Elio Grasso

The Elio Grasso Estate, located in Monforte d'Alba, has 42 hectares of land of which 24 are forests and meadows that surround the 18 hectares of vineyards, within the World Heritage site. Their one-step-at-a-time policy began with the successive replantings of their Nebbiolo, Barbera and Dolcetto. In 1986, they added a small plot of a non-native variety, Chardonnay, “educating” the fruit to express the terroir into which it had been introduced. The average annual output does not exceed 90,000 bottles, a level that enables them to maintain the family-managed orientation, as well as meticulous control over all stages of winemaking.

The cellar thus displays a carefully selected assortment of stainless-steel tanks, where all their grapes are fermented, with the single exception of Chardonnay for “Educato”, as well as 25-hectolitre Slavonian oak barrels and small 225-litre casks of French oak. Every wine is given time to mature so it achieves just the right balance. After being bottled, the wines age for several more months before emerging from the cellar. They acquire serious ageing potential but are also ready to be enjoyed when still young.