2021 Oddero Gallina Barbaresco 750 ml

When you’re one of Barolo’s most historic and renowned producers, like Oddero, owning plots of Piedmont’s most famous Cru vineyards is par for the course. The 2021 Oddero Barbaresco Gallina is a must-have for Piedmont collectors and lovers of magnificent Nebbiolo — drawing on fruit from 13-50-year-old vines in this famous cru in Neive beloved by Roagna and the late Bruno Giacosa. In 2021, seventh-generation sisters Mariacristina and Mariavittoria crafted the kind of Barbaresco that has made Oddero famous around the world. 

Oddero was founded in 1878 and throughout its 146-year lifetime, it has become one of the largest landowners in the region, snapping up 148 acres of the choicest vineyards, including Brunate, Rocche di Castiglione, and Villero. Legendary Oddero patriarch Giacomo Oddero even helped develop the regulations and DOCG guidelines that govern Langhe and Roero. But it’s taken his two daughters, Mariacristina and Mariavittoria, to translate Oddero’s vision for the present day. While abiding by many of the Langhe’s traditions of yore—using only large, old casks, hand-selecting grapes, opting for longer macerations—they’ve also updated the family’s plots according to the latest thinking in organic farming.

One thing that’s never changed is the trademark complexity and suavity of Oddero’s Baroli and Barbareschi, with Wine Advocate writing: “I have always enjoyed a particular appreciation for the delicate and super elegant wines of Oddero.” With this wine’s aromatic bouquet of cherry, cranberry, and raspberry, intertwined with floral notes of rose petal and savory herbs—all strewn across an elegant and refined palate—we heartily agree.