Vineyard Landscape of Piedmont: Langhe-Roero and Monferrato

The elements of which Piedmont’s wine country is constituted are multiple and testify to the cultural depth and importance of the agricultural, urban and social fabric that developed during a centuries-long transformation process. In the south of Piedmont, wine culture is at the base of local identity and discovering its nature allows to come in contact with a tangible and intangible heritage that, in its own way, in a world excellence in terms of quality and stature. The Wine Country is everywhere: the vineyards and fields, the places devoted to production and storage and the distribution network are all part of a complex supply chain that changed the urban and rural environment, social interaction and human relations. This is why in this part of Piedmont wine is a daily presence, today much like yesterday. Another element of outstanding charm and value is the craft and technology heritage connected to winemaking tradition that, since the middle ages has been passed down and perfected to its current standard, with the contribution of one generation after the other and the adaptation of human activities to the specific characteristics of this land. In order to control the quality of the final product, an analytic research on the soil and the climate is necessary down to the last detail, including soil composition, precipitation and, last but not least, wind. A deep knowledge of the morphology, podology and climate of the natural environment is accompanied by a constant application of experience, observation and patient and accurate experimentation, which allowed to select the best and most suitable grapes. In a steady balance between tradition and innovation, respectful and loyal application of ancient practices and the courageous pursuit of new solutions, the wines from Langhe-Roero and Monferrato are internationally known among the most important oenology products in the world, protected by suitable Controlled and Guaranteed Designation of Origin (DOCG, the Italian brand certifying the geographic origin of a wine based on strict criteria in terms of production methods; it is the highest quality award for wine in Italy). The winemaking system in Piedmont and the relevant farming techniques have created the best Italian oenologists, oenology schools as well as countless studies and papers on modern oenology and ampelography.

Located in the Province of Cuneo, it stands out for its rolling hills south of the river Tanaro, where the soil is mainly made up of tuff and marlestone and light limestone. The area includes 11 municipalities (Barolo, Castiglione Falletto, Serralunga d’Alba, Monforte d’Alba, Novello, La Morra, Verduno, Grinzane Cavour, Diano d’Alba, Cherasco, Roddi) and the most farmed variety is the very old Nebbiolo, the main ingredient of the celebrated Barolo, the “king of wines”, a beautifully ageing red known all over the world and whose name originated from the Castle of Barolo. The castle was built in the early Middle Ages and has been the property of the Falletti family since the late XIII century. The house extended the building in the XVI century and preserved the castle since the XIX century, which later became a Boarding school and now houses the Museum of Wine. The path that led to the birth of Barolo in the mid XIX century is tightly bound to some of the vineyards of the area, including Fontanafredda in Serralunga d’Alba. The farm was the property of king Vittorio Emanuele II and later of the Falletti family. The last Marquess Falletti, Juliette Colbert, took it upon herself to improve the production of outstanding Nebbiolo grapes farmed on her land and enhance the fermenting methods. The royal cellars also contributed to making a new, “dry and austere” wine used to wash down game dishes. The final product came out balanced, full bodied and persistent; a wine that was deemed so noble that it was worthy of the tables of European courts. Langhe del Barolo is a fascinating land, where the orderly vineyards on the sides of the hills alternate with countless Medieval villages, each one with its own castle, such as in Serralunga d’Alba and Castiglione Falletto.

Just south of Alba, in Grinzane Cavour, there is a beautiful medieval Castle where for a few years lived Camillo Benso Conte di Cavour; the great Risorgimento statesman is tightly bound to the history of Barolo, indeed, with a very shrewd management of the family land, he contributed to defining and disseminating this very precious wine with a complex and embracing bouquet, which improves with time instead of becoming weaker. The castle was built in the XIII century but its current state is the product of subsequent changes; today it houses Enoteca Regionale Piemontese Cavour and Museo etnografico sulla civiltà contadina whose mission if documenting, promoting and preserving the Langhe-Roero and Monferrato winemaking culture. The castle is surrounded by an experimental vineyard, in which visitors may admire a vast selection of grapevines.

