2022 Fletcher Barbaresco Ronchi DOCG

Ronchi is the newest single-site Barbaresco to join Dave Fletcher’s line-up, though he’s been working with the vineyard behind the scenes since 2020. Until now, the fruit had been folded into his Recta Pete cuvee, but after a few vintages of close observation and a bit of extra TLC in the vineyard, 2022 marked the first time it stood confidently on its own.

The block itself faces east, getting the gentler morning sun rather than the full heat of the day – which paid off in a warm year like 2022. The result is a wine with real lift and precision, even in a ripe vintage. As always with Fletcher’s Barbaresco, it’s all destemmed, wild fermented and aged in old 300L barrels for two years before a short stint in bottle.

Of the three Cru bottlings, Ronchi sits right in the pocket – perfumed and pretty, but still with plenty of structure and length. Not showy, just quietly impressive.

95 points
"Raspberry and strawberry, ginger and spice... a twist of amaro bitterness and liquorice root... a cool ‘minerally’ finish of excellent length."
- Gary Walsh (The Wine Front)