These extremely limited and unique wines are crafted by Barbanera, a family-owned and operated artisanal winery in the beautiful region of Tuscany. Barbanera’s vineyards are situated in some of the best appellations in Tuscany like Chianti, Vino Nobile, Brunello, and Puglia. The estate follows sustainable and responsible viticulture, and they’ve positioned themselves among the best wineries in Tuscany and the whole country.
2018 Campo Pietra Chianti Riserva, Tuscany, Italy
96 Points, One of “Italy’s Best Wines of the Year”, Luca Maroni 4 Times Awarded “Best Italian Wine Producer” by Luca Maroni
Tasting Notes
Vivid red color showing light garnet hues. Ethereal and delicate aroma of violet on the nose, complemented by pronounced ripe red berries and pungent spiced scents. The rich, balanced, and velvety flavors on the palate make it an ideal accompaniment to roasted red meats, game, and mature cheeses.
Specs
Varietal: Cuvèe of red grapes
Region: Tuscany, Italy
6 months in large oak barrels plus 18 months in stainless steel
Alcohol: 13%
2021 Campo Pietra Rosso di Montepulciano, Tuscany, Italy
94 Points, One of “Italy’s Best Wines of the Year”, Luca Maroni 4 Times Awarded “Best Italian Wine Producer” by Luca Maroni
Tasting Notes
Rosso di Montepulciano is the perfect alternative for the wine lover who loves Vino Nobile but wants to enjoy it every day of the week. This is easy-drinking and modern in style. The perfect match for pizza or charcuterie on a Thursday night.
Intense red color with strong purple hues. Deep notes of forest berries, cherry, and delicate spicy scents. On the palate, it’s dry, rich, and well-structured. This is an amazing value red wine, pair it with your favorite comfort food like pizza, tomato-based pasta, hamburgers, and your favorite TV show!
Specs
Blend: Cuvèe of red grapes - Sangiovese, Canaiolo Nero, Prugnolo Gentile, Ciliegiolo
Region: Tuscany, Italy
Alcohol: 13%
What’s Included
4-bottles:
2x 2018 Campo Pietra Chianti Riserva, Tuscany, Italy
2x 2021 Campo Pietra Rosso di Montepulciano, Tuscany, Italy Case:
6x 2018 Campo Pietra Chianti Riserva, Tuscany, Italy
6x 2021 Campo Pietra Rosso di Montepulciano, Tuscany, Italy
Price Comparison
Not for sale on winery website, $420/case MSRP
Barbanera
At the foot of Mount Cetona, in southern Tuscany, you’ll find a charming and highly awarded family-owned winery called Barbanera. This estate dates back to 1938 when Altero Barbanera and his wife Maria Franceschini decided to test their luck and adventure their way into wine. It wasn’t an easy journey, however. The dream, which has always been driven by passion and ambition, finally paid off, and Barbanera soon became a leading winery in Italy. Today, the winery is operated by fifth-generation sisters, Sophia and Agnes.
Barbanera has been achieving many recognitions throughout the years. In 2020, they were awarded “Best Design,” and “Best Innovation” of still red wines by VINI & CONSUMI. This same year, they were named (for the 4th year in a row) the “Best Italian Wine Producer” in the quantity-quality category by Luca Maroni. In 2022 they were recognized as the “Best medium-sized company for management and financial reliability” in Siena, on the 41st edition of the INDUSTRIA FELIX Award, not to mention the numerous medals and 90+ points granted by some of the world’s leading wine critics. (In 2021, more than 200 of their wines were awarded 90+ points.)
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
Hey y’all, short and sweet review this time sorry busy traveling for the holidays. I got the chianti riserva. It’s a ruby red color with a bit of glimmer just like the gem. Decanted it for a bit before having it with dinner. We’ve got an ungodly amount of venison being 8 weeks into white-tail season so paired this with some backstrap. Worked well together, definitely has a cherry tart flavor about it and a medium body. Overall, flavors just seemed kind of … muted? Not sure how to describe it but they were there but like hints of everything. However we had some more with dessert cuz why not and it was great with chocolate cake, the tartness and tannins were much more noticeable than on it’s own or with dinner. Overall I’d say good purchase around maybe $15 if you like reds but find some Chianti’s overwhelming this may be your wine.
Thanks and enjoy!
It’s been a good week- the winter solstice is past which means more daylight, Christmas is oh so close, and I got a notification from Alice for holiday rattage. Hope everyone is ready for a weekend of relaxation, kicking back with some time off, amd not too much stress cleaning and organizing for a houseful of guests. Travel safely, everyone!
The Campo Pietra Chianti Riserva presents itself well with an attractive embossed label and non-generic bottle with a formed herald in the glass. A bit of early snooping shows this was offered in July as part of a Mixed Italian Reds on Casemates- however, no rats were on-board for that one. With limited insights online, we were on our own- but up for the challenge as we love bold reds, and enjoy Italian reds.
Pic caption: Every rat bottle over the holidays deserves a festive photo. This one includes a fancy 1960 Gancia Chianti bottle to show “how things used to be”. The bottle has the built in ice compartment to keep the wine at just the right temperature along with the festive stoppers. BTW, this bottle is older than me, but not by much.
With some lead time, Mrs. Rat set out to prepare an appropriate dish to complement and showcase the wine, and she really came through for this one, as it brought out some subtle notes and allowed us to have a comparison on new-world vs old world Sangiovese based wines.
Friday tasting: Chilled to just under 60°, opened for some breathing for a couple of hours, and decanted. Bottle had a composite natural cork with little staining. Color was a deep ruby/garnet going lighter on the edges. Aroma was red fruit, with light spice/cinnamon, and a bit of floral. Mrs. Rat noted cherry/plum with oak (I missed that at first, but agree). Swirling led to legs consistent with the moderate alc level.
First taste confirmed the nose for me. Initial tannins were strong with some nice pucker. Flavors of blueberry and red fruit, a bit of herbal, and nice tartness. After some time in the glass, the tannins softened very noticeably. Mrs Rat confirmed my notes and added that the fruit was very evident.
Food: Mrs. Rat tracked down a recipe that specifically was listed for Chianti Riserva- “Peposo”, which is braised beef short rib stew, and polenta. I owe Alice big time on this one, as we’d likely never have discovered this fantastic dish. Seriously, the recipe for this should be pasted on all dry Italian Reds. It was an amazing match. The Tuscan Peposo really brought out the pepper notes in the wine, and acidity was perfect for the short ribs.
Food side note: the dinner recipe required two cups of same/similar wine. However, no way was I tapping into the rat bottle for that. Search of the cellar led to a prior offering of Brutocao Uber Tuscan. It’s a Sangiovese/Cab blend, so a fit for the recipe AND gave us a chance to have a tasting between the California Tuscan and the Italian Chianti. Quick comparison : they are similar. CA was less aromatic, but smoother flavors and tannins. No oak notes. Fruit flavors were good in both, but slightly different. CA wine was a bit less earthy.
How about cheese and chocolate, you ask? Quite nicely with seriously sharp room temp cheddar. Likely not with Gouda, so didn’t go there. Given the Chianti profile, didn’t try dark chocolate, but some moderately intense quality chocolate really did well. I was craving some Tiramisu afterwards, but no luck- and just as well.
Not sure if this will again be part of a mixed case, but if it’s all Campo Pietra Chianti Riserva for a similar price, it’s a good deal on a nice Italian red to have on hand. Especially for trying out the Peposo recipe. (Or other similar dish, including a decent Chicago style pizza (NY will do in a pinch))
We’ll add some Day 2 notes after noon CST.
Thank you for the opportunity to Lab Rat, Casemates!
Day 2 follow-up: stored with vacuum seal overnight, flavors are a bit muted from Day 1, primarily black fruit, herbal, and smoky/oak. With food, definitely better than todays standalone tasting. Just added some cheddar, and the cheese really complemented the Chianti Riserva.
@benguin986@kaolis
I constantly wonder, when looking to see how a bottle may evolve over a fairly short time, why folks use tools that are intended to prolong what they like in a bottle, and apply them to a bottle they want to evolve…
@kaolis@rjquillin Fair question. For this one, I wasn’t sure that any additional air time would improve things. It seemed “ready to drink now”, despite seeing several folks way more knowledgeable than me saying to aerate it or uncork for several hours. None of them said leave it uncorked overnight though, and I don’t use a nitrogen purge or anything like that.