The area is located a few km on the north east of Alba and includes the villages of Barbaresco and Nieve, and in the surrounding hills is where Barbaresco is produced, another exclusive products made with Nebbiolo grapes. Barbaresco is a garnet red wine with an intense and velvety taste. As a wine it is ideal for long maturing. The Barbaresco hills countryside is dominated by themedieval tower of the namesake village; it faces the river Tanaro and from its summit, splendidly restored not long ago, the view on the Langhe landscape is simply breathtaking. Domizio Cavazza (1856-1913) is considered by many as the father of modern Barbaresco; he direct Scuola Pratica di Viticoltura e di Enologia in Alba.

As a wine Barbera is a prized product made in the fourth zone of the World Heritage Site –  sub-zone “Nizza” of DOCG Barbera d’Asti territory. Barbera grapevines have been farmed here since time immemorial and the production chain stands out today for a network of high profile cellars and the cooperative winery at Vinchio e Vaglio Serra, which helped Barbera become the most exported wine from Piedmont. The Museo Bersano is in Nizza Monferrato and focuses on the wine/farming culture. The town of Nizza Monferrato, known as the capital city of Barbera, boasts a remarkable past as an agricultural centre in the Middle Ages due to its fertile soil.

The area is located in DOCG Asti territory, identified as sub-zone “Canelli”. The main variety farmed here is called Moscato Bianco arrived in Piedmont at the time of the crusades and promoted in the XVI century by Emanuale Filiberto of the Savoy House. In the past this wine was still, then in 1865, thanks to Carlo Gancia and his research, it became the first Italian spumante. Towards the end of the XIX century the production method was revolutionised with a special process invented by a local oenologist called Federico Martinotti, which gave rise to Asti aromatic sparkling wine. From that moment on the Piedmont spumante sector boomed and concentrated around the town of Canelli. A characteristic of this particular trade, which boasts top quality products and countless business successes, are the so-called underground cathedrals located in Canelli; they are enormous cellars there spumante goes through the finishing process; these huge facilities are divided in rooms, galleries and tunnels, some of which were dug centuries ago to house Moscato casks for fermentation. The medieval town of Calosso is known as the “hometown of crotìn”: ‘crotìn’ is the name of cellars dug in tuff underneath homes, used to preserve the best wine and other food products. The common practice of digging tunnels and pantries is thought to have originated in the XVIII century.

The Infernot is the key element in the last area in the World Heritage Site. Infernot are a type of artefacts made with a particular architectural method used by the people, which consisted of digging underground cells and rooms  in a stone called Pietra da Cantoni, traditional of Basso Monferrato and also used as construction material in the little village that dot the local countryside.

Among the grapevine varieties farmed in the Site called Piedmont’s Wine Country, Nebbiolo holds a primary position. The name clearly originates from the word “nebbia – fog”, because some of the grapes are covered by a whitish layer and appear to be clad in a delicate sheath of rime. Other sources claim that the name originates from the harvesting time, in that the ripening period usually extends well into the autumn, which is the time of the early fog. Finally, Giovan Battista Croce (second half of the XVI century), court jeweller of Emanuele Filiberto and later Carlo Emanuele I of the Savoy House, offered quite a peculiar etymology. The royal goldsmith, who was also an architecture and agronomy enthusiast, maintained that the name Nebbiolo was a wrong transposition of ‘Noble’; indeed this grapevine yielded a “generous” and “robust” wine. Croce wrote two papers on the grapevines of Piedmont: Della eccellenza e diversità de i vini che nella montagna di Torino si fanno (1606) and Instruttione di piantare le spargiere all’uso di Lombardia (1607). These papers were the product of his passion and his enthusiasm for the subject, and were widely read and appreciated after the XVII century. Dalmasso, G. Dell’Olio and A. Corte, Voce Nebbiolo, in Principali vitigni da vino coltivati in Italia – Volume II, Ministero dell’Agricoltura e delle Foreste, 1962).

