Borgo Maragliano

The Galliano family’s origins

The earliest written trace of the Galliano family is a 1790 church-register entry recording the birth of Giovanni, regarded as the family progenitor. He is remembered as enterprising, determined and strongly attached to his native land. His travels broadened his outlook and convinced him that cultivating vines offered a future for the family.

In 1850, Giovanni purchased the family’s first land in the municipality of Loazzolo, establishing its agricultural presence in the high hills.

Hardship at the beginning of the twentieth century

The difficult conditions that marked Loazzolo at the beginning of the twentieth century also affected the Galliano family. Giovanni’s grandson Carlo died, leaving his wife Teresa alone with their two young children, Giuseppe and Anna Maria. Teresa continued working the land and kept the family in Loazzolo despite the adversity and the temptation to leave the area.

Giuseppe and Carlo: education and experimentation

Giuseppe later encouraged his son Carlo to study Oenology in Alba. Carlo began by vinifying Moscato, the established grape of the Langa. His work combined inherited farming experience with a determination to innovate in both vineyard and cellar.

In the early 1980s, Dr Corino, director of the Experimental Institute for Viticulture in Asti, evaluated Loazzolo’s distinctive soil and climate. He proposed experimental plantings of Chardonnay and Pinot Nero for the production of Metodo Classico sparkling wine. Giuseppe and Carlo accepted the proposal and planted the varieties, challenging an area then principally devoted to Moscato.

Carlo subsequently became the first producer in the area to make Metodo Classico sparkling wine from Chardonnay and Pinot Nero. The success of this experiment made these varieties and bottle-fermented sparkling wine central to the Borgo Maragliano project.

Hospitality and the new generation

A glass-and-steel tasting room cantilevered over the vineyards was completed in 2018, creating a panoramic hospitality space above the valley.

The family’s forward-looking generation is represented by Carlo and Silvia’s sons, Giovanni, Francesco and Federico. Their involvement continues a family agricultural history described across five generations, with high-altitude vineyards and experimentation remaining defining elements of the estate.

Setting and elevation

Borgo Maragliano stands at approximately 450 m above sea level on a natural terrace in the Langhe hills, in the heart of Loazzolo near Asti. Its vineyards extend across Loazzolo, Bubbio, Bistagno and Canelli. The 11 individually named sites range from 320 to 610 m, while another estate Riesling site associated with Monferrato Bianco reaches 620 m.

The terrain is steep and rugged. The combination of high elevation, favourable but varied exposures and substantial day-to-night temperature changes supports slow ripening and the retention of aroma and acidity.

Wind and surrounding vegetation

The Marin crosses the area from the direction of the Mar Ligure. This maritime wind assists grape maturation and contributes to aromatic development. Woods, Mediterranean scrub and hazelnut groves surround the vineyards. Their mixture of flora and fauna forms an important reservoir of oxygen and ecological balance for the estate’s viticulture.

Geology and soils

Millions of years of erosion and geological evolution shaped the high-hill landscape. The formations around Loazzolo include characteristic marls and sandstone. The vineyard soils are described as sandy, tufaceous and calcareous, highly permeable and suited to wines with aromatic richness and the capacity for extended ageing.

Soil composition varies among vineyards, as do altitude and exposure. These differences create distinct site conditions for Riesling, Chardonnay, Pinot Nero, Moscato Bianco di Canelli and Brachetto.

The estate manages 44 ha of vineyards within an 84 ha property that also contains woods and hazelnut groves. Forty-one hectares are described as historic vineyards distributed among Loazzolo, Bubbio, Bistagno and Canelli; 22 ha of vineyard lie in Loazzolo. The named vineyards are between 35 and 65 years old.

Viticulture is framed as eco-compatible. The surrounding woods provide floral and faunal diversity, oxygen and ecological balance, while chemical inputs are kept to a minimum.

Yield restriction is a central practice. Green harvesting reduces the number of clusters and is adjusted to climatic conditions and the character of each vintage. The objective is to concentrate quality in the remaining fruit rather than pursue maximum volume. Harvest timing is treated as the decisive culmination of the vineyard year and depends on experience and an assessment of ripeness, weather and vintage conditions.

Cellar sequence

Grapes are pressed after arrival at the cellar. The general cellar sequence comprises racking, fermentation, clarification and filtration, with the aim of preserving and developing the fruit’s aromatic qualities.

Metodo Classico

Bottle-fermented sparkling wine is the core historical experiment of Borgo Maragliano. Chardonnay and Pinot Nero were planted for this purpose following the early-1980s trials, with Riesling later forming part of the estate’s Metodo Classico range.

The production facilities include a dedicated area for tirage and disgorgement. After tirage and secondary fermentation, bottles remain in storage to mature on their lees for years before riddling and disgorgement. Some reserve releases remain in the estate’s historic underground environment for at least ten years. The cellar also contains a barricaia where components mature in French oak before being assembled with base wines intended for future Metodo Classico production.

Maturation environment

Ageing rooms protect wines from light and temperature variation. Both still wines and sparkling bases are allowed to develop in these controlled, quiet spaces, with extended bottle maturation used for the estate’s most time-dependent expressions.