The 2015 Barbaresco Rio Sordo is darker and more muscular than the Tre Stelle tasted alongside it. Powerful and virile in feel, the Rio Sordo is a super-expressive, classically austere Barbaresco that is going to need at least a few years in bottle to come into its own. A host of dark, spiced, balsamic-infused notes develop in the glass, but the Rio Sordo remains reticent. Potent tannins add to an impression of gravitas. There is plenty to look forward to.