The Most Famous Wine Cellars of the Langhe Find Out Which Ones to Visit in 2023

One of the best experiences to get to know a territory in depth is undoubtedly that of a visit to a wine cellar: in it, in fact, you find a fascinating world in which it is wonderful to immerse oneself not only to listen to the different voices that are part of it but also to learn about its history.

The nobility of wine is just that: is never a detached, abstract object that can be judged by drinking a glass, or two or three, of a bottle that comes from a place where we have never been.

Mario Soldati

The Langhe, in Piedmont, are one of the most renowned wine regions in the world and are endowed with a landscape over which hectares and hectares of vine rows stand out, and there are numerous wine cellars to visit in the region, each with its own peculiarity.

Here are the four most famous ones to visit.

Ceretto Winery

The Ceretto winery, one of the most famous in the Langhe, was founded in 1936 by Riccardo Ceretto. The famous ‘Acino’ grape, an architectural masterpiece with a futuristic aftertaste, stands out on their estate and already offers a first taste of their philosophy.

The winery has pioneered the use of sustainable and organic viticulture techniques and produces some of the best wines in the region.

A visit to the winery includes a tasting of their fine wines, including Barolo, Barbaresco, Dolcetto and Moscato d’Asti. The winery also offers a culinary experience, with traditional Piedmontese dishes accompanied by a selection of wines.

For those who love contamination.

Coppo Winery

Coppo Winery is a world-renowned winery located in the town of Canelli, in the Asti area, and was one of the first in Italy to bottle wine under its own brand name.

Founded in 1892, the winery covers 27 hectares of vineyards and its main nucleus is in Monferrato.

Its peculiarity, however, is hidden inside: in its basements there are, a series of ancient tunnels dug by hand into the tuff, called “infernot,” which are so striking that they became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2014 and have allowed the wine to be perfectly preserved.

For those who never cease to be amazed.

Marchesi di Barolo Winery

The Marchesi di Barolo winery is one of the oldest and most prestigious in the region, founded in 1807 by the Marchesi Falletti family. Located in the heart of the area’s flagship wine, for six generations the company has produced some of the Langhe’s most celebrated wines, including Barolo, Barbaresco, Barbera d’Alba and Dolcetto.

The visit includes a tasting of their wines and a tour of the historic underground cellars, where the wines are aged in oak barrels.

Here you can still admire the five barrels of the Marchesa Giulia Falletti Colbert and the collection of rare bottles of Barolo Riserva from the late 19th century.

For those who love tradition.

Poderi Luigi Einaudi

Poderi Luigi Einaudi is a farm founded in 1897 by the President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi, in the heart of the Langhe, in Dogliani.

The company started out as a wine estate, but in the following years has expanded to become a full-fledged farm, also growing cereals, hazelnuts and other crops, comprising 13 farms of around 70 hectares.

In 1998, Poderi Luigi Einaudi obtained ‘Organic Farm‘ certification for the production of wine, olives and hazelnuts.

Today, Poderi Luigi Einaudi is run by the fourth generation of the Einaudi family and produces a wide range of wines, including the famous Barolo, but also Barbera, Langhe Nebbiolo and other white wines such as Roero Arneis.

For those who live history with an eye to the future.

L’Astemia Pentita

Curiously evocative in name, the winery was founded in 2007 by Sandra Vezza, the ‘repentant teetotaler‘ herself.

The company’s architecture is characterized externally by two large stacked blocks reproducing two wine crates and surrounded by the rows of vines of its production.

Not only externally but also internally it is capable of impressing: large multicoloured murals, Gufram design pieces like an unconventional pop dream combined with the quality of the wines with original labels for whites and reds such as Barbera, Nebbiolo, Nascetta and Dolcetto.

The company is committed to environmental sustainability and uses organic and biodynamic farming techniques to cultivate its vineyards. It is also dedicated to the preservation and recovery of native grape varieties in the area.

For those who love contemporary art.

Not Just Big Names

However, there are not only well-known companies such as those listed: it is also extremely enriching to visit small local producers who will give you a welcome that is perhaps less ‘prestigious’, but certainly more familiar and genuine. Here are some suggestions!

• Ghiga

  The Ghiga family has very deep peasant origins, and today specializes in the production of Moscato d’Asti DOCG satin stopper.

  The Ghiga family has very deep farming origins, roots that go back to the early 1970s in Castiglione Tinella, an area particularly suited for the cultivation of Moscato.

