Maraia Barbera del Monferrato - Easy Elegance • Reverse Wine Snob®

Have a juicy, fruity good time with this beauty of a Barbera from Marchesi di Barolo, the Maraia Barbera del Monferrato.

100% Barbera from Maranzana, Piedmont, Italy. The wine is aged for one year in Slavonian oak barrels and has 2.1 g/L of residual sugar.

Sample submitted for review. The Maraia Barbera del Monferrato has an SRP of $13 and is available for as low as $10. Imported by Frederick Wildman and Sons.

From the bottle:

“Maraia” refers to a group of rowdy kids, or “little rascals”, in Piedmontese dialect, referring to the lively nature of this wine.

This 100% Barbera is sourced from calcareous-clay soils that are rich in quartz sand, lending the wine a strong, but balanced character and an open bouquet. Handpicked grapes are brought to the cellar in perfect condition and are softly pressed and de-stalked before vinification. The resulting wine has blackberry fruit aromas with wild berry preserve and vanilla notes. The full-bodied palate is warm yet balanced with a lively acidity that pairs well with a variety of dishes, from antipasto to pasta with red sauce and light meats as well as on its own.

13.5% Alcohol

Barbera is, unfortunately, an often overlooked Italian grape, but it’s one of our favorite varieties to pair with pizza. Today’s example comes from the Barbera del Monferrato appellation in the northwestern part of the Piedmont region. It’s the biggest of the 3 Barbera zones in Piedmont (Alba and Asti are the other two) but also probably the least well known.

The 2016 Maraia Barbera del Monferrato from Marchesi di Barolo opens with a lovely, enticing aroma loaded with dark berries, plenty of spice and a little vanilla. The nicely balanced wine is extremely easy to drink and tastes of Sweet Tart fruit (although this is not a sweet wine) with nice touches of spice and a soft, almost comforting mouthfeel. Medium to full-bodied and with good acidity, this is a juicy, fruity good time! It ends fresh, dry and delicious with good length, lingering sweet fruit and elegant touches of spice.

Ready to buy the Maraia Barbera del Monferrato? Check your local retailers.