Olek Bondonio - La Berchialla
Barbaresco with Soul: Olek Bondonio crafts raw, honest wines from his family’s historic estate in Roncagliette, one of Barbaresco’s most prized crus.
Deep Roots, Real Farming: Farming organically and working by hand (and horse), Olek embraces low-intervention methods that honor the land and the vintage.
Minimalist Winemaking, Maximum Expression: Native yeasts, spontaneous fermentations, old barrels, and zero cosmetic tricks, just pure vineyard character.
Wines That Feel Alive: From textured Barbaresco to vivid Dolcetto and Barbera, every bottle pulses with energy, personality, and a true sense of place.
Olek Bondonio – Raw, Honest Wines from Barbaresco’s Soul
Tucked away in a humble farmhouse just outside the village of Barbaresco, Olek Bondonio is quietly making some of the most soulful, expressive wines in the Langhe. This is not a polished, corporate operation, it’s a place where vines are tended by hand, fermentation is guided by feel and instinct, and each bottle reflects the raw, unfiltered personality of its maker and his land.
Olek Bondonio comes from a long line of farmers and winemakers, his family has lived on this land, known as La Berchialla, for generations. The farmhouse overlooks the famed cru Roncagliette, just down the slope from the legendary Gaja Sori Tildin, and the family has farmed these vineyards for decades, though only in recent years have they been bottled under Olek’s name.
After studying agriculture and traveling widely, gaining inspiration from natural and traditional winemakers across Europe, Olek returned home in the early 2000s with a clear vision: to make wines that are real, site-driven, and untouched by trends or excess. He farms organically (without certification), plowing by horse and treating his vines with minimal copper and sulfur. In the cellar, he works with spontaneous fermentations, native yeasts, little to no added sulfur, and long, gentle macerations. Aging takes place in old barrels, often sourced from Burgundy, allowing the vineyard to speak without oak influence.
The heart of the production is Nebbiolo, particularly Barbaresco from Roncagliette, a steep and powerful vineyard known for producing wines of structure and finesse. Olek’s Barbaresco is textured and precise, but never manipulated, it’s a wine that feels alive, evolving with every glass. Alongside it, he also produces beautiful Dolcetto, Langhe Nebbiolo, and Barbera, as well as a small amount of Freisa and skin-contact white, all sharing the same vibrant energy and transparency.
What makes Olek Bondonio so compelling is the immediacy and honesty of his wines. They don’t strive for perfection; they strive for truth. They carry the rhythm of the seasons, the soul of the vineyard, and the touch of a winemaker deeply connected to his land. In a region increasingly polished and precise, Olek’s wines remind us of the roots, earthy, real, and utterly unforgettable.