Verduno sits at the northern edge of Barolo, well away from the fame of La Morra and Serralunga, and for decades that kept it a specialist’s secret. Monvigliero is the reason that changed. The hill runs due south on a steep, pale, calcareous slope, and it makes Barolo built on perfume and lift rather than brawn – rose and red fruit over a frame that feels almost weightless right up until the tannins arrive. Vietti is one of the houses that made cru Barolo something people argue about in the first place, going back to their single-vineyard bottlings in the 1960s. 2021 was a classically proportioned Piedmont vintage: ripe without heaviness, acidity fully intact. This wants years in a cellar, or a long decant and a dinner worth the trouble.