The Marengo family
My family's origins lie in the Piedmont and Tuscany regions. My father's side of the family, which comes from La Morra, in Piedmont, has been producing Barolo for more than a century, whereas my mother's family produced Chianti, Super Tuscans and organic extra-virgin olive oil.
Out of my father's family estate I have retained around three hectares, of which two of Barolo DOCG (Cerequio and Fontanazza vineyards) and one of Rosso Langhe DOC, from the Fontanazza zone. Due to be renovated next year, Cerequio is a historic vineyard, with ancient vines that have been used for several years to map the DNA of nebbiolo grapes from Barolo – confirming the exceptional quality of the fruits of this vineyard. When the time comes to overhaul it, we will retain the old clones, using rootlings derived from the grafting of the old, existing clones onto the wild rootstock. In Piedmont, I produce my wines with my friend Roberto Voerzio, who keeps aside a small space for me in his wonderful cellar. In our cultivation operations, we go to great lengths to limit the production per vine, through various stringent bunch-thinning interventions, which are carried out manually under my supervision. Production levels sit at an average of less than 500 grams per vine, and this means that the quality of the resultant wines is practically immune to seasonal vicissitudes. Importers will, then, forgive me for the limited number of bottles that will be available for sale – this is the price I have to pay for such high quality! The wines are dense, with a majestic body, complex, balanced aromas and a quite unrivalled level of polish. These wines have been showered with prestigious international awards, and are sold in China, Korea, Japan, the United States and a number of European countries. The winery in Tuscany – which bore the name of its founder, my father Giacomo Marengo – ended up getting sold off due to a persistent general economic crisis. The winery, which I ran for around two decades, covered more than 2000 hectares straddling the provinces of Siena and Arezzo. The wines produced in this period received a great deal of international recognition: Chianti Le Tornaie, Castello di Rapale (riserva and normale), La Commenda riserva (a Decanter gold medal winner) and Stroncoli IGT, Elena IGT and Patrizia IGT, as well as the white Cuvée Sant’Anna, all of which scooped plenty of silverware at major international competitions. |