The Rocche Massalupo cru sits at the southern edge of the Barbaresco growing zone, as does the Lano family cantina, which is headquartered in the village of San Rocco Seno d’Elvio. Were you to drive through this little town it’s likely the naturally farmed and relatively wild-looking Lano vineyards would catch your eye: synthetic pesticides, fertilizers and herbicides are all forbidden, so don’t expect one of those neatly manicured tracts with nothing but dirt under the vine rows. The soils here are alive and un-manipulated, producing pristine grapes that are given the most traditional, minimalist treatment in the cellar—and yes, you most certainly can taste it! Exceedingly pretty, silky, and evoking both mineral-rich earth and ripe, sun-kissed fruit, this is what people mean when they call Barbaresco the “queen” to Barolo’s “king.” As history has shown us time and again, it’s often the Queen who truly reigns supreme—and, aside from a few top-tier restaurants in California, you won’t encounter Lano’s wines often (if at all) in the US market; in a few years, you’ll be the one saying “I knew them when…”

Working with vineyards handed down from his father, Gianluigi Lano only began bottling wines under his own label in the early 1990s. Assisted by his wife, Daniela, and son, Samuele, he has made organic farming a priority and obtained certification a few years ago; the family produces a concise lineup of wines, including two Barbarescos, with today’s hailing from the only cru vineyard, Rocche Massalupo, that belongs entirely to San Rocco Seno d’Elvio (only a portion of this village falls within the boundaries of the Barbaresco DOCG zone, and its other Barbaresco-designated vineyards—“Rizzi,” “Montersino,” and “Meruzzano”—bleed over into the village of Treiso). The contours of the Rocche Massalupo are varied, as it wraps itself around a hillside all the way from south (and even a little southeast) up to the northwest. The Lanos source grapes from parcels facing south-southwest, sharing space in the Rocche Massalupo with several neighbors, including the legendary Pio Cesare winery, which counts it as a key site.

Today’s 2011 is old-school, no-tricks Barbaresco of exceptional purity and finesse, and it is drinking beautifully now, with lots of aromatic complexity and age-softened tannins. It aged two years in 25-hectoliter oak botti and another year in bottle before release, and now boasts another half-decade of bottle age—putting it right in its prime drinking window. In the glass, it’s a medium garnet-red moving to pink and orange at the rim, with highly perfumed aromas of red cherry, currant, blood orange, sandalwood, cigar wrapper, dried rose petals, and a hint of tar. The balance is impeccable—medium-bodied and fresh, with bright acidity and polished, relatively mild tannins—and there’s great persistence on the finish. I’d characterize it as skewing toward the Pinot Noir-ish end of the Nebbiolo spectrum, with a good 5-7 years of prime drinking still ahead of it. It’s finessed enough to consider pairing with “Pinot Noir foods” like roast chicken or even salmon, but let’s not stray too far from Piedmont: This would be off-the-charts good with a classic red wine risotto or, if you’re a fresh pasta enthusiast, a ribbon style such a tajarin with a rabbit ragù. Ambitious, yes, but the wine warrants it. Decant for 30 minutes, pour into your best Burgundy stems at 60 degrees, and enjoy!