# Tasmorcan Barbera d'Asti (2024)

- **Producer:** Elio Perrone
- **Colour:** red
- **Type:** still
- **Grapes:** Barbera
- **Region:** Piemonte, Italy
- **Style:** Classic
- **Alcohol:** 14.5%
- **Average price:** €14
- **Contains sulphites:** Yes
- **When to drink:** Now or Later
- **Serving temperature:** 16–17 °C
- **Aromas & flavours:** cherry, raspberry, plum, violet, vanilla

## About this wine

Elio Perrone is an estate located in Isola d'Asti in Piedmont, Italy, led by winemaker Stefano Perrone, a former champion motocross racer who took over his family's estate in 1989. The winery operates as an artisanal tailor wine laboratory. The name 'Tasmorcan' translates from local Piedmontese dialect to a badger with a dog's face, a lighthearted reference to wild badgers that repeatedly dug up and ate newly planted Barbera vines on the estate.

## Interesting facts

- 'Tasmorcan' in Piedmontese dialect refers to a dog-faced badger, named after local badgers eating young vines.
- Winemaker Stefano Perrone was a former champion motocross racer before taking over the family estate in 1989.
- The estate describes its small-batch artisanal winemaking philosophy as a 'Sartoria Enologica' (tailor wine laboratory).

## Food pairing

Barbera's signature high natural acidity cuts through rich tomato sauces, fatty cured meats, and savory meats effortlessly, while soft, rounded tannins ensure the palate remains silky without clashing with food components.

## Wine making process

The grapes are hand-harvested from steep, south-facing vineyards in Isola d'Asti. Following gentle crushing, the must undergoes temperature-controlled fermentation in stainless steel tanks. To preserve fresh primary fruit focus, 70% of the wine ages in stainless steel for 4 to 6 months, while the remaining 30% matures in large French oak casks (botti grandi) prior to spring bottling.