Francesco Brigatti is an exemplary small wine grower in northern Piedmont. He produces limited quantities of elegant, expressive wines based on the classic Nebbiolo variety. Additionally, he creates delicious varietal bottlings of indigenous varieties, such as Vespolina and Uva Rara, which are typically blended with Nebbiolo in this region, as well as a top-class Erbaluce white wine. His cellar is located in Suno, near the southern end of Lago Maggiore.

Nebbiolo-based wines from this region, Alto Piemonte, are strikingly different from those of Barolo and Barbaresco, particularly in structure — they are usually less tannic and less alcoholic. The climate here is somewhat cooler, with breezes from Monte Rosa to the north providing excellent day/night temperature variation. The soils are also entirely different: acidic morainic clays as opposed to the alkaline calcareous clays found in the Langa.

Francesco Brigatti explains: “My grandfather started the family farm in 1920. He had a few cows and grew grapes, grain, and fruit, but eventually fell in love with grape growing. He sold the cows and became a full-time grape grower. I am the third generation on our farm. I graduated from the University of Turin in agronomy and worked for a few years at the university doing clonal selection of grapevines. Then a new boss moved me from the field to a desk job behind a computer, so I left the university and dedicated myself to our family estate. Today, I farm a little more than six hectares (15 acres) using the Integrated Pest Management farming method. Some of my vineyards are planted with massal selection, and some with clones. The soils are very acidic, with a pH around 5-5.5, and are very rich in potassium and magnesium, which gives a savory character to the wines. There is also a fair amount of clay in the vineyards.”