Dinner - Lino Maga Barbacarlo November 19, 2019 Maialino

When, about 8 years ago, our friend Luca Mazzoleni offered to take me to visit Lino Maga, I thought I wasn’t interested – more fool I. But Luca described Maga as “the Bartolo Mascarello of Oltrepo Pavese", so I couldn’t refuse. Maga is of the same generation as Bartolo, and he is similarly devoted to an ideal of local tradition. On several occasions after our visit when I mentioned Maga to some Italian friends (more than one of whom called Maga “legendary”) it was clear that he is held in very high esteem, as a great winemaker, as a defender of the best of the past, and as someone who hasn’t yielded to what Maga himself referred to as “the globalization of wine”. Our visit was a great experience — most importantly I loved the wines, which are by far my favorite that I’ve tasted from the Oltrepo. Made from roughly equal parts Croatina, Uva Rara, and Ughetta, the wines are clean and very distinctive. Dark and savory with very complex aromatics of rhubarb, plums, violets, and tea, they are structured and tannic, and there can be a bit of spritz on the palate which gives lift. Chemicals have never been used in the vines; fermentation is spontaneous, in large old botti; aside from a couple of rackings no other processes are done — the bottled wine has sediment. After tasting at Maga, I could see Luca’s point in drawing a parallel between Maga and Bartolo Mascarello; aside from being of the same generation and sharing the same philosophy of wine, Luca’s view was based on the quality of their wine: both winemakers reject flashy effects, both are determined to sustain the tradition and practices of their families and of their regions; both obtain authentic wines of the highest possible quality.   

We now have a very rare opportunity to taste a full range of Maga’s great wine called Barbacarlo. This is thanks to Luca Mazzoleni, who among many other accomplishments was assistant to the great Italian wine and food writer Luigi Veronelli. Luca has helped us secure some wine from Veronelli’s extraordinary cellar, and Luca will join us for dinner; an evening with Luca is guaranteed to be both entertaining and fascinating, as he has an encyclopedic knowledge of Italian wine that his mentor Veronelli would be proud of.

But first the wine: from the Veronelli cellar we will taste Barbacarlo 1968, 1969, 1970 1971, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, and we’ve sourced 1994, 2011, and 2016 from the New York importer. I resist the idea of once-in-a-lifetime, but this might just be it! Jamie Wolff

Maga, Lino 2016 Pavia Rosso IGT Barbacarlo

The bishop of Broni comes each year to sample Signore Maga's wines, and upon tasting the 2016 proclaimed it "mystical." So now Lino has a handmade plaque above his door that reads "We make mystical wine" and we as consumers have the opportunity to savor something divine.  The 2016 will age tremendously. It is one of those vintages that has a touch of residual sugar, and a plumpness to the fruit quality. The nose is full of dark and enticing notes of plum, violet, black currant and baking spice. The palate is full of energy, with great acidity giving lift to the density; it also introduces red currant, ripe raspberry, dried orange peel, along with more nutmeg and spice. With a few hours open this wine harmonizes beautifully, carrying great complexity, softness, and depth. I've had this wine three times in the past two months and each bottle was spectacular. Just a baby right now, the 2016 will age for the next 40 years easily. If you do decide to open now (and it is delicious now), a few hour decant is highly recommended. Oskar Kostecki

Maga, Lino 2011 Pavia Rosso IGT Barbacarlo

Lino Maga described the 2011 vintage as "ampio-abboccato" meaning broad and  slightly sweet, though it is already showing some signs of development. Slightly darker in profile than the vintages it proceeds, the nose opens with dark plum, blackberry, cassis, and licorice. The palate introduces a bit of development, with earth,  fresh cut hay, and a hint of cedar, as well as an herbaceous quality of sage. Still great acidity, and a lot of energy on the palate. With a bit of time open it starts to reveal fresher characteristics, and gains in vivacity. As with all Lino Maga wines, a healthy decant is recommended. Oskar Kostecki

Maga, Lino 1994 Oltrepo Pavese D.O.C Barbacarlo

A quite notorious vintage in northern Italy, 1994 was marred by weeks of rainfall in September, diluting the quality across much of the renowned growing regions of Barolo and Barbaresco. While it's hard to find concrete vintage reports on Oltrepo Pavese, we can assume some similarity; indeed the 1994 Barbacarlo is lighter in both color and mouthfeel than other vintages tasted from the 90s. Yet in no way would I say this is a lesser vintage, and as with all Maga wines, bottle age knits it together in beautiful ways. A bottle opened in Verona in April showed slightly fresher, with more raspberry, currant, and ripe red fruit. The bottle tasted in New York in September was slightly more muted on the fruit side, but showing beautiful notes of development; sage, nutmeg, baking spice, hints of cedar and tobacco leaves wonderfully integrating with notes of dried cherry and dried cranberry. There is amazing vivacity to all the Barbacarlo's I've tasted, and this is no exception. It will throw a bit of sediment, so decanting an hour before serving is recommended.