In 1961, when the young Gaja took the reins at his family winery, Italian wine was mostly cheap, often enjoyable, but rarely serious. He was at the forefront of a new generation of winemakers in Italy that both improved quality by questioning the old techniques and improved sales by convincing the world that these new Italian wines deserved respect. "Angelo’s wines have had a great impact on Italy," says Lamberto Frescobaldi, whose family has made wine in Tuscany for 700 years. "Not an impact on style, but on complexity, on wines making a statement. Wine has to make an impression on people’s minds. Angelo has given many of us that vision." Other winemakers shared that vision, in places like Barolo, Montalcino, Bolgheri and more, but Gaja made the biggest splash. For decades, he did the grunt work, visiting restaurants and retailers in new markets, first in Europe, then in America and Asia. He was always eager to meet people face to face—sommeliers, importers, consumers—and he almost always made an impression. But Gaja’s success isn’t just in salesmanship. He is constantly thinking about new ideas to try in the vineyard and in the cellar, challenging tradition to improve quality, from cutting yields to exercising stricter temperature control of fermentations to handling Nebbiolo’s legendary tannins more gently to aging his wines in French oak barriques. He also planted international varietals in Barbaresco. Not every idea proved a home run, but he was always willing to try. "Why is he who he is? Because he is a gifted, talented winemaker, he is a smart businessman and also a very gracious host," says Aldo Vacca, director of the Produttori del Barbaresco, who worked for Gaja for five years. "Very few winemakers excel in all three fields of the industry." - Mitch Frank, Wine Spectator, October 31, 2011

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Vintage 2010 is another story entirely. It is a year characterized by a very long growing season – one of the longest on record – and much cooler weather with no heat spikes. All it takes to understand how important ideal conditions are for Nebbiolo is to taste the young 2010 Barbareschi. The best wines are simply stunning, with virtually no perception of tannin and phenomenal balance. Stylistically, 2010 is much like 2004, but with more density. The 2010s are of course young, but what I have tasted so far has been very impressive. It is quite possible 2010 will turn out to be a truly great, iconic vintage for Barbaresco.

Angelo Gaja doesn't say too much about his wines these days. He doesn't need to. The wines more than speak for themselves... - Antonio Galloni, http://www.vinousmedia.com/, from "Piemonte: 2009 and 2010 Barbaresco Plus Other New Releases, October, 2012