Notes of toasted spices, nut shell and cedar with ripe dark berry and earthy undertones. Some mushrooms, too. Full and chocolaty with creamy tannins and a compact core of dark fruit. Rich and intense and a little warming at the end. Drink now.

A plush, modern style, this Barbera offers sweet, ripe plum, fig and toasty oak flavors. Remains fresh, with balance and expressive flavors -- in a hedonistic way. Long, heady finish. Drink now through 2028. 2,500 cases made, 200 cases imported.??–BS??Region: Italy / Piedmont / Nizza Select to Add

This wine enjoys an identity as its own brand within the greater context of Barbera-based reds from Piedmont. The Coppo 2020 Nizza Pomorosso offers a generous embrace of black fruits and inky concentration that feels lavish and rich. This is a big wine from all points of view. Its largess is measured by the forceful intensity of its aromas, its considerable texture, its spicy oak renderings and unfortunately by a very high 16% alcohol content. That heat (and the oak) takes away from a sense of balance. Production is 28,000 bottles.

From a pretty vintage that produced naturally dark and concentrated fruit, the Coppo 2019 Nizza Pomorosso almost overdelivers on those two fronts. I've always liked this wine (although I have a harder time with the 15.5% alcohol content). This 28,000-bottle production shows an inky dark consistency and reveals blackberry confit, cola and sweet oak spice. The wine is large in texture, and the acidity is reigned back as result of this bigger style.

Well-marked by oaky elements, this Barbera is fresh and sleek, offering violet, blackberry and blueberry flavors shaded by vanilla and toast notes. Drink now through 2025. 150 cases imported.??–BS??Region: Italy / Piedmont / Nizza Select to Add