Ronchi, Barbaresco DOCG (2022) – Piemonte

£38.00

THE GRAPE
100% Nebbiolo, from the Ronchi vineyard itself — the amphitheatre-shaped cru where the Rocca family home and cellar sit, bordered by the celebrated crus of Montestefano to the north and Moccagatta to the south. Southeast-facing, on classic clay-limestone soils, with vines averaging 30-40 years old.

THE WINE
This is Barbaresco with nothing between you and the vineyard: hand-harvested, fermented with native yeasts, aged only in large Slavonian oak botti, bottled unfined and unfiltered. In the glass, an intense garnet red with orange reflections opens onto raspberry, cherry and strawberry with hints of plum jam, evolving toward tobacco, hay, cinnamon, pepper and a faint mentholated lift. The palate is full and dry, with well-integrated tannins and real warmth that carries through a long, persistent finish. Giancarlo Rocca has kept this wine's pricing almost stubbornly modest for a heritage site of this quality — proof that some of Barbaresco's best value still lives outside the big names.

THE FOOD PAIRING
Roasted red meats, game (hare, lamb, venison), or long-aged cheeses like Parmigiano Reggiano and Castelmagno. Serve in a large glass around 18°C.

THE WINEMAKER
The Rocca family has lived inside the Ronchi vineyard for four generations, close enough that winemaker Giancarlo Rocca can walk from cellar door to vine row in under a minute. Farming here is done without pesticides or herbicides, by hand, the old way — and it shows in wines that feel less like a modern winery's product and more like a direct transmission from a specific hillside near Neive.