By: AJ McClellan
Last night we had a fun experiment. With all the talk about the 2011 vintage we decided to try one of my favorite wines from the 2010 vintage as well as the 2011 side by side – Barbour wines. Starting in 2010 Barbour wines have been made by the famed Celia Welch, and wow, she has done a fantastic job with these wines.
We popped both bottles at the same time and served them side by side. It was intriguing how different the two wines were. The 2010 Barbour was spicy and full bodied with soft black fruit and rustic nuances. While the 10 Barbour was smoking out of the gate the 2011 Barbour was a little thin on the mid palate showing more blue fruit and pronounced oak notes.
After almost an hour in the glass the 2011 has a full head of steam filling out the middle and gaining a broad expansive palate. The 2010 was still great but the gap between the two bottles was quickly fading. By the end of the two bottles the difference between them was still very interesting but the quality of the two was indistinguishable. Bothe wines are fantastic and well worth the price paid!