100pts Vinous

The 2016 Barolo Riserva Rüncot is quite possibly the single greatest wine I have tasted in more than twenty years I have been coming here, with the possible exception of the 1989s and 1990s. Deep and powerful, but not at all heavy, the 2016 dazzles from the very first taste. Dark cherry/plum fruit, menthol, lavender, licorice and mocha saturate the palate in a Barolo of extraordinary richness and intensity. The 2016 spent four years in 100% new oak, and yet there is no trace at all of wood. Magnificent!

96pts James Suckling

Aromas of dried cherries and cranberries with notes of walnuts, ground nutmeg and dried mushrooms. Complex and structured with a medium to full body and a broad, dense tannin structure. Firm and chewy. Long finish.

95pts Wine Spectator

Shows an initial impression of vanilla and spices, especially in the aromas, yet underneath is a solid line of cherry, raspberry, wild scrub and iron flavors. An elegant and intense red, with refined tannins and a lingering, nervy finish. Best from 2026 through 2045. 650 cases made.

94pts Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

The Elio Grasso 2016 Barolo Riserva Rüncot is intense and powerful. However, there are a number of tertiary notes, some veering all the way to porcino mushroom and wood pile, but you also get threads of ripe black cherry, plum and even some dried prune. You can't escape a note of painters' studio with linseed oil. Bitter cacao or rhubarb also appear. This is an excellent example of an aged Barolo Riserva, but ultimately, you'll get more pleasure drinking this in the medium term without having to age it.

Winery Notes

Currently, the Elio Grasso estate has a productive vineyard holding of 14 hectares. The cellar uses only estate-grown grapes from varieties traditionally grown, with excellent results, in the Langhe hill country near Alba.

Reflecting the imprint of the vineyard where the fruit was grown in order to give our wines their unique personality is the goal that we - myself, my wife Marina and our son, Gianluca - strive to achieve, with the invaluable assistance of our consultant wine technician, Piero Ballario.

We believe that to be acknowledged first as grape farmers, and then as wine producers, is the best way to honour, and continue the labours of, those who have faced before us the challenges that working with nature and her products, like wine, entails. This, and a desire to be true to ourselves, prompts us propose, without presumption, the convictions and conduct shared by all Langhe farming families, characteristics worth preserving and which we believe make the difference.