I have reviewed four wines from Raineri, from the 2021 to 2024 vintages, across Barolo, Langhe and Piemonte. Scores range from 92 to 96, averaging 94; the highest is the 2021 Raineri Perno Barolo (96 points). Raineri also features in three journal articles on this site.
Gianmatteo Raineri is a young, passionate grower based in the hamlet of Panerole, high in the hills of Monforte d’Alba. A true garagiste of the Langhe, he makes small quantities of wine from his family’s vineyards with a clean cellar and a talent for letting Nebbiolo speak clearly. His Barolos have the soul, structure and pedigree of the big names of Monforte, delivered with unusual transparency.
The two Barolo crus are opposites. Perno sits on a ridge that catches the wind and makes a more austere, intellectual wine: wild mint, iron and crushed rose, tense and vertical, with fine-grained tannins that grip without punishing. Castelletto faces east toward the ridge of Serralunga d’Alba, and you can feel the kinship: broader, darker and more powerful, with balsamic notes, dark cherry, licorice and firmer tannins. In 2021 both were benchmarks for site expression.
The everyday wines are just as honest. The Langhe Bianco, a blend of Arneis and Chardonnay, is crisp, saline and full of energy, and the Ca’ dei Folli Barbera is juicy, vibrant and unpretentious — Barbera as the wine that fuels Piedmont.
After a series of warmer, solar vintages, 2021 marks a majestic return to the “Alpine” soul of Nebbiolo. Defined by a long, snowy winter and a perfectly paced autumn, this is a vintage of noble austerity and breathtaking precision. These are not the open-knit wines of 2020; they are tension-filled, vertical, and built for the long haul. With “crunchy” red fruit, savory minerality, and a spine of vibrant acidity, 2021 is being hailed as the most complete and “classic” vintage since 2016—a year where the distinct terroir of each commune is rendered in high definition.
