Bruno Rocca Barbaresco

Bruno Rocca took charge of the family business when his father died in 1978. Previously, Bruno worked at Ferrero Rocher in Alba as the family farm could not support more than one family by selling its grapes. After taking over, he started bottling the wine and soon established a name for himself as one of the finest producers in Barbaresco, thanks in no small part to his vineyards on the prized hill of Rabajà. Today, Bruno runs the 15-hectare estate with daughter Luisa and son Francesco and has a total production of around 65,000 bottles.

Stylistically, Bruno is a consummate modernist, making wines of great fruit intensity that retain the structure and elegance of the Langhe at its best. The Langhe Rosato is 100% Nebbiolo Rosé, a grape variety related to Nebbiolo which has lighter-coloured berries and is less fertile yet offers a rich aromatic. The resulting wine shows charming red fruit notes, lifted by a crisp freshness. The Barbera d‘Alba, sourced from 50-year-old vines, is complex and structured. The Langhe Nebbiolo hails from younger vines, grapes are macerated in stainless steel vats for up to 10 days to preserve the bouquet of fresh fruit.

Anyone who deems Barbaresco lighter and more ‘delicate’ than Barolo should try Bruno’s wines.

Nebbiolo,

The Nebbiolo grapes for this wine come from younger vines, grown in Bruno Rocca's vineyards in Neive: Cru San Cristoforo (west facing), Marcorino (south-east facing) and Fausoni (east, south and west facing). The vineyards are located at 200/370 meters above sea level. The soil is rich in limestone and micronutrients ideal for growing Nebbiolo.The Neive vineyards are particularly sandy and tufaceous, creating full-bodied wines with firm tannins. The vines are 20-25 years old and Guyot pruned.

The grapes were hand harvested before going through a second selection in the winery prior to de stemming. Crushing took place in a pneumatic press and the resulting must underwent fermentation in 50 hectolitre stainless steel tanks which lasted approximately 20-25 days. Finally, the wine spent 12-14 months in French oak casks where malolactic fermentation occurred naturally.

Deep garnet in colour, this wine has intense aromas of blackberries, cherries and plums with subtle hints of rose and violet. These characteristics are continued onto the palate, with the addition of cocoa notes. This wine is warm and elegant with long-lasting flavours on the finish.