2021 Runchet Nebbiolo Langhe Piedmont 750 ml

Runchét is one of our most exciting Piedmontese discoveries in years.

The estate is tiny—less than 900 cases are made across all their wines, which range from Champagne-inspired sparkling to a single-vineyard Barbaresco Riserva—with just five hectares of vineyards that they farm organically. Founders Andrea Danusso and Beatrice Bongiovanni count experience at some of the region's most famous names, like Produttori del Barbaresco, Prunotto, Ceretto, and the legendary Bruno Giacosa.

And the first of their wines to captivate us was their Langhe Nebbiolo—a bottling that’s basically a Barbaresco in disguise. 

Harvested from vineyards right by their winery in Trieso, which is one of the most famous winegrowing  villages in the Langhe, it’s treated like a collectible bottle from the moment it arrives in the winery. That means an old school, 30-day maceration typical of prestige wines in the region, and then aging for nearly two full years in primo French oak barriques, followed by time in stainless steel tanks before bottling.

And in a vintage like 2021, their Langhe Nebbiolo could easily pass itself off as a bottle with a price-tag much higher than the one it bears.

There’s exceptional vibrancy here, along with a nose that features signature Nebbiolo aromatics of rose petal, lavender, and seductive red fruit. We’ve been enjoying it with rosemary-studded chicken grilled under a brick, or classic egg pasta with sage and butter, but it wouldn’t be out of place at the table next to a classic Spanish tapas spread, either.