A box wine from the land of Barolo? For Italian wine lovers on a budget, we review the Vinchio Vaglio Le Tane Piemonte Barbera in a 3L box.
100% Barbera from Piedmont, Italy packaged in a 3L box, the equivalent of four 750ml bottles. The wine is aged in stainless steel for 3 months and is vegan friendly.
Today we’re revisiting an old favorite as we previously reviewed a 2012 3L box from this same winery. (While the old version didn’t have “Le Tane” in the name, it appears to essentially be the same wine.) We were big fans of it back then, so let’s see if it is still just as good. After all, it’s not everyday you see a box wine from the prestigious Piedmont region, home to some of Italy’s most expensive wines!
We picked this one up for $27.99, which is equivalent to about $7 per regular 750ml bottle.
From the winery:
“Le Tane” Piemonte DOC Barbera is like a simple and honest friend. It is made from 100% Barbera grapes and has a lively red ruby colour, a fresh and fruity nose and on the palate the wine has pleasant acidity, it is savoury and easy drinking.
Description: According to the most common definition, “Tane” or lairs are holes in the ground which serve as shelter and refuge for wild animals. In this case, however, they refer to small caves dug into the hills, often sandy, which were once the farmer’s shelter in case of bad weather or a place to store the tools. In a playful version, many of these were used for snack breaks, the so called “merenda sinoire” of cheerful groups of friends. Particularly suitable moments to pair a glass of cheerful, young, fresh, fruity and drinkable Barbera with omelettes, savoury pies and so on. This is the most appropriate interpretation of the Piemonte D.O.C. Barbera which represents one of the winery’s strength. The idea is to produce a young, fresh, fruity and easy drinking Barbera, with a low alcohol content and an affordable price.
Harvest: On the third week of September, the grapes are harvested in the morning and delivered to the winery during the day, so that the grapes arrive fresh at the winery.
Vinification: After crushing and destalking the grapes, the must is sent to vertical stainless tanks. The alcoholic fermentation and maceration last around 5 days. Much automatic pumping over is carried out to extract the polyphenolic substances from the skin. The fermentation occurs at a constant temperature of 25 °C.
Ageing: The malolactic fermentation takes place immediately after the alcoholic fermentation and the wine remains in stainless steel tanks for about 3 months prior to bottling.
Pairings: aperitive with cheese or salami board, all kind of starters or light first course dishes, noodle or vegetable soups, salads, white meats.
13% Alcohol
The 2023 Vinchio Vaglio Piemonte Barbera Le Tane opens with pleasing aromas of red and black cherry, plum, spice and even a little mint. Swirling also reveals a little licorice and a touch of a nutty note. It’s a nice start.
Tasting the medium-bodied wine reveals similar flavors to the nose with more juicy and tart red cherry, black cherry and plum notes. It’s also smooth with some chalky tannins. True to the variety, this wine will go great with all kinds of food, especially Italian favorites.
It ends dry, juicy, tart, long and a bit grippy. This is an extreme value, I wish we could find more boxes like this. It was pretty much the exact same on days 2 through 30, which is one of the beauties of the box!
2023 Vinchio Vaglio Le Tane Piemonte Barbera
Find more of the Best Box Wines here!
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