In 2004, three friends with a passion for the Langhe, and the beautiful wines of the region, came together to create a few hundred bottles of Dolcetto, crafted from grapes grown in the venerable appellation of Dogliani. The result was a beautiful beginning of an ambitious project: Raineri, after Gianmatteo Raineri, one of the partners. Together with Luciano Racca and Fabrizio Giraudo, Gianmatteo formed the winery with an aim to create amazing Langhe wines. They began with the Dolcetto from the Raineri family vineyards in Dogliani, along with Barbera grown in neighboring vineyards. In 2006, they added Nebbiolo to the line up, crafting Langhe Nebbiolo and the King of Wines, Barolo. Finally, they added the classic white grape of Piemonte, Cortese, to their line up, with a fantastic wine named "Elfobianco". Since the beginning of their project, they have acquired several small vineyards that they work on their own, and have purchased their own cellar in Monforte d'Alba. This young winery has a promising future, and we are proud to employee Luciano Racca as our warehouse and office manager, along with his most important role: resident expert on Piemonte, where 70% of our company's sales originate. Luciano married a Saint Louis girl, and divides his time working with our company and working for Raineri.
Terroir
Raineri's Nebbiolo vineyards are situated in Monforte d'Alba, in the southernmost district of the Barolo appellation. The hills of Monforte are among the highest in the area, some climbing to 2,000 feet. Eighteen million years old, these "hills" are composed of a unique blend of grey marls, limestone, clay, and a small percentage of chalk. Because of the soil composition, the Nebbiolo from Monforte is known to be quite tannic, full-bodied, powerful, and age worthy, even more so than other areas of Barolo. Raineri's vineyards are situated around the town of Perno, which is in fact closer to the town of Barolo than Monforte, and have a higher percentage of sand than other vineyards closer in proximity to Monforte. The Barolo presents itself as classic "Monforte" but is also quite approachable in its youth, a appealing characteristic provided by that sand.
Raineri began its project in Dogliani, where they have vineyards in Farigliano. The vineyards here are not suited to Nebbiolo, rather they are perfect for Dolcetto. Dolcetto from Dogliani is deeper in color, more tannic and powerful, and ages quite well. Dolcetto is the local favorite at the dinner table, while Nebbiolo creates elusive, complex wine for contemplation with sophisticated meals.
Vineyards
"Cornole" - this is Raineri's Dolcetto vineyard, and is the highest elevation vineyard in the Dogliani appellation (1,500 feet above sea level). It faces south by southeast, and together with the altitude, this exposure allows for 100% organic production, with manual harvest and vineyard care.
Barolo is produced from three plots within the Perno Cru of Montforte d'Alba. These 20 year old vineyards look west toward the town of Barolo, east toward Serralunga, and north toward Castiglione and La Morra. The exposure and position of these vineyards produce beautiful fruit and create well balanced wines with characteristics from each of these famous villages, but a heart of Monforte. These vineyards are tended with sustainable farming practices.
"Monserra" - this Barolo is a blend of two single vineyards: Santo Stefano di Perno in Monforte and San Bernardo in Serralunga. With narrow rows, everything is done by hand and sustainable farming practices are followed to produce the very best quality grapes and protect the workers in the vineyard, which are the Raineri partners and their families! Santo Stefano lends full body and deep, mature fruit flavors while San Bernardo grapes lend balance and elegant tannins to create a wine perfect for connoisseurs of Barolo.
In the cantina...
Raineri believes in wines that are typical, meaning that in a blind tasting an educated wine consumer must be able to recognize the terroir. Terroir is comprised varietal expression, area of production (vineyard), vintage, and the hand of the winemaker. Dolcetto from the Cornole vineyard creates a typical Dogliani DOCG when aged in stainless steel. Zero manipulations allows the purity of the varietal to shine. Elfobianco also ages in stainless steel, allowing the Cortese grape to exhibit it’s classic minerality and open aroma of white flowers and white pear. Barolo requires oak aging for balance and integration24 months the Barolo.
Az. Agr. Raineri Gianmatteo
Località Panerole, 24
12060 Novello (CN) – Italia
T: +39 3396009289
E: info@rainerivini.com