In 2015, according to criteria (iii), (iv), (vi), the whole production system of Champagne, was listed as a Site in acknowledgement of its historic, cultural and anthropologic value, a “highly specialised craft turned into an agroindustry activity”. In the north-east of France the landscape evolved organically with the growth of grape farming and winemaking:urban planning, monuments and productive architecture, large cellars and distribution centres evolved according to the development of traditional wine production, Champagne, invented using the bottle re-fermentation method (Metodo Classico) in the XVII century and later industrially after the XIX century. Also in 2015, the World Heritage List was complemented with the cultural landscape of Climats in Burgundy vineyards, where winemaking traditions, dating back to the Middle Ages and based on the unique climate conditions and soil in the area, reached world-class quality with some of the most expensive and prized wines in the world.

Camillo Benso Count of Cavour (Turin, 1810 – Turin, 1861)

A statesman and protagonist of the Italian Risorgimento, he served and Minister and Prime Minister. He was the mind behind the birth of the Kingdom of Italy, unified under the Savoyard crown of Vittorio Emanuele II. A liberal by ideology, he used diplomacy to accomplish his reformist and monarchic vision for the Country. As a young man, he managed the family land and for a period he lived in Castello di Grinzane. He extended grapevine farming and ushered in rational and efficient management practices. He resorted to the expertise of famous French oenologist Louis Claude Oudart to improve Barolo production in his estate. The oenologist provided some indications to change some of the harvesting and fermenting methods, making recommendations to better ‘stabilise’ the process.

Professor at Istituto Sperimentale per l’Enologia in Asti, he is considered the inventor of Metodo Italiano or Metodo Martinotti for industrial spumante production, the fastest and most economical method that does not affect the quality of the product in any way. This process introduced for the first time re-fermentation in autoclave, pressurised and at controlled temperature fro a time from 30 days to 6 months. According to this method, designed in 1895, the fundamental spumantizzazione or ‘sparkling’ process implies the addition to still wine of a mix of yeast and sugar; yeast digest sugar and produce alcohol and carbon dioxide, thus giving this wine its traditional and world.-known bubbles. The Martinotti protocol was used by Eugène Charmat, the French oenologist who later patented the method in 1910. The main difference between Metodo Martinotti or Metodo Italiano and the French Méthode Traditionelle is that in the latter the wine is re-fermented in the bottle for a longer time.

Carlo Gancia (Canelli, 1829 – 1897)

Since a young child, he was so fascinated by his father’s swift hands, turning grape into wine, that he turned in into his trade. He started off as a pharmacy and chemistry student in Turin and as such he could experiment new techniques also applied to wine. During his university studies Carlo invented a recipe to improve the taste of a very popular straw wine at the time: vermouth. He decided to use moscato as the base for herb infusion and this he obtained a completely new – and successful – product. Towards the mid XIX century the French city of Reims became the capital of Champagne production. Carlo moved in the area and got a job at the famous cellar Piper-Heidsieck in order to learn the techniques as well as the classical processing method called champenoise method. Back in Italy, he tried to simplify this process using moscato grapes; thus he achieved shorter processing time as well as cost savings. In 1850 Carlo began testing how to adapt French winemaking method to moscato grapes.
Thus he founded the house “Fratelli Gancia”. In 1865, he finally managed, by removing the syrups required under the French recipe, to produce the first Italian spumante.

“Il vino è uno dei maggiori segni di civiltà nel mondo.” Ernest Hemingway

“Bere un bicchiere di vino è come assaporare una goccia del fiume della storia umana”.

Clifton Fadiman

“Non c’è niente di più bello di una vigna ben zappata, ben legata, con le foglie giuste e della terra cotta dal sole d’agosto. Una vigna ben lavorata è come un fisico sano, un corpo che vive, che ha il suo respiro e il suo sudore”.

