This is Cascina delle Rose's other single-vineyard wine from a second nearby site in the village of Barbaresco. The 2020 Barbaresco Rio Sordo is slightly more linear and streamlined compared to the Tre Stelle in this vintage. That wine felt more immediate to me, but the Rio Sordo feels more long-term thanks to elegant fruit, crushed stone and sweet licorice aromas it offers. Production is 3,500 bottles.

A release of about 3,000 bottles, the 2018 Barbaresco Rio Sordo shows the finesse and delicate fruit that is so well expressed by this estate. The bouquet is redolent of rose hip and crushed flowers, and you get cassis, wild cherry and dried pomegranate as well. There is a giant layer of minty herb, and then the wine finally relaxes with polished tones of crushed stone and white licorice. Cascina delle Rose makes a fine bottle of Barbaresco.

Rio Sordo is a hilltop vineyard that starts along one of the most scenic drives in the comune, or village, of Barbaresco. The Cascina delle Rose 2017 Barbaresco Rio Sordo is filled with dark fruit and bold aromatic intensity, all carefully cultivated in this ridge line of vines. This wine is defined by a broad or all-encompassing approach. Perhaps this vintage doesn't have that nervous energy or electricity that you get in the cooler years, yet this Rio Sordo offers a very smooth and consistent mouthfeel that covers the palate with pretty Nebbiolo intensity. This is an accessible wine, perfect to enjoy in the near or medium term. A mere 3,000 bottles were made.

The 2016 Barbaresco Rio Sordo is the darkest and most concentrated of these barrel samples presented by Cascina Delle Rose. This is a structured, medium to full-bodied expression of Nebbiolo with lots of dark fruit packed in at the core. The wine is fermented in steel and aged in botti grandi for about 22 months. Only 1,800 bottles were made.

Cascina delle Rose is a winery that deserves your attention. It is specialized in very classic, elegant and fine expressions of Nebbiolo executed according to local tradition. The 2015 Barbaresco Rio Sordo walks with delicate footsteps. In a vintage that shows many overripe wines from this appellation, Cascina delle Rose gets it right. You do, however, feel the 14.5% alcohol on the finish.