FÁUTOR | Barbaro | 2019
syrah | tempranillo | cabernet sauvignon | saperavi

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Tonight we are going to review an emblematic wine blend from the Valul lui Traian region in the south-west of Moldova – Barbaro 2019 by Fáutor Winery. This is the new winemaker’s flagship wine – a blend of four grape varieties: syrah, tempranillo, cabernet sauvignon and saperavi, where syrah adds color depth and tannin extract, tempranillo enhances the wine’s structure and enhances the wine’s flavour profile, cabernet sauvignon forms the wine’s main body and adds longevity to the final blend, while saperavi adds up-front richness and rounds up the final blend, making it lusher on the finish. Barbaro is a homage to the Valul lui Traian fortifications, whose ruins are still found in the south-west of Moldova. The Valul lui Traian fortifications delimited the eastern borders of the mighty Roman Empire and all the inhabitants beyond those walls were called ‘noble barbarians’. The wine itself was aged for 12 months in french oak barriques, with a couple more years of bottle ageing before it was deemed ready for market release. But enough theory, that said and without further ado, let’s take a look at the wine tasting results.
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Take a look at the tasting notes below and our detailed assessment of the wine:

//Visual
colour: deep ruby color
clarity: indigo shades on the rim

//Olfactory
intensity: pronounced & oaky
fruit profile: black fruits
__black fruits: black cherry | blackberry | blackcurrant | black plum
fruit character: ripe & overripe

//Flavor
non fruit: spice | oak | earth | other
__spice: cloves | tonka seeds | nutmeg | anise | peppercorn
__oak: vanilla | toasted oak | liquorice | sweet tobacco
__earthy: graphite | granite
__other: hints of new leather
primary layer: fruity–oaky

//Palate
sweetness: dry
acidity: high
alcohol: high
tannin: high
__grip: rough
balance: good
__dominant: acidity
body: firm | full body

//Taste
fruit profile: black fruits
fruit character: ripe & overripe
non fruit: spice & oak
finish: medium+
aftertaste: seedy-rough

//Scoring
FÁUTOR | Barbaro | 2019
variety: syrah | tempranillo | cabernet sauvignon | saperavi
country: Moldova
region: Valul lui Traian
rating: 93.7

//Conclusion
maturity: developing | needs time | age for 3 to 5 years
verdict: great | a legendary wine
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This is definitely a great wine of Moldova and, with a total of 93.7 points scored, this wine is right there, among the best wines we’ve rated so far. Check our complete database on the wine rating page, where you can find all the wines that we have tasted and reviewed or go to the about us page and find out more about our exquisite rating system.

Verdict: this is a quite youthful, firm and expressive wine blend, with a nuanced, fruity-oaky accent on the nose and a grippy mouthfeel. It is still in the development phase, therefore we would recommend to give it 3 to 5 more years of bottle ageing, in order to allow it to reach its full potential, but don’t overdo it, as it is always better to drink a wine a year too soon than a day too late. On the nose the wine brings a mixture of ripe and overripe black fruits and some very nuanced oaky notes in the foreground, followed by a spicy-sweet background and a very subtle, earthy layer in between the two. On the palate the wine delivers exuberant acidity, rough and grippy tannins and a touch of alcoholic warmth that is showing through on the mouthfeel, which leads to a seedy-rough aftertaste. All in all, this is a quite muscular, slightly angular but bold wine blend with a great ageing potential – a wine that in its current state lacks some elegance and finesse on the palate. We believe it will pair quite lovely with spicy or grilled meats, like for example a peppercorn-crusted tomahawk steak or a rosemary-garlic flank steak. Just get one and enjoy it!

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© The WineStatistics ratings are based solely on our own knowledge of the world of wine and on our personal wine tastes, which may, or may not, differ from yours – the reader. Just remember that there are no absolutes of right and wrong in wine appreciation.