—the 2001, the first vintage made by Luca Roagna.
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Robert Parker
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
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Judging by the previous notes, readers will hardly be surprised to learn that the 2000 Barbaresco Crichët Pajé, the estate's top Barbaresco selection, is virtually impenetrable. It is a towering Barbaresco that should be buried in the deepest corner of the cellar. It will be many years before this immortal wine is ready to show its cards, but its potential is amply evident today.
The 2000 Barbaresco Crichët Pajé is an explosive, kaleidoscopic wine loaded with road tar, menthol, roasted coffee beans, leather, spices and dark fruit. With some time in the glass the wine's inner sweetness emerges, the tannins soften a touch and everything falls into place. This muscular, powerful Barbaresco is easily one of the wines of the vintage and comes across as better balanced than the 1999. Patience is required, though, as the wine shut down massively in the glass. Here the vines are roughly 65 years old. There are only 2,000 bottles of this magical Barbaresco to go around.
About the producer
Roagna is one of Italy’s finest estates, producing top, single-vineyard Nebbiolos in Barbaresco and Barolo. The estate’s Crichët Pajé Barbaresco is one of the rarest fine wine cuvées in Piedmont with fewer than 2,000 bottles produced each year.