Have you found that leaving a bottle open was a good indicator for potential for longer term aging? If so, I may start trying that for some of our buys.
I’ve never managed to keep any of our Sangiovese/Chianti type wines more than a couple of years without them being all consumed.
@benguin986@kaolis
Thanks for not taking offence at the statement/question.
I’m rather all over the place.
If I’ve pulled a cork, say on an older bottle, and it’s in a sweet spot, I’ll backfill it with Ar, cork it, and put it in the fridge. Generally it will be good for at least a week or longer in that condition.
For a younger bottle it’s most likely to just get corked and into the fridge. I’ve left bottles in that condition for easily a week, sometimes longer, sampling every few days, to see when it starts to fall apart/oxidize/become acidic. While it’s not science, if something improves over a couple of days and perhaps even goes a week, I’ll assume (perhaps incorrectly) it has some legs in the cellar and in no hurry.
I don’t find myself often leaving a bottle corked, and almost never uncorked, on the counter; but I do read here that others do that very thing.
Wow excellent wine for the price.
Non California wines are rare here, especially Italian which is right up my alley.
Enjoyed this with some pasta as it should be.
Bright red clear color. Cherry, cranberry nose with some herbs and earthiness after aeration. Light on the palate with tart cherry and mild spices, tons of acid, no oak, and very dry. Medium finish and alcohol not noticeable.
Excellent palate cleanser, a perfect food wine. Do not attempt drinking this by itself except for tasting purposes or you will not appreciate it. At least have some antipasto or a piece of cheese and cracker! A great everyday wine to have with simple pastas, pizza, chicken, salmon, even a pork chop. Probably would not stand up to heavier foods, steak, gamey meats, would be better to have a super Tuscan or Southern Italian wine.
This might improve slightly in a year or two but it’s pretty good already. Nothing too complex here but it is interesting and tasty. Very well made and a textbook example of a light Tuscan Sangiovese blend similar to Chianti.
Thanks Casemates and Happy Holidays to all.
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: tax and shipping are not included in savings calculations).
Campo Pietra Mixed Italian Reds - $35 = 17.94%
Most lightly stained cork I’ve ever pulled, this must have been bottled last week before it left Italy
Color
Dark purple with ruby translucence at edges
PNP
Nose
No discernable notes, faint greenery
Palate
Faint raspberry, tannins, tart finish
Very tight with no flavors outstanding
Open bottle @ 2 hrs
Nothing new
Sent through a vinturi twice before it opened at all
Much heavier raspberry on the nose
Palate
Stone fruit, raspberry, and for the 3 people who might recognize it…wife: “slightly unripe prickly pear fruit”
More tartness on the edges and finish, but the perfect level, just enough to make your mouth water for the next taste
Was very surprised to see 13% on the label, can’t feel/taste the alcohol at all.
Corking the second half for tomorrow
Day 2
Still hasn’t developed anything new, it’s a nice young wine that MIGHT age for ~5 years but I wouldn’t expect much. It would make a good daily drinker; I’d put it at a ~$9-11 Casemates price point
2018 Campo Pietra Chianti Riserva, Tuscany, Italy
96 Points, One of “Italy’s Best Wines of the Year”, Luca Maroni
4 Times Awarded “Best Italian Wine Producer” by Luca Maroni
Tasting Notes
Specs
2021 Campo Pietra Rosso di Montepulciano, Tuscany, Italy
94 Points, One of “Italy’s Best Wines of the Year”, Luca Maroni
4 Times Awarded “Best Italian Wine Producer” by Luca Maroni
Tasting Notes
Specs
What’s Included
4-bottles:
Case:
Price Comparison
Not for sale on winery website, $420/case MSRP
Barbanera
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
Estimated Delivery
Tuesday, Jan 16 - Wednesday, Jan 17
Campo Pietra Mixed Italian Reds
4 bottles for $64.99 $16.25/bottle + $2/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $159.99 $13.33/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
2018 Campo Pietra Chianti Riserva
2021 Campo Pietra Rosso di Montepulciano
Previous offer (Rosso) :
4/5/23
2018 Campo Pietra Chianti Riserva
Hey y’all, short and sweet review this time sorry busy traveling for the holidays. I got the chianti riserva. It’s a ruby red color with a bit of glimmer just like the gem. Decanted it for a bit before having it with dinner. We’ve got an ungodly amount of venison being 8 weeks into white-tail season so paired this with some backstrap. Worked well together, definitely has a cherry tart flavor about it and a medium body. Overall, flavors just seemed kind of … muted? Not sure how to describe it but they were there but like hints of everything. However we had some more with dessert cuz why not and it was great with chocolate cake, the tartness and tannins were much more noticeable than on it’s own or with dinner. Overall I’d say good purchase around maybe $15 if you like reds but find some Chianti’s overwhelming this may be your wine.
