The 2020 Barbaresco Sori Paitin is a regal, elegant wine. Powerful yet delicate, with tons of understated power, the Sori Paitin is a textbook example of what fine Barbaresco can be. Sweet red cherry fruit, kirsch, mint, blood orange, spice, hard candy and orange peel soar out of the glass, framed by silky yet incisive young Nebbiolo tannins. The balance here is just sublime. For my money, this is the Paitin Barbaresco to buy in 2020.

Alluring aromas and flavors of cherry, raspberry, leafy underbrush, tar, iron and hay mark this luscious red, which is fresh and firm at once, with a chalky, minerally essence on the long finish. Best from 2026 through 2042. 974 cases made.

In the local dialect, a "sorì" refers to the top of a hill that gets the most sunlight. The 2020 Barbaresco Serraboella Sorì Paitin is a special selection of fruit from a pinpoint area within this greater cru site in the village of Neive. Certified for organics, it does indeed show slightly riper and sweeter fruit, which is expected given the very warm temperatures seen during this growing season. This wine does not have the same austerity that we get in the wider selection from Serraboella. Instead, this bottle offers a softly layered expression with cassis, red rose, peony, apricot, spice and iodine. Exactly 11,794 bottles were released.