Olek Bondonio

After studying oenology he embarked on a few years of travel where he traversed the globe doing as many vintages as he could. This exposure to different soil types, various traditions and diverse approaches in both the cellar and vineyard resulted in his fascination with a sense of place and a drive to best express that through his wines. His production epitomizes the saying that great wine is made in the vineyard, where he works tirelessly to grow healthy fruit without synthetic additions or chemical input. He continues to cultivate grapes that have long been planted in that zone such as Barbera, Pelaverga, Dolcetto and Nebbiolo.

Even if Olek has been making wines under his own label since 2004, his farm, La Berchialla, has been in the family for over 200 years and is a remarkable property sitting atop the hill of Cru Roncagliette (which incidentally is the same vineyard of Gaja Sori Tildin).

As with everything Olek touches as Raf aptly puts it ‘…all wrapped in Olek’s charm’.

I wrote a little retrospective published with the Swinney Release about the evolution of a winemaker and the understanding of the elements required to make great wine. I feel like I should put a picture of Olek’s mug on that page.

He get’s it and it shows in his wines.

Olek wines as Raf aptly puts it, are ‘…all wrapped in Olek’s charm’.

The consistency he is achieving year after year with whatever the harvest offers is a sign of this greatness.