Piemonte DOC: a regional name, many wine routes

The area of Piemonte DOC includes territories bordered in the provinces of Alessandria, Asti, Cuneo, Turin, Novara, Vercelli and Biella. The area is wide, but defined by the disciplinary: the name of the region does not automatically assign the denomination to every Piedmontese vineyard. The different types also have their own rules, to be read together with the origin declared by the manufacturer.

The Monferrato allows you to explore a significant part of this plurality. The Casalese leads to villages and villages infernot; lAstigiano opens other dorsals; theAcquese binds the spa town to the countryside. These paths give a concrete territorial form to a label that, alone, includes a much larger horizon.

DOC Piemonte is recognized in 1994. Its function is to give a common reference to many productions, with a space for different varieties and types. The regional name thus cohabits with denominations that tell smaller origins. This understanding is useful to know how companies organize their own production and present different wines.

A cellar can offer a Piemonte DOC next to bottles of other denominations. Reading the labels together and listening to the origin of the grapes makes visible the difference in geographical scale. The comparison acquires sense when it passes from the names to the vineyards: what plots are used, which variety is cultivated and what interpretation you want to obtain for each wine.

The name Piemonte can be accompanied by the specification of the vine or type. In the catalog of the territory, Barbera, Cortese, Grignolino, Freisa and Dolcetto allow to follow some of the varieties present in the name. Each specification directs the tasting and recalls the rules applicable to that particular production.

The sparkling versions open another path, in which the processing of bubbles is added to the choice of grapes. To orientate, start from the full name on the label and deepen with the manufacturer the place of cultivation. The amplitude of the DOC makes it not useful to look for a single regional taste: each bottle is known through grape, origin and form of processing.

The presence of aromatic varieties such as Moscato bianco and Brachetto adds a distinct path to non-aromatic grapes. A tasting built on this difference makes the family more legible Piemonte DOC: first we recognize the varietal matter, then we see the contribution of processing. The story can continue through the other names of the same company, always keeping visible the full name of each wine.

A day between Asti and Nizza Monferrato can start from the historical centers and continue in the countryside. In the cellar, compare a Piemonte DOC with a more defined name produced by the same company. It is a direct way to understand the relationship between regional scale, local history and wine choices, keeping as reference the places crossed.

To continue, the Monferrato DOC opens another family of types; theAsti DOCG follows the aromatic heritage; Gavi DOCG concentrates the story on the Cortese of a defined area. The Piemonte DOC can accompany this itinerary as a cross-sectional thread: from a broad name you reach the individual vineyards, to the people and stories of the bottles.