Cesare Pavese, La luna e i falò (1950)

Both the heritage site in Piedmont and in Tuscany, Val d’Orcia are cultural landscape heritage sites, places where people admirably managed at once to respect and make the most of the natural environment, so that their endeavours changed the landscape. Val d’Orcia, with its medieval landscape beauty, also boasts an excellent winemaking tradition, with a number of outstanding DOCG wines. The noble Brunello di Montalcino is made using Sangiovese grapes only; made in the area of Montalcino, it can be produced in the area between three rivers, the Orcia, the Asso and the Ombrone, in the province of Sienna. It is described as a famous wine as early as in Medieval chronicles. Then, Carmignano is a red wine made with grapes from the hills of Carmignano and Poggio a Caiano, near Prato. In the XVIII century the Grand Duke of Tuscany, Cosimo III Medici, issued an order to define the production area of this wine, while poet Francesco Redi sang: “ma se giara io prendo in mano di brillante Carmignano/così grato in sen mi piove/che ambrosia e nettar non invidio a Giove”. Finally, Chianti is also mainly made with Sangiovese. Its tradition in the namesake hills dates back to millennia ago; indeed some sources date the start of grapevines farming in the area in Etruscan age… though it could be even older!

The history of the two Heritage Sites in Piedmont crossed paths several time, as we have already explained. The House of Savoy played a pivotal role in promoting the winemaking tradition in the region and its reputation in the world. The Savoy worked to improve and innovate farming, harvesting, production and finishing techniques as applied to the grapes farmed on their lands. Just to mention the ties between the two world Heritage Sites, it should be remembered that Castello di Govone, a property of the House since the XVIII century, is in the Roero, surrounded by noble vineyards.

Principali vitigni da vino coltivati in Italia, voll. 5, Ministero dell’Agricoltura e delle Foreste, Roma, 1952-1966

E. Gribaudi Rossi, Ville e vigne della Collina torinese, Torino 1975

L. Picco, Tra filari e botti. Per una storia economica del vino in Piemonte dal XVI al XVIII secolo, Giappichelli, 1989

S. Cavicchioli, Camillo Cavour e l’agricoltura, Carocci, 2011

Cavour e l’agricoltura nel periodo risorgimentale, a cura dell’Accademia di Agricoltura di Torino, San Rocco, 2012

Il Maestro di vino, a c. di C. Cipolla, Franco Angeli, 2013

E. Remmert, L. Ragagnin, L’acino fuggente. Sulle strade del vino tra Monferrato, Langhe e Roero, Laterza, 2013

Federico Martinotti oltre il Metodo, a cura della Società Culturale Villaviva, Appunti di Alessandria, 2013

M. Braghiroli, Il vino, filosofia del territorio. Origine e storia dell’enologia in Piemonte, Valle d’Aosta e Liguria, Hever, 2014

E. Sabena, R. Mantovani, P. Ramuno, Scoprire le Langhe a piedi tra le colline del Barbaresco, dell’Alta Langa e del Barolo, Fusta Editore, Cuneo, 2015

