Hidden Piedmont
Wines like Ruché, Grignolino and Freisa are as exciting as their more famous neighbour, Barbera
t’s time for an adventure: less than an hour’s drive from the sweeping hillsides of Barolo and Barbaresco, the vineyards of Asti and Monferrato lie waiting to be discovered. They promise an enticing mix of familiar and more exotic names. While Barbera is the dominant red variety, a range of lesser known grapes adds depth and lustre to the picture: as in the Langhe hills to the west, growing conditions are ideally suited to the production of premium red wines. The area covers most of the two provinces of Asti and Alessandria (and a small section of neighbouring Cuneo) and includes around 15,000 hectares of land planted to vine.
President Filippo Mobrici and his team at the Consorzio Barbera d’Asti e Vini del Monferrato are charged with ensuring the wines reach the wide audience their quality deserves. Duties centre on a concerted programme of research, supervision and promotion designed to maintain the highest production standards, to meet the needs of an exacting marketplace. Mobrici recognizes the size and importance of the task: “When I joined four years ago, I encountered a sleeping giant. Piedmont is about a great deal more than just Barbaresco and Barolo and the Asti Monferrato has so much to offer: thirteen denominations and 75 million bottles of wine to be precise!”
Two generic denominations (Piemonte and Monferrato DOC) cover a wide range of international and indigenous varieties, both red and white. Indigenous Piedmontese varieties such as Cortese, Dolcetto and even Nebbiolo (the variety behind the little known Albugnano DOC) also enjoy DOC status, but what the Asti Monferrato arguably does best is to showcase the virtues of four red grapes all of which are considered to have originated in the area.
The first reference to Barbera as such dates back to the end of the eighteenth century though the variety is thought to have been cultivated in the Monferrato hills since the Middle Ages. Whereas in Barbaresco and Barolo the best vineyard sites are invariably planted to Nebbiolo, around Asti Barbera occupies the prime positions. Food friendly and versatile Barbera d’Asti DOCG of which some 22 million bottles are made annually from around 4000 hectares of vineyard, comes in two main types. In its simpler guise, the stainless steel fermented wine is bottled young for early consumption and is a hedonistic delight: fresh, lively and brimming over with luscious red fruit
flavours balanced by zingy acidity. The Superiore version spends at least 6 months in oak and has a higher alcohol content: a more structured and spicier wine it has the potential to age gracefully in bottle for up to a decade.
A super-premium version of Barbera from designated vineyards around the town of Nizza is made under stricter production guidelines in much smaller annual quantities (just over a quarter of a million bottles). Nizza was granted DOCG status in 2014 and has always been regarded as a superior cru area for Barbera. So much so, that its 100% Barbera wines are called Nizza without the need to specify the grape variety at all. Expectations are high for this region destined to become one of the wine world’s newest discoveries A close relative of Nebbiolo, the
Freisa grape also produces some of its best wines in the Monferrato hills and towards Turin. Like Nebbiolo it has an impressive tannin-based structure which allows the wine plenty of scope for development in bottle. Its appealing perfume of strawberry and sour cherry with floral notes (especially roses) make it an attractive wine to drink young too, though its marked acidity and tannins should be remembered when pairing the wine with food. Given its close ties with the grape variety of Barolo and many shared characteristics, Freisa d’Asti is surprisingly little known. Just under 200 hectares of Freisa are planted in the area. Of all the red varieties found locally,
Grignolino has arguably the most distinguished history – documented as far back as the 13th century. Much of Grignolino’s singular beauty lies in its inimitable fragrance and delicacy, features which perhaps were once held in higher esteem than they are today. For example, it was once considered in the Langhe as the ideal wine to go with fish. A pale-coloured wine (indeed almost a dark rosé), Grignolino has a surprisingly broad aromatic profile which brings to mind soft red fruits laced with aniseed, cloves, liquorice, orange peel and tobacco, yet- as befits a red from Piedmont- high acid and tannin levels are typical characteristics too. Just over 1 million bottles are produced annually.
The final red is a much more recent discovery but has shown so much promise that it was promoted to DOCG status in 2010. Ruché di Castagnole Monferrato, made from the aromatic Ruché variety, has truly striking aromas of floral and spicy-toned, red berry fruits redolent of lavender, roses, violets, black pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg and sandalwood. Unlike other local varieties it shows moderate levels of acidity and soft tannins. Numbers are increasing and in 2017 over 800,000 bottles were produced.
“Barbera occupies the prime vineyard positions in the Asti region.”