Un reportage su Rocco di Carpeneto - vini d'Alto Monferrato (parte 1)
23 luglio 2014
After a tiresome three days at Vintaly we had to skip day 4 of the show and get where we really wanted to be all along, nelle vigne, in the vineyards! We woke up in a serious haze early that Wednesday morning and drove three hours to the Agriturismo Le Belle Vite in Carpeneto, Ovada in Piedmont. This is an unknown part of Piedmont, closer to Genova than Torino. Ovada is known for its castles, in fact the road you take through Ovada is called the “percorso dei castelli” taking you from one tiny little castle town to the next. – The area has the highest density of castles in all of Europe!
Ovada is also the birthplace of the grape Dolcetto, being so synonomous with Ovada is was known historically as “uva ovadese” or grape of Ovada. In fact this represents a very important D.O.C.G. zone for the grape where most importantly it is given prominent vineyard position and sun exposure like Nebbiolo does in the rest of Piedmont. Wines are also subjected to longer oak aging in Ovada, not necessary made fresh like you may find from Nebbiolo producers who are hoping to earn a quick buck on some fresh juice. Don’t get me wrong, it’s awesome juice but lets just say Dolcetto shines in Ovada and is given proper time to age and show its true potential.
For all its beauty it’s sad this region doesn’t get much love in terms of wine consumption or tourism. My good friends Paolo and Lidia of Le Belle Vite are helping to change this however. After working in Milan for several years this couple decided to leave it all for greener pastures and start making wine in Piedmont and open an agriturismo. Lidia went to school, in fact when we were visiting she had just graduated becoming an official enologist, and Paolo started building the business from the winery to b&b rooms and tree houses! This couple is also very involved in the promotion of their region in general and of course their wine via their consortium. Trouble is they are the consortium! The tiny group of producers in Ovada that form the consortium do not have the means to have a staff promoting their wines like maybe the consortium’s in Tuscany would, so Paolo and Lidia also have a hand in this as well. One thing you learn when you spend enough time with winemakers is there is never a lack of work to be done!
Funny story, when in Rome I taught Lidia’s sister Letizia English. I would tell her about my hopes and dreams of entering into the wine industry in Italy and eventually starting Mucci Imports. She immediately mentioned I should meet her sister who was in the midst of her Masters and learning how to make wine. Kelsey and I took a trip to Piemonte to find Lidia and Paolo and a friendship was born. It’s been really enjoyable to watch their growth and see the opening of their agriturismo and this year taste some wine in the bottle.
