Press Reviews

Santa Barbara Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Riserva DOCG Tardivo Ma Non Tardo

A rich and complex nose entices with fruit (exotic, tropical) and notes of spice. An important structure is balanced by a fresh minerality that invites another sip. In addition to representing one of the regions best examples of Verdicchio, Tardivo Ma Non Tardo is participant in an interesting and noble project. The distinctive label is designed by artist Catia Uliassi who, together with the Santa Barbara winery, collaborates with the Fondazione Dott. Dante Paladini. A portion of the proceeds from each bottle of this Verdicchio goes to support research and treatment of neuromuscular disease.



James Suckling on 2020 vintage

Golden apples, jackfruit, apricot stones, honey and nutmeg on the nose. It’s ripe and fleshy, full-bodied, with creamy layers of yellow and orange fruit. Flavorful. Drink now or hold.


Vinous Media on 2020 vintage

The 2020 Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Riserva Tardivo Ma Non Tardo opens slowly. It's rich and has a confectionary spice and custard flourish up front. With time in the glass, this blossoms into a more savory mix of wet stones, ginger and baked apple. It washes across the palate with a measured sweetness guided by juicy acidity. Ripe orchard fruits flow across its near-glycerol textures. The 2020 finishes long and staining yet remarkably fresh with a flourish of tropical melon complemented by mint traces. This seductive Verdicchio is a total pleasure to taste and, despite its richness and intensity, never steps out of balance. Enjoy it today or cellar for up to a decade to bring out further complexities.


Falstaff Magazine on 2019 vintage

Bright straw yellow color with a greenish shimmer. On the nose there are hints of flint, ripe pears, delicate banana, some apricots, a slight hint of almond, then honeycomb with a lingering buttery note. On the palate with a great structure, elegant and melty, well-integrated acidity, salty, complex and with a lot of pressure, herbal and spicy finish.


James Suckling on 2018 vintage

Waxed lemon, chamomile, dried apple and oyster shell on the nose. It’s medium-to full-bodied with ripe layers of fruit and minerals. Excellent concentration and length. Drink now or hold.


Vinous Media on 2018 vintage

The 2018 Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Tardivo Ma Non Tardo is a vivid yellow golden color in the glass. Here I’m finding a mesmerizing bouquet of orange oils and tangerine complemented by dusty dried florals, gingery spice and hints of undergrowth. It’s soft and enveloping, stopping short of fat, also pleasantly sweet, blending rich notes of ripe apple and pear with lime-infused acids. This becomes a bit tropical toward the close yet never falls out of balance; instead leaving the mouth refreshed and watering for more, as salty minerals linger with nuances of ripe green melon. Wow, the combination of the Tardivo Ma Non Tardo’s late-harvest girth and the tension of the 2018 vintage have come together to create a highly pleasurable expression of Verdicchio. This is easily one of the best renditions of this wine that I have tasted to date, and it should excel through medium-term cellaring as well.


Forbes Magazine - Italy on 2017 vintage

Stefano Antonucci can never be talked about enough, the work that Barbara's cellar is doing in the territories is so important. Personal, refined and subtle interpretations such as this Tardivo from overripe Verdicchio grapes (partially dried on the plant), elegant nose, unpeeled fruit, toasted pistachios, full sip.


Falstaff Magazine on 2017 vintage

Bright, bright straw yellow. On the nose of ripe pears, delicate banana, also reminiscent of apricots, light nutmeg tone, then honeycomb with a buttery finish. Opens with a great structure, elegant and soft, well integrated acidity, salty vein, with a lot of intensity.


James Suckling on 2017 vintage

This is a creamy with lovely notes of concrete and ripe apples alongside a hint of lemon tart. Medium to full body. Round and flavorful yet fresh and lively at the end. Drink or hold.


Vinous Media on 2017 vintage

In the past, I’ve found the Verdicchio Tardivo Ma Non Tardo (“late but not late”) from Santa Barbara to be the largest-scaled wine from their portfolio. However, the 2017 holds its power in check, leaning more on minerals, savory herbs and citrus-infused pit fruits to impress. Silky textures soothe with a bitter bite of green apple acidity and salty tension, which nearly masks this Verdicchio’s ripe fruit, but not quite. It’s a wine of contrasts that leaves subtle notes of ripe green melon and sweet inner florals to mingle on the finish.


Wine Advocate on 2016 vintage

This is a fun wine with a whimsical portrait of a lady on its front label. The Santa Barbara 2016 Castelli di Jesi Verdicchio Riserva Classico Tardivo ma non Tardo ("tardy but not late") sees fruit that is left long on the vines to obtain full ripeness, as well as some over-ripeness. This allows for the full and generous stone and orchard fruit aromas you get here, all backed by aniseed and dusty mineral. This is a lean to medium-weight wine to pair with white meat. The wine ages in steel vats for two long years. Some, 12,735 bottles were released.


James Suckling on 2016 vintage

A dense and flavorful white with lots of lime and intense citrus character. Hints of minerals, too. Medium body, bright acidity and a long, flavorful finish. Drink now.


James Suckling on 2015 vintage

This is a lovely, aged white that shows some bottle bouquet of sliced cooked pears, as well as stone, steel and hints of fresh herbs. Full body. Flavorful and intense. Floral, dried-apple and mineral character. Drink now.


Vinous Media on 2011 vintage

Bright golden-straw. Honey, baked apple, pear nectar and minerals on the nose. Fresh, clean flavors of stone fruits and almonds showcase lovely precision. The finish is crisp, savory and long. At 14.5% the alcohol level is not shy but this wine is neither hot nor heavy.


 
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