Anna Maria Abbona

Farming origins: 1890–1960

The family’s agricultural history on the Moncucco hill spans five generations. Anna Maria Abbona’s great-grandfather Giuseppe worked as a sharecropper from 1890 to 1930. Her grandfather Angelo, born in 1906, became a small landowner and cultivated several crops between 1930 and 1960.

The early decades of the twentieth century brought phylloxera and the disruption of the First World War. Angelo learned field grafting, established his own nursery, experimented with grafted vines and sold grafted young plants. In 1936 he planted the Maioli vineyard on land acquired from a short man named Mario, known in Piedmontese as Majulin. The experimental layout changed the rootstock and Dolcetto clone every five rows so that Angelo could identify combinations suited to the site.

Expansion and Anna Maria’s return: the 1960s–1995

Anna Maria’s father, Giuseppe, enlarged the property from the 1960s onward. The family has lived near the chapel of San Bernardo in the hamlet of Botti since 1965. Small-scale winemaking took place in the basement of the family’s 1850 house, where Giuseppe made wine for the household and a circle of friends.

Anna Maria initially left agriculture to work as an advertising graphic designer. The 1986 methanol scandal sharply reduced wine consumption and grape prices. In 1989 Giuseppe decided to sell the family vineyards, but Anna Maria opposed the sale. Supported by her husband, Franco Schellino, she abandoned her graphic-design career and returned to the farm. Their objective was to produce Dolcetto di Dogliani conscientiously, preserving tradition and authenticity while restoring the connection between the variety and its historic growing area. The first production of Dogliani Sorì dij But dates from 1989.

The original cellar was expanded in 1994. A semi-underground wing with barrel vaults made from old bricks was built beside the old house. Anna Maria became owner of the agricultural estate in 1995. In 1996, the family began producing a separate wine entirely from the Dolcetto of the historic Maioli vineyard; the San Bernardo selection also began that year. A Barbera-and-Dolcetto cuvée followed in 1997.

A larger Farigliano cellar: 2001–2009

New plantings, additional varieties and increased bottling made another cellar necessary in 2001. The new Farigliano building incorporated areas for vinification and maturation, a bottle-ageing warehouse and a visitor tasting room, with terraces and stone walls outside. The 1994 cellar was reassigned to wooden maturation vessels.

Production milestones during the decade included Langhe Nebbiolo in 2002 and Barbera d’Alba in 2005. The first Nascetta vineyard was planted in 2006. From 2009, Nascetta was vinified as a varietal wine, while Riesling Renano also entered production. A Barolo sourced from Castiglione Falletto first appeared in 2009.

Bricco San Pietro in Monforte d’Alba: 2009 onward

In 2009 the family found a farmhouse at the summit of Bricco San Pietro in Monforte d’Alba, almost 500 metres above sea level and just inside the Barolo production zone. Its eastern and south-eastern slopes, constant breeze and position between the Barolo hills and the more wooded Alta Langa corresponded closely to the family’s preference for elevated, ventilated sites.

The first eight years were devoted to planting and establishing approximately 2 hectares of Nebbiolo around the house. Barolo Bricco San Pietro entered production in 2014 and its Riserva in 2016. Restoration of the farmhouse began in 2017. The project retained the character of a nineteenth-century complex that had once combined cellar, stable and farmworkers’ homes. It subsequently became the winery and maturation site for the estate’s Barolo, as well as a tasting venue and a four-unit hospitality property.

Recovery of Toninetti in Marsaglia: 2014 onward

At the end of 2014, Mr Tosco approached the family about his inherited land at Toninetti in Marsaglia. His family had once owned the castle of Marsaglia, but the 10-hectare property had lain uncultivated for years. About 3 hectares were woodland and the remainder could be restored to vines. Tosco brought the land’s documentation, including a certificate of merit awarded to his father in September 1938 for the quality of his Dolcetto grapes, and asked that viticulture be returned to the hill.

Although the family had intended not to add another project while developing Bricco San Pietro, the single-block, 630-metre hill convinced them. Vineyards returned to Toninetti in 2017. Pinot Nero and Chardonnay were planted on the cooler side in an amphitheatre-shaped vineyard; Pinot Nero and Nascetta were planted on the sunnier side. The Marsaglia plantings supported the introduction of a Nascetta-based Martinotti sparkling wine, first produced in 2016, followed by Pinot Nero and Alta Langa production from 2019 and an Alta Langa rosé from 2021.

The next generation

The pandemic prompted the family to reconsider constant expansion, large trade fairs and the balance between work and quality of life. They decided to remain a family-run estate, stabilize rather than significantly increase production, devote greater attention to biodiversity and wine health, and favor direct relationships, small focused tastings and visits to the cellars. Federico and Lorenzo, Anna Maria and Franco’s sons, are expected to carry the family values forward while developing the estate for changing climatic and agricultural conditions.

The high hills of the Langhe

The estate favors elevated hills with all-day sunlight, cooler nights, summer breezes, mild winters and periodic snow. The Doglianese Langa occupies a border position, looking toward the plain and Alpine arc in one direction and the Barolo hills in the other. Its landscape forms a mosaic of vineyards, woods, meadows and rotating crops rather than a continuous monoculture.

