Borgogno

When a great wine connoisseur hears the word “Barolo”, he must inevitably think of Borgogno. Founded in 1761, it is in fact the oldest winery of Piedmont, boasting a wealth of historical landmarks: in 1861 the celebratory lunch for the Unification of Italy was marked with a toast of Barolo Borgogno; in 1886 Nicola II Romanov, Tsar of Russia, opened a bottle of Barolo Borgogno during the dinner organized in his honour by the Savoy family. Cesare Borgogno was the genius who laid out the destiny of this cellar, starting in 1920: he invented the first model of wine distribution in Italy, he was among the first to promote Barolo in the world, and he made the smart move of setting aside 20,000 bottles of each great vintage of Barolo as “Riserva” for at least 20 years, a move that marked the future of Borgogno. In 2008 the Farinetti family acquired the winery, with the firm commitment of fully respecting its traditions. In line with this commitment, the following years saw an important renovation of the main building take place, which brought it back to its original appearance. Then, in 2013 Borgogno decided to revert to concrete cement as the exclusive material for fermentation tanks. 2015 witnessed the beginning of the conversion to organic practices. In 2016 an important renovation of the historical cellars in Barolo was undertaken, restoring old concrete fermenters and refurbishing other production facilities. Furthermore, 11 ha of vineyards in one of the best locations near Alba, Madonna di Como, were added to the existing 20 ha owned by Borgogno.