Grignolino: the light red that holds together Asti and Casale

The cultivation of Grignolino finds two important references in the Astigiano and Casalese. This presence gives the vine a place recognizable in the agricultural culture of Monaco. Meet it along the journey allows you to observe how a grape remains linked to places even when wines take different territorial names.

From Casale Monferrato, continue towards Rosignano and Vignale. The passage from the city to the ridges introduces countries, houses and agricultural spaces. A visit to the vineyards adds to this geography the story of the choices that every producer makes during the season.

The Grignolino grapes have a colouring that can vary from red-violet to black and contain numerous vinaccioli. The cluster is quite compact. In the wine, a contained coloring equipment is accompanied by an evident tannic presence: appearance and structure follow two different registers.

Observing the glass is only the first step. The scent, freshness and the sensation left by tannins follow. This sequence makes the Grignolino interesting to tell during a tasting: it teaches to give space to the sip even when the color suggests an immediate lightness.

Grignolino d'Asti and Grignolino del Monferrato Casalese are two territorial names linked to this grape. The name of the vine is the common point; the territory indicated on the label allows to continue the route on a more precise map. It is a comparison that makes sense to the stops in countries.

Start from the story of Casalese and its infernot, then you reach Asti. To broaden the experience, approach the Grignolino to the Barbera: two grapes present in Monferrato, with balance between colour, acidity and tannins opening different readings of the same journey.

The journey of Grignolino in Casalese begins with a change of altitude and scale. Casale Monferrato, near the Po, introduces the urban history of the territory: the castle, the Cathedral and the Civic Museum open different paths within the city. Going up towards Rosignano, the center of reference leaves room for a plot of countries and crops. The vine allows to maintain a thread between these places, while the visit shows how much the culture of wine also involves architecture and domestic life.

A Cella Monte, the Stone from Cantoni offers a concrete key. The local material appears in buildings and in infernot, small underground environments excavated to keep bottles. Niches and shelves tell the work necessary to get a storage space inside the rock. The Ecomuseo della Pietra da Cantoni connects these artefacts to geology and the history of communities. The UNESCO component Monferrato of the infernot recognizes this relationship between countries and wine landscape: the wine follows on the slopes, then under the houses.

From Rosignano continues to Vignale, Olivola and Ottiglio. The route from Vignale to Moleto gives the journey a stretch of path with which to observe distances and changes of slopes. After meeting the stone and villages, the Grignolino of the Monferrato Casalese report to agricultural production. Pull it over Grignolino d'Asti it allows to continue between two precise backgrounds: the name of grapes remains the bond, the names guide the return to places. Supports in historic centres and companies keep this relationship close between agricultural work, bottle custody and country life.