At Moncucco, the hill extends toward Monviso. Its southern and south-western side is sheltered from cold winds, producing a temperate microclimate despite the elevation. Maritime breezes moderate winter conditions, while chestnut, oak, pine and elm woods form a natural protective belt. Soils vary across the hill but are dominated by clay and calcareous marl, with stones and smaller proportions of sand.

The production philosophy emphasizes white calcareous soils and elevations above 500 metres. Elevation brings constant ventilation, reducing fungal pressure, while day-to-night temperature differences favor thicker, more resistant skins with greater concentrations of aroma, color and tannin. The combination of calcareous soils and well-exposed sites contributes body and ageing potential; elevation supports aromatic intensity and freshness.

Bricco San Pietro in Monforte d’Alba rises to almost 500 metres, between the Barolo production hills and the more wooded, mixed-farming Langa. The vineyards occupy eastern, south-eastern and southern exposures and experience the same persistent breeze valued at Moncucco. The soils include tuff and calcareous marl.

Toninetti in Marsaglia forms a single 10-hectare block over both sides of a hill at approximately 630–640 metres. The south and south-eastern side faces Rocca Cigliè; the other side turns east, north-east and north toward Marsaglia and Murazzano. Mountain breezes descend from the nearby Maritime Alps. Wild juniper, centuries-old oaks and maritime pines surround the land. Vineyard soils include calcareous marl, sand, stones and clay-calcareous zones.

Vineyard management has followed a sustainable approach for more than 20 years. The objective is to eliminate chemical inputs where possible and otherwise reduce them to a minimum. Permanent or seasonal ground cover, legumes, manure and organic fertilizers are used to support the balance of plants and soil.

Decisions are site- and season-specific. Fertilization and treatments are applied only where necessary. Canopy work responds to each year’s weather, and crop load is matched to the vigor of each vine so that fruit can ripen without excessive forcing or stress. Soil, wind and sunlight are evaluated before deciding which crop or variety belongs on a particular part of a hill.

Biodiversity is treated as a continuation of the area’s older mixed-farming system. Vineyards coexist with woods, permanent grassland, meadows, hazelnut groves, wheat and alfalfa. Chestnut, oak, pine and elm woods surround Moncucco, while wild juniper, old oaks and maritime pines frame Toninetti. More than half of the family’s land is occupied by woods and hazelnut groves.

The vineyards are Guyot-trained. Harvesting is manual, using ventilated crates. Timing varies by variety and site from the second half of September through the first half of October. Elevated, ventilated positions are also used as a preventive viticultural tool because airflow reduces fungal-disease pressure and supports healthier grapes.

The original winemaking space was the small basement beneath the family’s 1850 house in Farigliano. A semi-underground, brick-vaulted cellar was added in 1994 and is now used for wooden vessels. The larger 2001 building provides dedicated spaces for vinification and maturation, bottle ageing and storage, as well as a tasting room. Bricco San Pietro serves as the cellar and maturation site for the estate’s Barolo production.

The cellar combines traditional methods with restrained use of newer technology. The central priority is sound fruit, respect for the growing site and preservation of vintage character. The family avoids technology for its own sake and works with low sulfite additions.

Manual harvest in ventilated crates is standard across the documented vineyards. Traditional red-wine fermentations take place in stainless-steel tanks. Temperature-controlled steel fermentation at 16–18°C is used for aromatic white varieties, while sparkling base wine can be vinified in steel without skins. Maturation vessels include stainless steel, large traditional wooden casks, large and small wooden vessels and tonneaux. Barolo matures in large Slavonian-oak casks; Pinot Nero may mature for 12 months in tonneaux.

The sparkling program employs both approaches represented in the range: Martinotti production for Nascetta-based sparkling wine and bottle refermentation with 30–36 months on the lees for Alta Langa. Water and production-waste management form part of the estate’s stated path toward a rigorous, consistent and restrained production model.

The family defines its project as conscientious winemaking grounded in tradition, authenticity and craftsmanship. Its central idea is that a variety should express the place to which it is naturally suited. New technology may be adopted when useful, but the intended character and identity remain traditional.

Strong territorial identity is understood as part of a wider culture encompassing cuisine, dialect, farming memory and attachment to the Langhe. Wine is only one expression of a relationship with the land that also includes gardens, fruit trees, woods, hazelnuts, breadmaking and preserving food.

The preferred model links native varieties to their historic growing areas and emphasizes varietal wines. White calcareous soils, elevations above 500 metres, ventilation and strong day-to-night temperature variation are deliberately sought for freshness, drinkability, aromatic intensity, healthy fruit and structured skins.

The production ideal is simplicity achieved through rigor rather than simplification: appropriate land use, careful water and waste management, vineyard ground cover, limited cellar technology, low sulfite additions and respect for terroir and vintage. Human intervention means observing the needs of each plant, acting only where necessary and avoiding crop loads or practices that force the vine.

The family intends to remain independent and family-run. Rather than pursuing continuous expansion, it favors optimizing what the land can produce without strain, improving care, protecting biodiversity and building closer relationships with customers. Federico and Lorenzo are expected to combine inheritance with innovation as climate and agriculture continue to change.