Ruchè di Castagnole Monferrato DOCG: the scents of seven municipalities

The production area includes Castagnole Monferrato, Grana, Montemagno, Portacomaro, Refrancore, Scurzolengo and Viarigi. The size of the denomination allows you to easily connect the label to names and places. In the Monferrato Astigiano, these countries offer a reading of the hills made of inhabited centers, cultivated slopes and passages from one back to another.

A first day can join Castagnole in Montemagno, continuing towards Viarigi and Refrancore. The path between the countries is already part of the experience: the prospects change, the views of the countryside open and the vineyards enter the broader design of the reliefs. The visit to the historical centers gives the landscape a human scale, made of squares, alleys and houses.

A stop between the rows allows to bring attention to the plant from which this aromatic personality is born. The vineyard makes tangible a story that in the glass seems immediate: before the perfume comes the care of the vines, the maturation and the work necessary to preserve its character.

The modern enhancement of Ruchè is linked to Don Giacomo Cauda, who in the 1960s helped bring attention to this grape. The consortium recalls its role in the recovery of a wine that had risked staying on the margins. The recognition of DOC in 1987 and DOCG in 2010 mark the next path, making more visible a local specificity.

It is an interesting story to bring in the visit, because it shows the weight of individual choices in the continuity of a cultivation. A vine survives through the work of those who recognize it, cure it and find a way to tell it. Chestnuts thus becomes a place where wine allows to speak also of memory, initiative and relationship between a community and its own countryside.

The Ruchè constitutes the main part of wine; the disciplinary allows small contributions to Barbera or Brachetto. The most immediate part is the aromatic intensity. In the profile described by the consortium are floral and spicy notes, with possible references to marasca and berries. The ruby color can remain relatively delicate, while the perfume has a clear presence.

The sip is dry and finds a balance between softness and aromatic persistence. In order to know him, he pays attention to the passage from his nose to his mouth: the perfume prepares the encounter and continues to be perceived during the drink. This continuity is a good reason to taste calmly. Two bottles of different producers can show distinct shades, keeping the character that gives identity to Ruchè.

Food meetings can follow both fruit and spicy component. Meat dishes, first tasty and cheese offer different perspectives; also a preparation with a measured use of spices allows to observe the dialogue with wine. Persistence makes it interesting to return to the glass between one mouth and another, when the perfume changes in the relationship with the dish.

To enlarge exploration, compare Ruchè with the Grignolino d’Asti and the Freisa d’Asti. They are other red voices of the territory and help to seize its variety. At the end of the journey, Castagnole, Montemagno and other countries become personal references: wine shows a panorama, a square and the history of those who have kept this grape.