I am always interested in tasting wines from a producer whose wines are new to me. This was the case when Alessandra Pieretti from WellCom Public Relations and Communications Services located in Alba, Italy, invited me to meet Davide Gasperini, sales and marketing directer at Cascina Gilli. We agreed to meet at Il Gattopardo, one of my favorite Italian restaurants.
Davide told me that he had lived in San Francisco and attended the University of California, Berkeley and was offered a position there after graduation, but he turned down that opportunity and decided to go back home to Piemonte because he missed it.
He has a passion for the wines of his region and the winery, especially the unique Freisa and Malvasia di Schierano grapes
Davide said the company is located just outside Castelnuovo Don Bosco, in the Monferrato Astigiano hills. It was started by Gianni Vergnano in 1983. Today Gianni’s son Paolo Vergnano heads the company
The vineyards are located in the heart of Asti Province, in a valley composed of Marne di Sant’Agata (white soil). This soil contains blue-grey clay-like rock, a limestone matrix ideally suited to viticulture, providing the grapes with great richness in body and aroma.
Davide spoke about the Freisa and Malvasia di Schierano production. For the vinification of the Freisa grape they have developed the technique of svinacciolatura, a process to remove the grape seeds during the déléstage stage, providing for greater softness in the wine, without compromising the freshness.
Refinement of the wines at a pre-bottling stage, for Freisa in particular, is carried out in concrete containers, in order to give it greater micro-oxygenation. This process is carried on into the classic steel tanks. Over the years, particular attention has been paid to the further maturation of the product by aging in oak barriques for the second, third and fourth passages.
For Malvasia, long periods of maceration of the skin at cold temperatures make the product especially structured and intense, giving it a bright, intense color.
Freisa D’Asti “Il Forno” DOC made from 100% Freisa from Vigna del Fornoa single vineyard selection on the estate. “Bricco Gilli” is an amphitheater-like slope with a south/south east aspect which surrounds the estate. The vineyard is at 300 meters and the soil is moderate particles of lime, sand and clay (loam). There are 4,200 plants per hectare and there are both young and 40 year old vines. The vines are traditionally trellised, head trained with replacement cane pruning system (guyot). Harvest is by hand when the grapes reach the perfect aroma and flavor concentrations, and balance between aromas, acidity and phenolic components. Maceration lasts for 7 days, with pumping over (remortgage, rack and return délastages) and drawing off the seeds. The wine has hints of raspberry and plum, $17
Barbera D’Asti DOCG Superiore “Dedica” 2020 made from 100% from the Schierano vineyard, at an altitude of 440 meters. The slope has south/southeast aspect so the solar radiation can reach the grapes early in the morning. In the Schierano part of the municipality of Passerano Marmorito (AT), the soil has a prevailing limestone matrix component. There are 4,300 plants per hectare. The vines are between 40 and more then 70 years old and are head trained, replacement pruned guyot system. Davide said the low yields, the typical small and over-ripe grapes, the frequent pumping over and the maturation in barrique have led to a great aroma intensity and an elegant fruit and finish. The wine is aged for 12 months in barriques of which 20% are new and for about another 12 months in the bottle before release. This is an intense fruity wine with hints of cherry, plum and violets, balsamic notes and a touch of licorice in the long finish. Davide said the label is dedicated to a selection of grapes of their domain. Barbera has always been grown here and expresses its character at its best. $18
Albugnano Superiore “Notturno” 2021 made from 100% Nebbiolo from Schierano vineyards, facing south/southeast. A microtone with marly matrix soil, rich in calcareous, at 440 meters. Very small production from the highest and steepest slopes of Monferrato. Some vines are new while others are 40 years old. The training system is traditionally trellised, head trained with replacement-cane pruning system (guyot). There are 4,300 vines per hectare. The grapes are hand-havested the first half of October, destemmed and crushed. The skin contact lasts more or less 10 days in a controlled temperature stainless-steel vat at a temperature of 28° C. The wine is then racked in French barrels, where it can gain complexity from the barrel itself and from oxygen interaction. The wine is aged for 12 months in French oak barrels and 6 months in bottle before release. The wine has hints of raspberry, pomegranate, violets, with a touch of tobacco and a trace of vanilla. The long finish has fruity and spicy notes.
Freisa D’Asti Superiore DOC Arvelé 2018 made from 100% Freisa D’Asti from the Cornareto Cru inside the Romanesque Astigiano. The best grapes are selected from the slopes better slopes facing south/southwest at 360 meters. The soil is rich in sand particles with good drainage. There are 4,100 plants per hectare with vines up to 40 years old. Training system is traditional trellised, head trained with replacement cane pruning -guyot. The harvest is in October, when the grapes are slightly overripe. The production aim is to maximize the extraction from these overripe grapes, with a very high skin-pulp ratio. 10 days of maceration to extract a lot of color and aroma compounds and precursors, soft and ripe tannins. The wine is aged for 18 months in French barrels and at least 12 months in bottle. It has hints of ripe fruit, jam, pepper, and coffee with a touch of leather and a balsamic note.
Davide said Freisa d’Asti is the appellation which best expresses the effort of Cascina Gilli with this variety. Arvelé (“revelation” in Piedmontese) was born to bring this variety to the highest level. Cascina Gilli has always believed in the strong identity of Freisa as a noble grape from which obtaining great wines which can age. $18
Malvasia Di Castelnuovo Don Bosco DOCG “Gilli” made from Malvasia di Schierano 80% and Malvasia Lunga 20%. Davide said these are ancient grape varieties for which Cascina Gilli feels the role of custodians. The grapes are from “Bricco Gilli” cru which surrounds, with an amphitheater-like shape, the estate with a south/south-east exposure. The vineyard is at 300 meters and there are 4,200 plants per hectare. The soil is of a marly characteristic with balanced particles of sand, silt and clay. Vines are up to 40 years old traditionally trellised, head trained with replacement-cane pruning system (guyot).The grapes are hand-harvested, destemmed and gently crushed to avoid the extraction of unwanted components from the seeds. Then skins and must stay in contact for some days at low temperature, to extract color, delicate aromas and flavors and to avoid oxidation, microbial spoilage and unwanted fermentation to start. After this contact the must is drawn off the skins, filtered and stored at low temperature, to retain the acidity and the fruity characteristics. As needed, the must is transferred yo stainless-steel tanks where, according to the Asti Method with the inoculation of selected yeast, alcoholic fermentation can take place. When the alcohol reaches 5,5% b.v., the fermentation is stopped and the lightly sparkling sweet wine is sterile filtered to avoid further fermentation from occuring in the bottle. Then the wine is bottled and ready to drink. $20
Davide said the label brings the name of the estate; the original variety from which this wine was created is as ancient as the noble bust found on one wall of the estate building, bust that immediately became the Cascina Gilli logo.
Malvasia di Schierano, carries the distinctive signs of this wine district as well as being synonymous with the most authentic discovery of a local grape. The varietal selection of this type, with its unique and delicate aromatic character, distinguish it from the more common one called Malvasia Nera Lunga which is more intense and for this reason used for the production of the Malvasia di Castelnuovo Don Bosco. $20
The wines are a fantastic value for the money.
Cascina Gilli is looking for a distributor in the New York area.
