Olek Bondonio
Here speaks the essence of what Nebbiolo can be at the highest level: precise, profound, with an elegance that only fully reveals itself on closer inspection. Olek Bondonio tends the finest vineyard sites of Barbaresco with the intuition of an athlete and a deep respect for a family heritage spanning more than 200 years. His Cascina La Berchialla sits atop the legendary Roncagliette cru, side by side with Angelo Gaja. Biodynamic viticulture, zero marketing, no tasting room – instead, focused work in vineyard sites that have made history. The wines are rare, sought-after, and belong to the most exciting new generation of Barbaresco that Piedmont has to offer.
From the snowboard to the Nebbiolo vines
The story sounds too good to be true: a professional snowboarder who conquered Italy in his sport returns to the 200-year-old family farm and begins making some of the most remarkable Barbarescos in the region. Yet that is exactly Olek Bondonio's reality. Cascina La Berchialla sits at the very top of the Roncagliette cru, the site that Angelo Gaja made world-famous as "Sorì Tildìn". The neighbour is not just anyone, and the bar is set stratospherically high. In 1894 Bondonio's great-great-great-grandfather was one of the co-founders of the legendary Produttori del Barbaresco. The legacy weighs heavily, but Olek carries it with the lightness of a man used to spinning in mid-air. In his cellar, among the barrels, stands a real skateboard halfpipe, a detail that reveals everything about his approach. Here is someone who strives for perfection without taking himself too seriously.Sites that speak for themselves
Bondonio's seven hectares are spread across the absolute crème de la crème of Barbaresco: Roncagliette, Starderi, Altavilla, Neive and Catagnole delle Lanze. The estate has been certified organic since 2018, but the work goes far beyond that. Biodynamic principles shape everyday life in the vineyards, without Bondonio turning it into a marketing spectacle. In fact, marketing is not his thing at all. No website, no tasting room; online he mainly shares photos of newborn kittens. The wines have to speak for themselves, and they do so impressively. The Barbaresco Roncagliette DOCG 2023 shows all the finesse of this exceptional site: taut and precise, with a tannic framework that will last for decades. Those who would like to experience it in magnum will find in the Barbaresco Starderi DOCG 2021 Magnum a wine that translates the somewhat cooler, north-facing site into vibrant acidity and floral elegance.
More than just Barbaresco
But Bondonio would not be Bondonio if he focused solely on the great appellations. His Barbera d'Alba DOC 2022 is anything but a supporting role; it shows that great winemakers can draw something exceptional from supposedly simpler varieties too. Fresh, juicy, with an addictive energy. And then there is the Vino Rosso "The Drunk Fly", a wine whose very name tells you that someone is at work here who has not let anyone take his freedom away. An uncomplicated red that nonetheless bears Bondonio's signature: honest, direct, full of character.