whc.unesco.org/en/list/1068

www.unesco.beniculturali.it

www.paesaggivitivinicoli.it

www.regione.piemonte.it/

www.langheroero.it

www.ecomuseodellerocche.it

www.comune.serralungadalba.cn.it/

www.comune.castiglionefalletto.cn.it/

www.comune.barbaresco.cn.it/

www.comune.nizza.asti.it

The elements of which Piedmont’s wine country is constituted are multiple and testify to the cultural depth and importance of the agricultural, urban and social fabric that developed during a centuries-long transformation process. In the south of Piedmont, wine culture is at the base of local identity. The Wine Country is everywhere: the vineyards and fields, the places devoted to production and storage and the distribution network are part of a complex supply chain that changed the urban and rural environment, social interaction as well as human relations. This is why in this part of Piedmont wine is a daily presence, today much like yesterday; wine may be considered as the unifying element of the whole Region, as well as a distinctive feature of the entire territory. Another element of outstanding charm and value is the craft and technology heritage connected to winemaking tradition that, since the middle ages has been passed down and perfected to its current standard, with the contribution of one generation after the other and the adaptation of human activities to the specific characteristics of this land. In order to control the quality of the final product, a research on the soil and the climate is necessary down to the last detail, including soil composition, precipitation and, last but not least, wind. A deep knowledge of the morphology pedology and climate of the natural environment is accompanied by a constant application of experience, observation and patient and accurate experimentation, which allowed to select the best and most suitable grapes. In a steady balance between tradition and innovation, respectful and loyal application of ancient practices and the courageous pursuit of new solutions, the wines from Langhe-Roero and Monferrato are internationally known among the most important oenology products in the world, protected by suitable Controlled and Guaranteed Designation of Origin – DOCG, the Italian brand certifying the geographic origin of a wine based on strict production method criteria; it is the highest quality award for wine in Italy). The winemaking system in Piedmont and the relevant farming techniques have created the best Italian oenologists, oenology schools as well as countless studies and papers on modern oenology and ampelography.

Located in the Province of Cuneo, it stands out for its rolling hills south of the river Tanaro. The area includes 11 municipalities (Barolo, Castiglione Falletto, Serralunga d’Alba, Monforte d’Alba, Novello, La Morra, Verduno, Grinzane Cavour, Diano d’Alba, Cherasco, Roddi) and the most farmed variety is the very old Nebbiolo, the main ingredient of the celebrated Barolo, the “king of wines”, a beautifully ageing red known all over the world and whose name originated from the Castle of Barolo. The castle was built in the early Middle Ages and has been the property of the Falletti family since the late XIII century. The house extended the building in the XVI century and preserved the castle since the XIX century, which later became a Boarding school and now houses the Museun of Wine. The path that led to the birth of Barolo in the mid XIX century is tightly bound to some of the vineyards of the area, including Fontanafredda in Serralunga d’Alba. The farm was the property of king Vittorio Emanuele II and later of the Falletti family. The last Marquess Falletti, Juliette Colbert, took it upon herself to improve the production of outstanding Nebbiolo grapes farmed on her land and enhance the fermenting methods. The royal cellars also contributed to making a new, “dry and austere” wine used to wash down game dishes. The final product came out balanced, full bodied and persistent; a wine that was deemed so noble that it was worthy of the tables of European courts.

Just south of Alba, in Grinzane Cavour, there is a beautiful medieval Castle where for a few years lived Camillo Benso Conte di Cavour; the great Risorgimento statesman is tightly bound to the history of Barolo, indeed, with a very shrewd management of the family land, he contributed to defining and disseminating this very precious wine, which improves with time instead of becoming weaker. The castle was built in the XIII century but its current state is the product of subsequent changes; today it houses Enoteca Regionale Piemontese Cavour and Museo etnografico sulla civiltà contadina whose mission if documenting, promoting and preserving the Langhe-Roero and Monferrato winemaking culture. The castle is surrounded by an experimental vineyard, in which visitors may admire a vast selection of grapevines.

As a wine Barbera is a prized product made in the fourth zone of the World Heritage Site –  sub-zone “Nizza” of DOCG Barbera d’Asti territory. Barbera grapevines have been farmed here since time immemorial and the supply chain stands out today for a network of high profile cellars and the cooperative winery at Vinchio e Vaglio Serra, which helped Barbera become the most exported wine from Piedmont. The Museo Bersano is in Nizza Monferrato and focuses on the wine/farming culture. The town of Nizza Monferrato, known as the capital city of Barbera, boasts a remarkable past as an agricultural centre in the Middle Ages due to its fertile soil.

