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Olek Bondonio
This is the essence of what Nebbiolo can be at the highest level: precise, profound, with an elegance that is only fully revealed at second glance. Olek Bondonio cultivates the top vineyards of Barbaresco with the intuition of an athlete and respect for a family heritage that is over 200 years old. His Cascina La Berchialla is enthroned on the legendary Roncagliette Cru, next door to Angelo Gaja. Biodynamic viticulture, zero marketing, no tasting room - instead, concentrated work in vineyards that have made history. The wines are rare, sought-after and belong to the most exciting new generation of Barbaresco that Piedmont currently has to offer.
More about Olek Bondonio
From the snowboard to the Nebbiolo vines
The story sounds too good to be true: a professional snowboarder who conquered Italy in this sport returns to the 200-year-old family farm and begins to vinify some of the region's most remarkable Barbarescos. But this is exactly Olek Bondonio's reality. The Cascina La Berchialla is at the absolute top of the Roncagliette Cru - the location that made Angelo Gaja world-famous as „Sorì Tildìn“. The neighbour is not just anyone, 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 inheritance weighs heavily, but Olek carries it with the ease of a man who is used to spinning in the air. In his cellar, among the wine barrels, stands a real Skateboard halfpipe - a detail that reveals everything about his approach. This is someone who strives for perfection without taking himself too seriously.
Locations that speak for themselves
Bondonio's seven hectares are spread over Barbaresco's absolute crème de la crème: Roncagliette, Starderi, Altavilla, Neive and Catagnole delle Lanze. The winery has been certified organic since 2018, but the work goes far beyond that. Biodynamic principles characterise everyday life in the vineyards, without Bondonio turning it into a marketing spectacle. In fact, marketing is not his thing. No website, no tasting room, instead he mainly shares photos of newborn kittens online. The wines have to speak for themselves - and they do so impressively.
The Barbaresco Roncagliette DOCG 2021 shows all the finesse of this exceptional site: taut, precise, with a tannin structure that will last for decades. If you would like to experience the format in a magnum bottle, the Barbaresco Starderi DOCG 2021 Magnum a wine that translates the somewhat cooler, north-facing site with vibrant acidity and floral elegance.
More than just Barbaresco
But Bondonio would not be Bondonio if he concentrated exclusively on the major appellations. His Barbera d'Alba DOC 2022 is anything but a supporting role - it shows that great winemakers can also get something extraordinary out of supposedly simpler grape varieties. Fresh, juicy, with an energy that is addictive.
And then there is the Vino Rosso „The Drunk Fly“ - A wine that already reveals by its name that someone is at work here who has not taken all the liberties. An uncomplicated red wine that nevertheless bears Bondonio's signature: honest, direct, with character.
The new Barbaresco generation
Olek Bondonio belongs to the generation of Piedmontese winemakers who do not see tradition and modernity as opposites. Alongside personalities such as Roagna or Giovanni Almondo, he defines what Contemporary viticulture in Piedmont can mean: respectful of the terroir, uncompromising in quality, freed from unnecessary ballast.
His wines are rare and sought-after - not because he makes them artificially scarce, but because seven hectares only yield limited quantities. Anyone who gets hold of one of the Barbarescos not only holds a great wine in their hands, but also a piece of living wine history from one of the most privileged locations in the world.