In 1998, the renowned Barbaresco Santo Stefano is the most forward offering, with its medium ruby color already displaying amber at the edge. Aromas of new saddle leather, fennel, smoke, tobacco, kirsch liqueur, and licorice soar from the glass of this ripe, opulent, medium to full-bodied Barbaresco. I hesitate to say it can be drunk young given the tendency of these wines to shut down, but readers who purchase it (that includes me) should let it settle down for a year or two after arrival, and drink it over the following 15+ years. A Leonardo Locascio Selection, Winebow, Hohokus, NJ; tel. (201) 445-0620