Thanks and enjoy!
2018 Campo Pietra Chianti Riserva
It’s been a good week- the winter solstice is past which means more daylight, Christmas is oh so close, and I got a notification from Alice for holiday rattage. Hope everyone is ready for a weekend of relaxation, kicking back with some time off, amd not too much stress cleaning and organizing for a houseful of guests. Travel safely, everyone!
The Campo Pietra Chianti Riserva presents itself well with an attractive embossed label and non-generic bottle with a formed herald in the glass. A bit of early snooping shows this was offered in July as part of a Mixed Italian Reds on Casemates- however, no rats were on-board for that one. With limited insights online, we were on our own- but up for the challenge as we love bold reds, and enjoy Italian reds.
Pic caption: Every rat bottle over the holidays deserves a festive photo. This one includes a fancy 1960 Gancia Chianti bottle to show “how things used to be”. The bottle has the built in ice compartment to keep the wine at just the right temperature along with the festive stoppers. BTW, this bottle is older than me, but not by much.
With some lead time, Mrs. Rat set out to prepare an appropriate dish to complement and showcase the wine, and she really came through for this one, as it brought out some subtle notes and allowed us to have a comparison on new-world vs old world Sangiovese based wines.
Friday tasting: Chilled to just under 60°, opened for some breathing for a couple of hours, and decanted. Bottle had a composite natural cork with little staining. Color was a deep ruby/garnet going lighter on the edges. Aroma was red fruit, with light spice/cinnamon, and a bit of floral. Mrs. Rat noted cherry/plum with oak (I missed that at first, but agree). Swirling led to legs consistent with the moderate alc level.
First taste confirmed the nose for me. Initial tannins were strong with some nice pucker. Flavors of blueberry and red fruit, a bit of herbal, and nice tartness. After some time in the glass, the tannins softened very noticeably. Mrs Rat confirmed my notes and added that the fruit was very evident.
Food: Mrs. Rat tracked down a recipe that specifically was listed for Chianti Riserva- “Peposo”, which is braised beef short rib stew, and polenta. I owe Alice big time on this one, as we’d likely never have discovered this fantastic dish. Seriously, the recipe for this should be pasted on all dry Italian Reds. It was an amazing match. The Tuscan Peposo really brought out the pepper notes in the wine, and acidity was perfect for the short ribs.
Food side note: the dinner recipe required two cups of same/similar wine. However, no way was I tapping into the rat bottle for that. Search of the cellar led to a prior offering of Brutocao Uber Tuscan. It’s a Sangiovese/Cab blend, so a fit for the recipe AND gave us a chance to have a tasting between the California Tuscan and the Italian Chianti. Quick comparison : they are similar. CA was less aromatic, but smoother flavors and tannins. No oak notes. Fruit flavors were good in both, but slightly different. CA wine was a bit less earthy.
How about cheese and chocolate, you ask? Quite nicely with seriously sharp room temp cheddar. Likely not with Gouda, so didn’t go there. Given the Chianti profile, didn’t try dark chocolate, but some moderately intense quality chocolate really did well. I was craving some Tiramisu afterwards, but no luck- and just as well.
Not sure if this will again be part of a mixed case, but if it’s all Campo Pietra Chianti Riserva for a similar price, it’s a good deal on a nice Italian red to have on hand. Especially for trying out the Peposo recipe. (Or other similar dish, including a decent Chicago style pizza (NY will do in a pinch))
We’ll add some Day 2 notes after noon CST.
Thank you for the opportunity to Lab Rat, Casemates!
