Luigi Pire

History

Roots in Serralunga d'Alba

The Pira family’s relationship with the hills and vineyards of Serralunga d'Alba reaches back to the late nineteenth century. The family describes more than a century of continuity in the same vineyards, extending from Luigi Pira’s grandparents to his granddaughters. Five generations have worked within the same landscape, with the castle of Serralunga remaining a constant presence on the horizon.

The 1950s: Luigi and Rosa Pira

During the 1950s, Luigi Pira and his wife, Rosa, redirected the family holding toward specialized wine growing. Their purpose was to give greater value to the produce of Serralunga d'Alba. This change established the direction followed by the subsequent generations.

The early 1990s: estate bottling

In the early 1990s, Luigi’s sons Gianpaolo, Romolo and Claudio entered the business. Their arrival coincided with the family’s decision to begin bottling its own wines, with quality established as the central objective. This marked the transition from a family wine-growing activity to an estate responsible for both its vineyards and its bottled production.

The present generation

The business is now carried forward by the three Pira brothers together with Gianpaolo’s wife, Tiziana, and their daughters, Annalisa and Elena. The family remains directly involved throughout the operation, from vineyard care and vinification to welcoming visitors for cellar tastings. Annalisa and Elena represent the fifth generation in the family’s long association with Serralunga d'Alba.

Late 19th centuryThe Pira family’s documented bond with the hills and vineyards of Serralunga d'Alba begins.

1950sLuigi Pira and his wife Rosa redirect the family holding toward wine growing, seeking to enhance the value of Serralunga d'Alba’s produce.

Early 1990sLuigi’s sons Gianpaolo, Romolo and Claudio join the business, and the family begins bottling its own wines with an emphasis on quality.

PresentGianpaolo, Romolo and Claudio continue the family business with Gianpaolo’s wife Tiziana and daughters Annalisa and Elena; the family collectively manages vineyard work, vinification and cellar tastings.

Terroir

Serralunga d'Alba

The principal vineyards lie on the western side of Serralunga d'Alba. Hollows, ascents and descending slopes form broad tongues of land across this side of the commune. Nebbiolo is cultivated within this varied relief.

The local geology is characterized by the presence of the Lequio Formations, associated with structured wines capable of extended ageing. The described vineyard soils are consistently limestone and clay.

Vignarionda, Marenca and Margheria stand very close to one another, yet each has a distinct microclimate and terroir. The family therefore treats each named cru as an individual expression and makes one dedicated label from each.

Contrasting sites

The Serralunga holdings described in detail range from approximately 310 to 350 metres above sea level. Exposures include south, south-west, south/south-west and north. Margheria occupies a gentle south-facing hill, while Marenca lies in a pronounced, particularly steep basin. Vignarionda occupies a south-west-facing site at 330 metres.

A separate Barbera vineyard is located in the municipality of Roddino at 420 metres above sea level, on a south-west exposure and limestone-clay soil.

Winemaking

Estate bottlingThe family has bottled its own wines since the early 1990s.

Family-controlled productionThe family collectively follows the work from vineyard care through vinification.

Restrained interventionCellar processing is intended not to overpower the character of the grapes.

Delicate use of woodWood is used with restraint to preserve the product’s natural qualities and sense of place.

The vineyards have been tended by the same family nucleus for more than a century. Vineyard care is framed as demanding work built on effort and sacrifice, with grape quality treated as the foundation of wine quality.

Knowledge has passed between generations through established manual gestures and direct experience. The present family combines lessons inherited from its grandparents with continued study and improvement in areas where ancestral knowledge alone is insufficient. Vineyard and cellar responsibilities remain within the family team.

Estate bottling began in the early 1990s after Gianpaolo, Romolo and Claudio joined the family enterprise. The current family team remains involved in vinification as well as vineyard care and hospitality.

The cellar philosophy is deliberately restrained. Human intervention and the influence of wood are intended to remain delicate so that neither processing nor élevage overwhelms the qualities of the grapes and their places of origin. The purpose of cellar work is to allow the character of Serralunga d'Alba and the distinctions among its vineyards to remain legible in the finished wines.

Philosophy

The family’s philosophy begins with the conviction that wine quality originates in grape quality. Its vineyards are treated not simply as productive holdings but as part of the family’s identity, shaped by more than a century of continuous care.

Tradition is understood as accumulated practical knowledge rather than a fixed formula. Lessons inherited from earlier generations are retained while study and ongoing improvement are used where inherited experience cannot provide every answer.

The family seeks to protect and enhance the natural heritage of Serralunga d'Alba and to make wines that reflect both the quality of the grapes and the individual features of their origins. Because Vignarionda, Marenca and Margheria possess different microclimates and terroirs despite their proximity, each cru is given a single dedicated expression.

In the cellar, minimalism means keeping human intervention and wood influence delicate. The aim is not to dominate the material supplied by the land, but to let the vineyards and wines communicate their own character. The family also connects good wine with the meeting of sound grapes and sound knowledge: neither is considered sufficient without the other.