2020 Cantina del Pino Barbaresco

Its Origins

This is one of the oldest estates in Barbaresco and very important in the region. The director of Alba’s Royal Enological School, Domizio Cavazza, purchased the land in 1894, confounding locals by not investing in the famed Barolo area. He had identified the potential of the Nebbiolo grape here, on hills above an obscure village called Barbaresco. That same year he founded the Cantine Sociali as the first cooperative in the area (precursor to today's Produttori), and from this property he produced the very first wines under the now-famous appellation. They are located on the top of the legendary Ovello hillside, now one of the greatest vineyard areas in the denomination. The site is known for its combination of cooler microclimate and unique soils, blending limestone with sandy veins and a high calcium content, the perfect conditions for an elegant, age-worthy Barbaresco. Cantina del Pino has been owned and run by the Vacca family for a century. They have had the property since the 1920s when Giuseppe Vacca, bought it from his friend, and renamed it after the famous pine tree Cavazza planted the day of his son’s birth. Giuseppe and his uncles were among the 19 founding members of the Produttori del Barbaresco when it restarted in 1958. The modern story starts in 1997 when Giuseppe’s great grandson Renato joined his father at Cantina del Pino, and convinced him it was finally time to make their own wines. He and his wife Franca have led the estate to even greater heights since she joined in 2013, with a more refined and contemporary style, and a dedication to the environment. With an approximately equal range (40-70 years) of both the vine age, and of that of the family workforce of aunts and uncles that look after them, the wines here are the perfect balance of long established authenticity and modern low intervention winemaking. Tragically Renato passed away in 2020 at just 51 years of age. The iconic pine on the label is still black in his honour. These are pure, understated and elegant Barbaresco’s, with an incredibly complex expression of terroir, and great aging capacity. Franca, a winemaker in her own right, along with Renato’s parents, now continue the tradition and dedication to the quality wines of Cantina del Pino, the historic winery on the Ovello Hill.