The area is located in DOCG Asti territory, identified as sub-zone “Canelli”. The main variety farmed here is called Moscato Bianco arrived in Piedmont at the time of the crusades and promoted in the XVI century by Emanuale Filiberto of the Savoy House. In the past this wine was still, then in 1865, thanks to Carlo Gancia and his research, it became the first Italian spumante. Towards the end of the XIX century the production method was revolutionised with a special process invented by a local oenologist called Federico Martinotti, which gave rise to Asti aromatic sparkling wine. From that moment on the Piedmontese spumante sector boomed and concentrated around the town of Canelli. A characteristic of this particular trade, which boasts top quality products and countless business successes, are the so-called underground cathedrals located in Canelli; they are enormous cellars there spumante goes through the finishing process; these huge facilities are divided in rooms, galleries and tunnels, some of which were dug centuries ago to house Moscato casks for fermentation. The medieval town of Calosso is known as the “hometowm of crotìn”: ‘crotìn’ is the name of cellars dug in tuff underneath homes, used to preserve the best wine and other food products. The common practice of digging tunnels and pantries originated in the XVIII century.

The Infernot is the key element in the last area in the World Heritage Site. Infernot are a type of artefacts made with a particular architectural method used by the people, which consisted of digging underground cells and rooms  in a stone called Pietra da Cantoni, traditional of Basso Monferrato and also used as construction material in the little village that dot the local countryside.

Among the grapevine varieties farmed in the Site called Piedmont’s Wine Country, Nebbiolo holds a primary position. The name clearly originates from the word “nebbia – fog”, because some of the grapes are covered by a whitish layer and appear to be clad in a delicate sheath of rime. Other sources claim that the name originates from the harvesting time, in that the ripening period usually extends well into the autumn, which is the time of the early fog. Finally, Giovan Battista Croce (second half of the XVI century), court jeweller of Emanuele Filiberto and later Carlo Emanuele I of the Savoy House, offered quite a peculiar etymology. The royal goldsmith, who was also an architecture and agronomy enthusiast, maintained that the name Nebbiolo was a wrong transposition of ‘Noble’; indeed this grapevine yielded a “generous” and “robust”. G. Dalmasso, G. Dell’Olio and A. Corte, Voce Nebbiolo, in Principali vitigni da vino coltivati in Italia – Volume II, Ministero dell’Agricoltura e delle Foreste, 1962).

A statesman and protagonist of the Italian Risorgimento. He served and Minister and Prime Minister. He was the mind behind the Kingdom of Italy, unified under the Savoyard crown of Vittorio Emanuele II. A liberal by ideology, he used diplomacy to accomplish his reformist and monarchic vision for the Country. As a young man, he managed the family land and for a period he lived in Castello di Grinzane. He extended grapevine farming and ushered in rational and efficient management practices. He resorted to the expertise of famous French oenologist Louis Claude Oudart to improve Barolo production in his estate. The Frenchman provided some indications to change some of the harvesting and fermenting methods.

Professor at Istituto Sperimentale per l’Enologia in Asti, he is considered the inventor of Metodo Italiano or Metodo Martinotti for industrial spumante production, the fastest and most economical method that does not affect the quality of the product in any way. This process introduced for the first time re-fermentation in autoclave, pressurised and at controlled temperature fro a time from 30 days to 6 months. According to this method, designed in 1895, the fundamental spumantizzazione or ‘sparlking’ process implies the addition to still wine of a mix of yeast and sugar; yeast digest sugar and produce alcohol and carbon dioxide, thus giving this wine its traditional and world.-known bubbles. The Martinotti protocol was used by Eugène Charmat, the French oenologist who later patented the method in 1910. The main difference between Metodo Martinotti or Metodo Italiano and the French Méthode Traditionelle is that in the latter the wine is re-fermented in the bottle for a longer time.

