97 point

The 2021 Barbaresco Riserva Montestefano is a dense, hulking wine. Powerful and dense to the core, the Montestefano is a big, broad-shouldered wine that is going to need a few years to be at its most expressive. Dark-toned fruit, new leather, spice, menthol are all amplified in this potent Barbaresco.

96 point

Youthful on the nose, showing bright, lively aromas of red and dark fruits, leafy lightness, wild strawberries and black cherries with a whiff of blood oranges and earthy, chocolaty depth. The gorgeous full-bodied palate, structured and extracted, has firm, velvety tannins and tense acidity, leading to a balanced, endless, licorice finish. March 2026 release. Drink or hold.

The Produttori del Barbaresco 2021 Montestefano possesses heady aromas of iris, violet, red berry and spice. Firm and full-bodied, the palate boasts great energy and intensity that lifts ripe Morello cherry, orange peel, cranberry and licorice. It’s well balanced, with bright acidity.

96 point

Black currant, blackberry, violet, tobacco and sweet spices highlight this suave, fruity red. Opulent for the vintage and solidly built, with a long, resonant finish that echoes the fruit and adds iron and mineral notes. Excellent length.

94 point

One of the bottles in this lineup that falls on the darker and bolder side of the spectrum, the Produttori del Barbaresco 2021 Barbaresco Riserva Montestefano is layered and rich with dark fruit, dried cherry and blackberry framed by light spice and dark mineral notes. This is not the first time that I have found Montestefano to be the ripest wine in the series, and the 2021 vintage again reveals hints of dried plum and fig that underscore that trend. Sourced from four hectares of limestone-clay soils, the wine shows big concentration and fruit weight. Fermented in stainless steel and aged in large oak botti.