The 2008 Barbaresco Rabaja is without question one of the wines of the vintage in this irregular year. It flows with deep layers of menthol, licorice and spices, showing tons of power. This is a dazzling wine endowed with marvelous inner perfume, great richness and huge staying power on the palate. Today it is still quite primary and in need of at least several years of cellaring. Tobacco, licorice and menthol wrap around the palate on the intense finish. The 2008 is a stunning Rabaja from Cortese. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2024. This is an impressive set of wines from Cortese. It’s impossible not to admire these genuine, sincere wines and their equally unpretentious prices. A Leonardo Lo Cascio Selection, Winebow, Montvale, NJ; tel. (201) 445-0620

A pretty red, this evokes flowers, strawberry and raspberry , with an underlying mineral current. Firmly structured, with precision and a long aftertaste of fruit and mineral. Best from 2014 through 2027. 1,000 cases made, 500 cases imported.??–BS??Region: Italy / Piedmont / Barbaresco Select to Add