Wine with Ribbe (Pork Belly)

Ribbe – what to do?

Norwegians are getting ready to consume tons and tons of Ribbe next week, and many are wondering what wine to drink. And I have three words for you: Barbera, Barbera, Barbera!

If you look other places, you’ll see suggestions like Riesling, Pinot Noir or Beer. Champagne is another option. Or hard liquor. But if you ask me, Barbera is the way to go. Why? The acidity in the Barbera will help clean your palate after eating all that fatty, salty, heavy Christmas food. And Barbera just tastes good. So why not?

Which Barbera?

I would suggest a Barbera that has been in contact with some oak. The classic Barbera will also work, of course, so I’ll throw in some of those as well.

The one from Burlotto is always a winner. If you can, go for his Aves – it’s out of this world. This is unfortunately not available in Norway at the moment, but I’m crossing my fingers for 2020!

Vietti makes a wide range of Barbera (all good) but my favorite has to be the La Crena! On the spectrum, it’s on the expensive side, but the Tre Vigne or Vigna Scarrone would work great with Ribbe as well!

I don’t think I’ll ever mention Barbera without also mentioning Trediberri. And in Norway, it’s always my go to. I mean, talk about bang for your buck! Hopefully it’s also available in whatever country you’re in. If not, shoot him an email (info@trediberri.com) and let him know you’re interested!

Azelia’s wines just became available in Norway again! Woop woop! Another great wine to pair with your Ribbe this year.

For Thanksgiving this year we had the Barbera from Mauro Veglio, and it was perfect with the turkey! Try it with Ribbe as well.

Other Suggestions

If you are dead set on something other than Barbera, keep reading. Although I really don’t think you need to.

If you want Champagne, I would go for Pierre Peters Cuvée de Reserve Grand Cru or Bereche Brut Reserve. Both good value and good quality. You can also have this for your aperitivo, Christmas brunch or just because. It’s never a bad time to drink Champagne.

If Riesling is your thing, you could try Kruger-Rumpf Phyllit Riesling Feinherb or Dönnhoff Schlossbockelheimer Felsenberg GG. I hear GG is the way to go, but some less expensive options should work as well.

Riesling with Ribbe

Wine for Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving might be an American (and Canadian) thing, so chances are you might not have a relationship with this holiday. Turkey, however, is something most of us (at least meat eaters) have a relationship with. And since Turkey is a big part of Thanksgiving, it may be fitting with suggestions of wines that pair well with turkey!

Thanksgiving – what wine should you get?

If you google “wine pairing turkey” you get many different results. I guess it all comes down to taste.
Decanter suggests oaked chardonnay or pinot noir.
Forbes brings out the big guns and suggests Champagne!
While these are all good ideas, my suggestion (as Piemontegirl) would be Barbera.

Barbera for Thanksgiving

When it comes to fatty food, like Turkey, tannin is the enemy and acidity is your friend. And if there is one thing you’ll find in Barbera, it’s acidity. Personally I also prefer red wine with meat, even if it’s “light meat”, and would therefore choose Barbera over Champagne or a white wine. Again, this comes down to tastes and preferences, but it should come as no surprise that Piemontegirl recommends something from Piemonte.

Thanksgiving Tips from Piemonte

Barbera 2020

2020 has been a strange year. A lot of things have happened. And a lot of things have been cancelled. However, one aspect of my life that remains the same is my love of wine. Here are some of my favorite Barbera from 2020:

Andrea Oberto Barbera Giada
Easily one of my all time favorites! Andrea Oberto makes 3 different Barbera, each with different use of oak. The Giada is in my opinion the best, and even though it spends quite some time in wood barrels, you can’t feel the oak in the mouth.

Diego Morra Barbera
A recent discovery, and a good one at that! The 2018 has good acidity with notes of red fruit and minerals.

Ghiomo Ruit Hora
With 15% of Nebbiolo, this wine will rock your world! This is Giuseppino’s passion project, and it shows!

Trediberri Barbera
It’s as good in 2019 as it was in 2018, perhaps even better! Not sure if all wine tastes better in 2020 (f**k Covid), but the Barbera from Trediberri certainly does!

Barbera 2021

Burlotto Barbera
Both the classic Barbera and the Aves from Burlotto are out of this world! Fabio is an outstanding winemakerm, able to make good wine in any vintage; even the difficult ones!

Elio Altare Barbera
A beautiful Barbera made by wonderful people. So happy to see it back in stock in Norway.

La Vedetta Barbera d’Asti
I know I mostly stick to Barbera d’Alba, but we can’t forget about Barbera d’Asti. And this one from La Vedetta is one of my favorites.