Roagna Barbaresco Pajè 2018

Roagna is one of the most sought-after producers in Piedmont. Historically based in Pajè in the Barbaresco Commune, the family now also has a property in Barolo (Castiglione Falletto). Luca Roagna produces wines of purity and power.
Roagna’s style is characterised by old vines, immaculate attention to detail in the vineyards where they do not use any herbicides or pesticides, with extended maceration and elevage. They use prolonged submerged cap maceration (around 90 days) to harness abundant, persistent and fine tannins. They also practice extended elevage for their Nebbiolo wines – Luca has slowly been decreasing time in oak in favour of concrete. Usually two to three and a half years in neutral oak followed by concrete to a total of 5 years. This regime is two years longer than what is common.
The recently released 2018s have just landed, and while it was a challenging vintage in Barolo and Barbaresco, Luca Roagna was one of the few who managed it extremely well. In the words of Antonio Galloni of Vinous: “This is a stellar set of wines from Luca Roagna. The 2018 Barbarescos and Barolos are especially fine”. Antonio Galloni (Vinous) on the 2018s:
This is a stellar set of wines from Luca Roagna. The 2018 Barbarescos and Barolos are especially fine. Roagna waited it out, choosing to harvest as late as possible in order to ripen the tannins. As a result, a number of the wines have distinctly exotic profiles. I tasted the entire range twice and found the wines consistently brilliant. These are wines that benefit considerably from cellaring, something I have learned over the two decades-plus I have been buying and drinking them. As has been the case for some time, Roagna has reduced the time in wood for the Barolos and Barbarescos, preferring more neutral vessels for the final portion of aging. As always, low-intervention viticulture and super-traditional methods, with ambient fermentations and long time on the skins, are cornerstones of the approach here.