Renzo Seghesio

Originally from the Monforte d’Alba borgata of Sant’Anna, in 1968 the Seghesio family sold their cascina & moved to the centre of town, to where the cantina is now located, becoming commercianti wine makers. For many years, Renzo was also Sindaco di Monforte d’Alba, accompanied by his wife Maria Gabriella Contratto, whose family were partly from Narzole – her father Carluccio a famous ‘sarto’/tailor – while her mother was a Monfortina.

They have two sons: Federico (nato ’76) & Raffaele (’78), who now assist their parents as they complete a restructuring of the family cantina nel cuore del centro storico, to provide more space for ageing & bottle storage. Federico, an aerospatial engineer previously worked for Westland/Leonardo in China & the Middle East, while Raffaele is a surgeon at the new Verduno hospital.

From 1986, Renzo Seghesio started to buy the fruit from Cascina Pajana, on the eastern side of the Monforte d’Alba comune, eventually buying the 7ha plot in 1996; a plot that includes 1.3ha of steep South East-facing, 30yo vigna Pajana at 350m asl on white Formazione di Lequio limestone soils (similar to Serralunga d’Alba) & 1.8ha of 25yo West-facing Ginestra on more classic Langhe soils of Marne Sant’Agata fossili. From the broader Ginestra MGA they also produce a Barolo del comune di Monforte d’Alba.

Beyond Monforte d’Alba, yet still in the Langhe, the family also owns a 0.6ha plot of South facing, 6yo vigna Bricco Chiesa on warm sandy marne soils in the frazione of Santa Maria di La Morra (for Langhe Nebbiolo); plus since 2021 they have begun renting an older vine 1ha plot in Roggeri nearby, that provides fruit for their Barolo del comune di La Morra. 

And in the Roero they own a single, 4ha anfiteatro plot of vigna Sanchè, that runs parallel to Valmaggiore in the comune of Vezza d’Alba, on predominantly Sabbia d’Asti over marne soils, for both Nebbiolo d’Alba & Roero Arneis.

In cantina, the fratelli are supported by a young local enologo, Andrea Taricco, while since 2020 they have been advised by Roberto Valletti, another young enologist from Dogliani. The wines are classically made, in static stainless-steel vats, using selected yeast, pumping over & on occasions, submerged cap. Vintage 2020 was also the year in which they invested in a new Pellenc destalker, plus two new 32HL Stockinger botti, alongside older Garbellotto 30HL barrels. They also use tonneaux for the Nebbiolo d’Alba & Barbera d’Alba; their Langhe Nebbiolo sees 18mths in botte grande. Carlo Arnulfo consults in the vyd.

They bottle at circa 80mg of total sulphur, using Lafitte & Amorim corks for their Barolo wines, & DIAM5/10 beeswax for Roero Arneis, Nebbiolo d’Alba & Langhe Nebbiolo.