Pizzini Il Barrone 2022

The Baron. A traditional Australian blend – Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz; with an Italian twist of Sangiovese and Nebbiolo. The aromas are enchanting: brooding blackcurrant and dark chocolate of the Cabernet, a peppery lift from the Shiraz, rose petals and truffles from Nebbiolo and savoury dried herbs and blood orange from Sangiovese. There’s plump cherries, summer berries and sweet baking spices, set against a backdrop of fragrant leaf tobacco, leather and Aussie rainforest. Rich and silky with fine grained tannins. The levels are high, the wine is built to age, but I had to go looking for them because the overall impression is one of ethereal balance.  Bright, juicy acidity carries the flavours of pomegranate and raspberry. As the wine opens in the glass, layers and layers of sultry depths continue to reveal themselves. A wine of contrasts, brooding and playful, slurpable yet complex. It took a lot of focus to write this note because I just wanted to immerse my senses in the indulgent complexity. 

Nicole Bilson

Wine Critic at Winepilot

Nicole loves wine. So much so that she gave up a successful career in Pharmacy, perfected her spitting technique, and moved from sunny Queensland to the wine-drenched laneways of Melbourne. Stints in hospitality, wineries, retail, sales and marketing filled the next few years while Nicole built her knowledge and searched for the right path. She completed the Wine and Spirits Education Trust (WSET) Diploma in 2016 and became a certified WSET Educator the following year. She now juggles a number of roles including teaching people about wine, curating wines lists for restaurants and bars, judging in Australian wine shows and, of course, writing. In 2016 she won the Negociants Working With Wine writing award and has since contributed to Gourmet Traveller WINE, Halliday Wine Companion Magazine and Nourish Magazine.

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