  It was Mario Ghiga who started an initial activity, vinifying a large part of his own grapes to produce musts intended precisely for the production of this wine.

  2010 was a very important year for the farm because Enrico, Mario’s grandson, resumed the winemaking of grapes on his own to produce Moscato d’Asti DOCG.

  Large investments were needed to modernize the winery, but years later that choice has proved successful.

  Today, Davide, Enrico’s younger brother, also works at the winery and together with his mother Angela and uncle Giovanni manage all phases of winery life, from the cultivation of the vineyards to the commercial promotion of the wines.

  You can read more about Ghiga here.

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  1. Vineyards in Castiglione Tinella

  A walk through the vineyards gives an insight into the importance of manual work, from thinning the greenery to tying.

• Rizieri

  The winery was born from Arturo’s dream of becoming a producer and creating a sustainable reality, with wines of the highest quality. It is located in Diano d’Alba, one of the 11 municipalities that are part of the Barolo production area.

  Azienda Vitivinicola Rizieri has a different story from most local wineries.

  This young winery does not derive from a craft handed down through generations or from family land; instead, it was born from Arturo’s life project, who decided to put himself to the test and give shape to a dream.

  Conceived and realized with courage and tenacity, the company quickly made its way to the top of the local market as a sustainable producer of quality wines.

  Rizieri is located in Diano d’Alba, in Sorì del Ricchino, one of the 11 communes that make up the Barolo production area, and spreads over 14 hectares, 7.5 of which are vineyards.

  The remaining land consists of deciduous and mixed woodland, which contributes to the perfect microclimate for the well-being of the vineyards. These, surrounding the winery, are planted to Arneis, Dolcetto, Merlot and Barbera; in La Morra, one vineyard is planted to Nebbiolo da Barolo.

   

   

  You can read more about Rizieri here.

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  1. The Tasting Room

  A contemporary, finely furnished venue

  2. The barrels

  The wines age in wooden barrels before being bottled

  3. Tasting

  Arturo tastes the wine still in the cask

• Fea Vini

  A small winery in the hills of Calosso run by Giuseppe and Tiziana offers a winery tour and the tasting of typical Monferrato wines

  The territory of Calosso, a small town of about 1,200 inhabitants straddling the Langhe and Monferrato regions, presents itself with a panorama thick with vineyards that reach their maximum splendor during the months of October and November thanks to one of the most enchanting foliages in Piedmont.

  In a panoramic position, cantilevering over the steep south-facing vineyards, is the Fea Vini winery, a small, family-run business where Giuseppe and Tiziana, the owners, receive guests directly.

  The welcome, the passion for this land and the fruits it offers remain etched in the memory of those who visit thanks to their authentic homely hospitality.

  From the very first visit, one understands the desire to pass on, especially to the youngest, the experience gained through years of work, without neglecting the hardest aspects of rural life, in a land that in 50 years has gone from the misery of the Malora to an economic, cultural and touristic well-being.

  You can read more about Fea Vini here.

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  1. Fea Winery

  A place of peace and tranquility among the UNESCO hills

  2. When work is also fun

  This is the spirit with which Giuseppe faces the daily challenges of his profession

  3. Between Langhe and Monferrato

  Calosso has always been a land of great wines, a land of which Moscato d’Asti is the main resource

• Tenuta Garetto

  Tenuta Garetto was born from the desire of the Gagliardo family to expand its production in the Nizza area, the maximum expression of Barbera.

  Tenuta Garetto was born from the desire of the Gagliardo family to expand its production in the area of Nizza, given the important wine-growing vocation of this land.

  Hence, in July 2017, a transfer of ownership took place, which saw the famous producers from La Morra, from Poderi Gianni Gagliardo, take over this historic estate and its vineyards.

  Stefano and Alberto Gagliardo undertook the tradition consolidated by the previous management, however making important changes both in the vineyard and in the cellar: alongside vineyards dating back to the 1930s, new plants were born, always linked to a low-impact agriculture, that is now about to become organic.

  The estate is located in Agliano Terme, the most important area for the production of Nizza DOCG, a brand new denomination recognized as the maximum expression of Barbera d’Asti grapes.

  You can read more about Tenuta Garetto here.

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  1. The owned vineyards

  All 10 hectares are on a single plot of land, on the hill behind the cellar