INSIDER'S PICK: 2016 AZELIA BARBERA d'ALBA 'PUNTA' (Vinous/Wine Advocate 92points) $26.99

Even though we will not be doing the public tasting portion of the Insider's Pick until further notice, we will still be offering the wine for purchase with the usual 10% discount on Thursday and Friday. The wines will still be ones we highly recommend, and the tasting notes will still be our own. We will be returning to doing just the one wine on Thursdays and Fridays until further notice. We hope you are able to come by and get some wines to enjoy.

The general hierarchy for wine grapes in the Piedmont has Nebbiolo at the top, followed by Barbera and Dolcetto. At one time Barbera was actually at the top of this trio, until Nebbiolo based wines evolved and improved to become the long lived world class icons they are now.Very little vineyard space in the famed Barolo and Barbaresco growing regions is used for any grapes other than Nebbiolo because the wines and land are so prized. The occasional exceptions are often small, family owned plots scattered here and there that need to produce something special to justify maintaining their place among vines that could be earning a lot more money. This is very much one of those exceptions. Azelia is a small family estate in the famous hilltop town of Castiglione Falletto, recently celebrating their 100th anniversary of producing wine under their name. 'Punta' is a vineyard site at the top of one of many smaller hills surrounding Falletto, where Azelia has maintained a small 2+acre plot of Barbera with vines now exceeding 60 years of age. This is very close to the pinnacle of what Barbera can achieve, offering both intense black fruits and spicy, leathery savory tones with the brightness and fresh feeling palate the varietal is well known for at every price point. The little bit of extra bottle age brings out a bit of added polish to the texture as well as some tobacco leaf and old leather chair aromas, and could probably evolve well for another decade or more, but is in a wonderfully approachable place right now. Deserves to be paired with a great hearty meal with lots of roasted vegetables and meaty/mushroom-y main dishes.

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