The 2004 Barbera d’Alba Sorito Mosconi is an impressive wine endowed with notable clarity in its dark red fruit, spices, flowers, licorice and toasted oak. Medium in body, this refined Barbera d’Alba Sorito Mosconi offers superb balance in a compelling, harmonious style. As always this is one of Piedmont’s most elegant French-oak aged Barbera and in 2004 it is a truly special wine. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2014. Proprietor Rodolfo Migliorini has endured a series of personal tragedies that no one should ever have to experience. The separate losses of his mother, father and brother in just over a year is truly saddening. Hopefully Migliorini might find some small comfort in knowing that this is the finest set of wines his estate has ever produced. The 2004 Barolos are particularly impressive from top to bottom. The wines possesses more transparency than I have ever seen here. The estate still favors 100% new French oak but prior to bottling most of the wines spent 6-12 months in 2-3 year old larger French-oak casks, which has given the wines an extra dimension of transparency. The Santo Stefano, Vigna d’ la Roul, Riserva 10 Anni and Pianpolvere Soprano Barolos all spent or will spend some time in cask, while the Big ‘d Big is now the only Barolo to be aged exclusively in barrique.Importer: Robert Chadderdon Selections, New York, NY; tel. (212) 332-4999