Day 2 follow-up: stored with vacuum seal overnight, flavors are a bit muted from Day 1, primarily black fruit, herbal, and smoky/oak. With food, definitely better than todays standalone tasting. Just added some cheddar, and the cheese really complemented the Chianti Riserva.
@benguin986 that dinner looks good enough to eat…
@benguin986 @kaolis
I constantly wonder, when looking to see how a bottle may evolve over a fairly short time, why folks use tools that are intended to prolong what they like in a bottle, and apply them to a bottle they want to evolve…
@kaolis @rjquillin Fair question. For this one, I wasn’t sure that any additional air time would improve things. It seemed “ready to drink now”, despite seeing several folks way more knowledgeable than me saying to aerate it or uncork for several hours. None of them said leave it uncorked overnight though, and I don’t use a nitrogen purge or anything like that.
Have you found that leaving a bottle open was a good indicator for potential for longer term aging? If so, I may start trying that for some of our buys.
I’ve never managed to keep any of our Sangiovese/Chianti type wines more than a couple of years without them being all consumed.
@benguin986 @kaolis
Thanks for not taking offence at the statement/question.
I’m rather all over the place.
If I’ve pulled a cork, say on an older bottle, and it’s in a sweet spot, I’ll backfill it with Ar, cork it, and put it in the fridge. Generally it will be good for at least a week or longer in that condition.
For a younger bottle it’s most likely to just get corked and into the fridge. I’ve left bottles in that condition for easily a week, sometimes longer, sampling every few days, to see when it starts to fall apart/oxidize/become acidic. While it’s not science, if something improves over a couple of days and perhaps even goes a week, I’ll assume (perhaps incorrectly) it has some legs in the cellar and in no hurry.
I don’t find myself often leaving a bottle corked, and almost never uncorked, on the counter; but I do read here that others do that very thing.
2021 Campo Pietra Rosso di Montepulciano
Wow excellent wine for the price.
Non California wines are rare here, especially Italian which is right up my alley.
Enjoyed this with some pasta as it should be.
Bright red clear color. Cherry, cranberry nose with some herbs and earthiness after aeration. Light on the palate with tart cherry and mild spices, tons of acid, no oak, and very dry. Medium finish and alcohol not noticeable.
Excellent palate cleanser, a perfect food wine. Do not attempt drinking this by itself except for tasting purposes or you will not appreciate it. At least have some antipasto or a piece of cheese and cracker! A great everyday wine to have with simple pastas, pizza, chicken, salmon, even a pork chop. Probably would not stand up to heavier foods, steak, gamey meats, would be better to have a super Tuscan or Southern Italian wine.
This might improve slightly in a year or two but it’s pretty good already. Nothing too complex here but it is interesting and tasty. Very well made and a textbook example of a light Tuscan Sangiovese blend similar to Chianti.
Thanks Casemates and Happy Holidays to all.
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: tax and shipping are not included in savings calculations).
Campo Pietra Mixed Italian Reds - $35 = 17.94%
This is another One Vine Wines/Big Hammer product. The Chianti is selling for $29.98 and the Rosso selling for $26.99 on the Big Hammer site.
fwiw
2021 Campo Pietra Rosso di Montepulciano Toscana
Most lightly stained cork I’ve ever pulled, this must have been bottled last week before it left Italy
Color
Dark purple with ruby translucence at edges
PNP
Nose
No discernable notes, faint greenery
Palate
Faint raspberry, tannins, tart finish
Very tight with no flavors outstanding
Open bottle @ 2 hrs
Nothing new
Sent through a vinturi twice before it opened at all
Much heavier raspberry on the nose
Palate
Stone fruit, raspberry, and for the 3 people who might recognize it…wife: “slightly unripe prickly pear fruit”
More tartness on the edges and finish, but the perfect level, just enough to make your mouth water for the next taste
Was very surprised to see 13% on the label, can’t feel/taste the alcohol at all.
Corking the second half for tomorrow
Day 2
Still hasn’t developed anything new, it’s a nice young wine that MIGHT age for ~5 years but I wouldn’t expect much. It would make a good daily drinker; I’d put it at a ~$9-11 Casemates price point
Looks interesting and fun. I’m in. Merry Christmas to all my fellow Casemates!
Scott