Giovanni Almondo


Growing Area
Roero
Proprietor
Almondo Family
Year Founded
1978
Size
22 hectares
Farming Practice
Organic

Contrarian’s Gambit

In a part of Piemonte almost exclusively devoted to red wine, the Almondo family took the path less traveled—making what’s been dubbed “the white Barolo.”

When you go out to eat in La Morra, which is perched above some of the most renowned vineyards in Barolo, you have a pretty good idea of what will fill your glass. Especially if you’re meeting a nebbiolo whisperer like Gianluca Grasso. So when Grasso kicked off a dinner with Jim by requesting not one but two bottles of a pale white arneis from nearby Roero, it was time to pay attention. The wine in question was Giovanni Almondo’s Bricco delle Ciliegie—named after the onetime orchard where the vines had been planted—and Grasso had a confession: He’d taken to swapping bottles of his Barolo for it.

Considering the price differential, Almondo would typically give him more—but Grasso wondered how long that would last. “It’s not a fair trade,” he chuckled. After one sip of this lip-smacking synthesis of stone fruit, salinity and mint-flecked citrus, Jim was hard-pressed to argue: this arneis really was that good. It combined the racy refreshment of a floral gin-and-tonic with a textural depth that led in only one possible direction: an itinerary-busting beeline to the Almondo family’s farm in Montà.

They’d raised wine grapes for centuries—along with cherries, asparagus, cereal grains, and a few cows—but produced vino sfuso, “loose wine” that was basically sold in bulk to anyone who turned up with an empty jug. That changed in 1980, when Giovanni’s son Domenico Almondo conjured up a counterintuitive dream: making a top-flight white “in a region almost exclusively devoted to red.”

Marrying multi-generational knowledge with modern techniques, the Almondos have pulled something truly special from these windswept slopes—which earned organic certification in 2022. The calcareous clay of their northerly vineyards drive an acidic expression of arneis laced with savory minerality. The sandy soils a bit to the south emphasize the grape’s fruitier, rounder side. “The truly unique terroir of the north is adapted to an arneis that’s full of energy,” says Domenico’s son Federico, who has taken up the reins along with his brother Stefano, “while the more typical terrain of the south gives fruit and opulence. So you don’t need barriques to bring out the terroir—stainless steel, cement, and bigger barrels work beautifully.”

Be it in single-vineyard bottlings like the Bricco delle Ciliegie, or multi-site blends that capitalize on varied soil types and exposures, the Almondo family has shown that the undervalued arneis varietal—once on the brink of extinction—can be riveting when it’s handled with care in the right part of Roero.

That quest for multidimensional purity won’t change. But now, says Federico, “there’s a new page to write.” This time the ink will be red. “We may be known as bianchiste, but we also have seven hectares of nebbiolo! We’re passionate about these vines … which give different wines in our little zone—full of elegance and finesse, nuance and fine details.”

Whether you class them as bianchiste or nebbioliste, the Almondo family has earned a spot at the center of any discussion about Roero and the Langhe.

wines

White

Varietal/Blend
Arneis

Vineyard Area
From a vineyard called "Sparse" in Roero.

Soil
There are three types of soils found in the vineyard: 1. Sandy: 80% sand, 15% limestone, 5% clay 2. Clay and calcareous: 35% sand, 25% limestone, 40% clay 3. Acidic clay (ph 5,5): 40% sand, 30% limestone, 30% clay

Elevation
310 - 370 meters

Exposure
East – south – west

Vinification
Manual harvest and sort followed by a 12-hour cold maceration before the start of fermentation.

Maturation
Matured in entirely in stainless steel tanks for 6 months


Marketing Materials:

White

Varietal/Blend
Arneis

Vineyard Area
From a vineyard called "Bricco delle Ciliegie" around Montà in Roero

Soil
Sandy with clay veins, calcareous (60% sand, 15% limestone, 25% clay)

Elevation
340 – 370 meters

Exposure
East – south

Vinification
Manual harvest and sort followed by a 12-hour cold maceration before the start of fermentation.

Maturation
95% in stainless steel for 7 months and remaining 5% in non-toasted French oak


Marketing Materials:

White

Varietal/Blend
Arneis

Vineyard Area
From a steep plot within Bricco delle Ciliegie called "Le Rive del Bricco." The vines 60 years old rooted in richer clay and limestone with chalky veins.

Soil
Sandy with clay veins, calcareous (60% sand, 15% limestone, 25% clay)

Elevation
350 meters

Exposure
East

Vinification
Manual harvest and sort followed by a 12-hour cold maceration before the start of fermentation.

Maturation
10 months in mostly stainless, with a small portion in ceramic tank and non-toasted Slavonian oak cask.


Marketing Materials:

Red

Varietal/Blend
Nebbiolo

Vineyard Area
From 3 different vineyards, all located at Montà d’Alba (Lampia, Michet, Picotendro).

Soil
Sandy, calcareous (70% sand, 20% limestone, 10% clay)

Elevation
320 meters

Exposure
South

Vinification
Manually harvested and sorted, de-stemmed followed by a 15- to 18-day fermentation and maceration

Maturation
18 months in big cask (non toasted Slavonian oak)


Marketing Materials:

Red

Varietal/Blend
Nebbiolo

Vineyard Area
Bric Valdiana is a vineyard in the southern area of Montà d’Alba.

Soil
Sandy, calcareous (65% sand, 20% limestone, 15% clay)

Elevation
250-280 meters

Exposure
South

Vinification
Manual harvest, sort and fully de-stemmed. 18 to 22 days of maceration in stainless steel at low temperature prior to aging.

Maturation
10 months in barrique (light toasting – 50% new) and 12 months in big cask (non toasted slavonian oak)


Marketing Materials:

Red

Varietal/Blend
Barbera

Vineyard Area
From a 2-hectare plot on a steep slope in Montà called Valbianchèra. Vines are an average of 45 years old with some plants older than 60.

Soil
The soils is 30% sand, 45% silt, 25% clay, containing 10% of limestone.

Elevation
360 meters

Exposure
Southeast

Vine Training Method
Vertical trellis system – Guyot (4600 vines per hectare)

Vinification
Manually harvested and sorted, de-stemmed followed by an 8-10-day fermentation and maceration

Maturation
18 months in barriques (light toast, 10% new)


Marketing Materials:

Sweet

Varietal/Blend
Bragat Rosa (Brachetto Del Roero)

Vineyard Area
Fosso della Rosa is drawn from Bric Valdiana in Roero.

Soil
Sandy, calcareous (70% sand, 15% limestone, 15% clay)

Elevation
320 meters

Exposure
East

Vinification
Manual harvest and sort, de-stemmed before undergoing a 5-day maceration. Aged in stainless steel.


Marketing Materials: