Nada Fiorenzo

History

In 1921, Carlo Nada, the son of a tenant farmer, purchased a property in Treiso, which was then a small village in Barbaresco. This property had been used as a summer retreat by his employer, one of Italy's first cardiologists. The estate encompassed approximately 25 hectares of land, including a significant portion of the Rombone vineyard.

Carlo had seven children. Having fallen ill young, he hoped his family would preserve the land in its entirety rather than divide it among his children. However, reality turned out differently. Once the land was divided, financial difficulties set in, and the second-to-last son, Fiorenzo, chose the safer path of selling the family's grapes, which buyers wanted anyway.

Bruno, the son of Fiorenzo, had left for Alba to work as a teacher. In the late 1970s, he returned to Treiso, which had by then become an independent commune, and made a simple proposal: to stop selling grapes and start bottling wine. In 1982, the first bottle bearing the Azienda Agricola Nada Fiorenzo label was released.

Since then, the winery has acquired vineyards in Manzola and Montaribaldi. Danilo, the son of Bruno, joined the business after completing his studies and is currently in charge of operations.

Three crus, two communes

Nada Fiorenzo's vineyards are located in two communes within the Barbaresco appellation. Rombone and Manzola are in Treiso, while Montaribaldi is in Barbaresco itself. These vineyards are all small plots situated on the steep slopes of the UNESCO World Heritage terrain.

Rombone is the main vineyard, and it is here that the wine cellar was built. Surrounding it are the old vines used for Barbaresco Rombone and Seifile, relatively new rows of vines for Dolcetto and Alba, the Barbera and Alba plots, and the recently planted Nebbiolo Michet vineyard right next to the building. Facing southwest, the vines receive the last rays of sunlight each day.

Manzola is one of the smallest and oldest crus in Treiso, bordering Rombone to the north and Valeirano to the east. This vineyard also faces southwest. Nebbiolo Lampia and Michet are cultivated on two family-owned plots in this area.

The core plot within Montaribaldi is Cascina Quinto, a steep, south-facing ridge planted long ago. It receives sunlight from dawn until dusk. When these grapes were first vinified separately, the resulting Barbaresco immediately garnered attention.

The vines are generally managed using the traditional Guyot method, namely the vertical trellis system.

Limestone and clay, mostly

The soil in the Langhe region varies from ridge to ridge, as clearly demonstrated by the three crus of Nada Fiorenzo. Rombone consists mainly of limestone and clay, and the winery attributes the wine's complexity and potential for long-term aging to this very combination of soils.

The Manzola region also contains clay and limestone, but layers of scattered sand appear in various places. Sand tends to make the wine's tannins more refined, which generally aligns with how the family describes Manzola as a wine that prioritizes elegance over power.

Cascina Quinto, the heart of Montaribaldi, has yet another distinctive characteristic. Long-term erosion has worn away the soil, forming calcareous soil with only trace amounts of clay remaining.

The rate of ripening is also a key factor. Steep slopes, manual labor, and unhurried harvesting: the winery directly links this style to grapes that ripen slowly and without haste. Furthermore, this is the very hill where the white Alba truffle is found, a fact that holds significance not only in terms of climate but also from a marketing perspective.

The grapes

Nebbiolo, Dolcetto and Barbera.

Barbera also serves another purpose. It makes up the majority of Seifile, a blend based on old vines planted in the 1960s, with Nebbiolo making up the remainder. Before single-varietal labeling became the norm, this type of blend was also commonly used in Langhe.

Winemaking

Nada Fiorenzo houses both its storage facility and living quarters within a building surrounded by Rombone grapevines. In other words, it's just a short walk from the vineyard to the fermentation tanks.

All grapes are harvested by hand, and the winery clearly explains why: they seek fruit that has ripened slowly and perfectly, rather than fruit harvested according to a strict schedule. The same logic applies to viticulture: pruning is done in winter, new shoots are tended in spring and summer, and when it comes to soil management, the family defines it as maintaining environmental balance.

The crus are managed separately from one another. Montaribaldi is the most representative example, as this wine could only be created because grapes from Cascina Quinto were vinified separately for the first time. Since 1982, when Bruno Nada shifted from selling grapes to bottling its own wine, their efforts have consistently followed a single direction: reducing yields and adhering to traditional methods wherever they remain effective.

The wines

Barbaresco forms the core of the lineup. Barbaresco Rombone is produced on the slope where the wine cellar is located and is the wine most closely associated with this winery. There is also a version labeled Dieci Anni.

Seifile is an exceptional wine and is perhaps the most talked-about bottle among those produced by this family. Although it is primarily composed of Barbera with some Nebbiolo blended in, it cannot be called Barbaresco, so it is released as the Langhe red wine. Danilo jokes that people keep misreading the label as Selfie.

Beyond that, the product lineup extends from Langhe Nebbiolo, Barbera d'Alba, and Dolcetto d'Alba, all the way to the everyday Piemonte red wine, produced from vineyards surrounding the cellar and categorized by type. Overall, the number of bottles is small. This is not a coincidence but a deliberate choice.