Carlo Gancia (Canelli, 1829 – 1897)

Since a young child, he was so fascinated by his father’s swift hands, turning grape into wine, that he turned in into his trade. He started off as a pharmacy and chemistry student in Turin and as such he could experiment new techniques also applied to wine. During his university studies Carlo invented a recipe to improve the taste of a very popular straw wine at the time: vermouth.. He decided to use  moscato as the base for herb infusion and this he obtained a completely new – and successful – product. Towards the mid XIX century the French city of Reims became the capital of Champagne production. Carlo moved in the area and got a job at the famous cellar Piper-Heidsieck in order to learn the techniques as well as the classical processing method called champenoise method. Back in Italy, he tried to simplify this process using moscato grapes; thus he achieved shorter processing time as well as cost savings. In 1850 Carlo began testing how to adapt French winemaking method to moscato grapes.
Thus he founded the house “Fratelli Gancia”. In 1865, he finally managed, by removing the syrups required under the French recipe, to produce the first Italian spumante.

Both the heritage site in Piedmont and in Tuscany, Val d’Orcia are cultural landscape heritage sites, places where people admirably managed at once to respect and make the most of the natural environment, so that their endeavours changed the landscape. Val d’Orcia, with its medieval landscape beauty, also boasts an excellent winemaking tradition, with a number of outstanding DOCG wines. The noble Brunello di Montalcino is made using Sangiovese grapes only; made in the area of Montalcino, it can be produced in the area between three rivers, the Orcia, the Asso and the Ombrone, in the province of Sienna. It is described as a famous wine as early as in Medieval chronicles. Then, Carmignano is a red wine made with grapes from the hills of Carmignano and Poggio a Caiano, near Prato. In the XVIII century the Grand Duke of Tuscany, Cosimo III Medici, issued an order to define the production area of this wine, while poet Francesco Redi sang: “ma se giara io prendo in mano di brillante Carmignano/così grato in sen mi piove/che ambrosia e nettar non invidio a Giove”. Finally, Chianti is also mainly made with Sangiovese. Its tradition in the namesake hills dates back to millennia ago; indeed some sources date the start of grapevines farming in the area in Etruscan age… though it could be even older!

The history of the two Heritage Sites in Piedmont crossed paths several time, as we have already explained. The House of Savoy played a pivotal role in promoting the winemaking tradition in the region and its reputation in the world. The Savoy worked to improve and innovate farming, harvesting, production and finishing techniques as applied to the grapes farmed on their lands. Just to mention the ties between the two world Heritage Sites, it should be remembered that Castello di Govone, a property of the House since the XVIII century, is in the Roero, surrounded by noble vineyards.

Supply chain, noun, in economic and trade jargon, the term includes all production phases of a given product: manufacturing, distribution, consumption. This modern concept includes the set of producers, processing technologies and distribution methods of  product. The idea of a ‘chain’ expresses the sequence of passages in which the product is brought to life, from raw materials to the final products in the hands of a consumer.

Pedologic, adjective, of pedology (from Greek pédon, ‘soil’, ‘ground’), podology is a discipline focusing on studying soil and ground, both meant as the outer surface covering the earth. Pedology focuses on the geological, climatic and biological characteristics of soil in order to understand its suitability and potentials for farming; closely tied with agronomy, pedology provides information on the characteristics of soil and the species that are suitable to be farmed on it.

Oenologic, adjective, of oenology (from Greek oìnos, ‘wine’), the science of wine. Oenology focuses on winemaking science and seeks to understand plants, farming and production techniques.

Ampelographic, adjective, of ampelography (from Greek àmpelos, ‘grapevine’, and grafè, ‘writing’, ‘description’, ‘catalogue’), an agrarian discipline focusing on grapevines classification according to the morphology of the plant (for instance, the shape of buds, leaves, fruit, etc…).

Autoclave, noun, tightly sealed tank containing liquid or gas material, subjecting it to higher pressure than atmospheric pressure.

Interaction, noun, action, mutual influence between two people, substances or phenomena

Archetype, noun, model, example to follow

Suitable, adapt, appropriate, having qualities necessary for a given purpose.

Robust, strung, stout.