Barbacarlo Lino Maga 2023

The Barbacarlo is the Italian symbol of winemaking craftsmanship, a farmer's wine produced as it used to be by the knight Lino Maga in the hills of Broni. It is a rustic expression, mutable from year to year, foreign to denominations, but with a registered trademark, mythologized by connoisseurs such as Veronelli and Gianni Brera. As Lino says, "the important thing is that it pleases" and even if it is too sweet, he bottles it anyway because the vintage must reflect the place and the time. Every year a surprise and every year a new experience, never banal and always original, his Barbacarlo is the highest expression of the Oltrepò and the utmost respect between man and the land. Nature and simplicity, nothing more. Lino Maga was a character who deserved to be known in person, a true farmer from another time, strongly tied to his land. The steady and wise gaze of one who has lived the vineyard and time, and that damned cigarette that accompanied him in every moment. Long silences in a ancient memories. Talking with Lino was an unforgettable experience that went beyond the concept of wine.

The Barbacarlo wine is born from the blending of Croatina, Uva Rara, and Ughetta cultivated in the homonymous cru, named after an old zio Carlo ('barba' means uncle in Pavesian dialect), from hundred-year-old vines with very low yields. The vineyards, which rest on tuff-sandy soils with a steep slope, are cared for wisely and in a farmer-like manner, without the use of synthetic products, and the production process involves the use of oak and chestnut barrels for fermentation, without added yeasts. It matures in the bottle, bringing with it a possible refermentation that enriches it with a carbonic vein and a caressing yet unpredictable sweetness.

The Barbacarlo Maga is an autumn red of not easy interpretation, versatile but mutable, destined to positively evolve in the bottle for up to 20 years. The color is generally very intense and concentrated, tending towards garnet red with reflections orange, with the presence of natural particles due to the absence of filtrations or clarifications. On the nose, hints of stable and countryside emerge, intertwining with notes of ripe red fruit and sweet spices. Among the constants, notable juiciness, a slight carbonic liveliness, fresh and wild developments with an earthy finish, a long and flavorful finish, savory and slightly bitter. A collar attached to the bottle illustrates the characteristics of the vintage and writes its story year after year. A story that has become legend.