Azienda Agricola Cadía
The Giachino family, Barolo off their own hills. Vegetables from their own garden on the signboard.
- Partner since
- 2013
Cadía is a family estate, founded in 1913 by Marcello Giachino, the great-grandfather of the current owner, Bruno Giachino. In the spirit of his grandfather and father, winemaker Bruno Giachino and his wife Mariella carry the estate forward with the ambition of making top wines.
Cadía lies in Italy's finest wine region: Piedmont. Cadía is based in Roddi, 5 km south-west of the beautiful town of Alba, in the heart of the Langhe. The estate covers 122 hectares of vines. The vineyards lie on the south-eastern ridge that begins at the Monvigliero Verduno hill. This part of the vineyard is where the Nebbiolo grapes grow, above all on the ‘Cadia’ hill.
The terroir
The northerly position of the vineyards and the terroir produce beautiful, pristine wines. The top wines are made on the lovely green hills of the Langhe, home to Italy's finest wines. Cadía's vineyards lie at an altitude of between 230 and 350 metres above sea level. The soil consists of fine gravel and limestone, partly lying over an underground watercourse, which keeps the water supply very constant.
Pruning
Most of the work consists of pruning the vines. Bunches that touch other (better) bunches are removed, so that each bunch hangs free of the others. This prevents mildew. Particular attention is also paid to pruning leaves and shoots. For each grape variety, the decision is made whether the grapes should hang in the sun or in the shade. This exceptionally labour-intensive approach achieves the very highest grape quality. It forms the basis for what follows: the vinification.
This intensive way of pruning avoids the need to fight disease. The use of pesticides is also completely unnecessary. Throughout the pruning, the condition of the bunches is continually checked.
At Cadía the harvest is, naturally, carried out the traditional way, which makes it heavy, labour-intensive work. Mariella Giachino decides when the grapes have reached ideal ripeness and, together with family members, makes sure they are picked by hand at exactly the right moment. Only the very best grapes are used for their top wines. These are the Barolo Monvigliero and the Barbera d’Alba Superiore Palazzotto. It is not for nothing that Barolo is called the king of wines!
