It is the first of its kind outside of Italy, as all the prestigious Barolo and Barbaresco wine producers from the Piedmont wine region came together in New York to offer their most productive offering. Some of the most notable Italian red wines made through some of the finest iconic winemakers were all in the same room; A room worthy of those visitors with its high ceiling and large open space, as many wine professionals, as well as passionate wine lovers, have enthusiastically passed from table to table, savouring the greatest successes of the Italian wine world.
Of course, the prestigious multi-generational wine producer Pio Cesare received his wonderful red wines Barolo and Barbaresco. Pio Boffa, one of the family owners in charge of the winery, showed up. But he wasn’t the kind of person who simply sought to communicate temporarily with as many people as possible. Instead, she became more interested in deeper individual connections to allow others to truly understand her family’s legacy and the core values she fought for on a daily basis.
When I talked to someone, I completely searched that person, not knowing who they were, where they came from, and what was most valuable to them. That day, I would make the few deep connections I was still looking for. even as many warned him and others not to go to New York. This extravagance, aptly named “Barolo”
Within a couple of weeks, NYC was in an extreme lockdown that many could only envision existing in a post-apocalyptic movie.
Pio wouldn’t have issues getting back home safely during that time, but sadly, after only a little more than a year later, he passed away after battling Covid at the too-young age of 66. It was a devastating moment for the Italian wine world as he had been a vital part of running his family’s winery for over 40 years.
Pio Boffa was groomed by his father to take charge of the vineyard at a young age, temporarily growing it as they both dedicated their free time to the business. And that’s why it wasn’t just in his DNA; It was also part of the air that he breathed one day and that he decided the rhyme of his life that he sang with the beats of his heart. His daughter, Federica Boffa, followed the same path. Although she was only in her twenties at the time of Barolo’s global opening
On the surface, Federica Boffa doesn’t look like her father, but she has the same strength of character in her eyes and the same preference for being deeply attached to those who take an interest in her family’s wines. Today he supervises Pio Cesare with his cousin, Cesare Benvenuto, who worked with Pio Boffa for many years.
Recently, Federica spoke about all the major projects she is undertaking, such as the structure of two new facilities in the “historic center of Alba”, as the production capital of Barolo and Barbaresco was formerly called. Pio Cesare is one of the last founders The Barolo families are still there with their original winery, and now they are investing more in this historic place that “has a lot of problems”, according to Federica, and if they don’t maintain and repair the cradle of Barolo’s winemaking, then who will?He insists that they have no intention of increasing production but need to give themselves more surface area for the bottle cellar, thus allowing more wine to age, thus expanding quality, and will commit some other facility with the sole purpose of making wine.
The Pio Cesare wine family has made a few different white wines in tiny quantities over the years as Pio Boffa loved them. They make a Cortese di Gavi, a common traditional white wine of the area. Still, many years ago, as a young man in the early 1970s, he tried to convince his father to plant Chardonnay but his father was extremely traditional and wouldn’t allow it. Finally, in 1981, Pio Boffa got to plant his Chardonnay in one of their cooler Barbaresco vineyards and the neighbors were sure that he had lost his mind. Pulling out the sacred Nebbiolo red grape variety that produces their legendary wines was one thing, but so that he could plant a foreign French white variety no less! But through time, the beautiful expression of place in their small production of Chardonnay wine has won over a strong following and its style is similar to Burgundy with its finesse and freshness, yet it is an expression of a specific vineyard in Barbaresco.
Beautiful hills and vineyards surrounding the village of Barbaresco
In fact, the concept that their Chardonnay has a Burgundian flavor is quite applicable, as many lovers of Burgundy red also enjoy Barolo and Barbaresco red, even if their palate profile is quite contrary depending on the winery and vintage. However, both have two vital issues in common: affinity for the expression of position and a complex, fragrant nose.
But now they’re investing in a white wine called Timorasso that’s not only as popular as their Chardonnay, but also indigenous to the region.
Timorasso is a native white variety that has been around since the Middle Ages. Some Latin documents trace it back to the city of Tortona, located in the Piedmont region. A few years ago, the Pio Cesare winemaking family bought a piece of land in the Colli Tortonesi Timorasso region, where they planted Timorasso. In the future they will bring to the market the elderly Timorasso, whose production will be around 800 boxes. Some have described Timorasso as similar to the white Riesling grape, as it exhibits honeyed aromas with masses of minerality and superior acidity, resulting in very good old stones, while a flint minerality begins to be more noticeable with aging. So Federica and her cousin will put it on the market when she shows this wonderfully complex note.
The Pio Cesare Chardonnay, created by Pio Boffa, is called “Piodilei”, which means “Pio for the ladies”, as it is a tribute to the women of the family, who in the afterlife had to remain on stage due to the time of the convention. Pio Boffa was very fond of Chardonnay when he was young and it took this excessive enthusiasm to go beyond the culture and be able to plant a few rows. When he tasted a perfect Chardonnay, it reminded him of some of the most powerful people he had ever met. The women in his family circle knew this, as it was difficult with a lot of design and at the same time sublime with a general delicacy.
A little woman holding her father’s hand as they walk.
When Pio passed away in 2021, Federica put the original label on her 2020 Chardonnay wine, the old one that was next to be bottled at the time, as a tribute to the hero of her life who made her the woman she is today.
In the early 1980s, Pio Boffa perhaps never imagined that when he paid the women of his family circle with his Chardonnay “Piodilei” wine, the woman who would be the ultimate incredible representative of those qualities would not even be born. still. . . But today, she runs the family business in a way that Pio himself could only dream of and not only honors her father by putting the original label on the 2020 vintage, but honors him every day through being the ordinary woman she saw from the beginning. . . in the eyes of her little girl.
Pío Cesare Wine Range
2019 Pio Cesare’ Piodilei’ Chardonnay, Langhe DOC, Piedmont, Italy: 100% Chardonnay from their family-owned vineyard Il Bricco. Pretty nose with citrus blossom and stony minerality with juicy white peach flavors, crisp acidity and elegant textural contrast with broad body and fine structure that gives lift along the expressive finish.
2019 Pio Cesare, Barbaresco DOCG, Piedmont, Italy: 100% Nebbiolo from the Treiso and San Rocco Seno d’Elvio family vineyards. A fascinating floral lilac nose with a delicious note of warm raspberry with a sophisticated red cherry flavour in the mouth and very fine tannins.
2019 Pio Cesare, Barolo DOCG, Piedmont, Italy: 100% Nebbiolo from family vineyards in Serralunga d’Alba, Grinzane Cavour, La Morra, Novello and Monforte. The earthier intensity of damaged rocks and, on the palate, ripe red cherries are balanced by savory blueberries with hints of spice and new bay leaves with lacy tannins.
2019 Pio Cesare, Il Bricco Vineyard, Barbaresco DOCG, Piedmont, Italy: one hundred percent Nebbiolo that comes from the highest component of the Il Bricco family winery. Intriguing nose of sandalwood and cinnamon stick with darker fruits and a fuller design with marked acidity, and this wine will stand up to long aging.
2019 Pio Cesare, Ornato Vineyard, Barolo DOCG, Piedmont, Italy: 100% Nebbiolo from the prestigious Ornato family winery in Serralunga d’Alba. A bright and welcoming wine with lots of enthusiasm and life that features a delicious pristine culmination such as red cherries, blackberries and redcurrants, balanced through flavorful herbs such as thyme with a sublime frame and a fragrant finish with notes of anise.
2019 Pio Cesare, Mosconi vineyard, Barolo DOCG, Piedmont, Italy: one hundred percent Nebbiolo from the famous winery of the Mosconi family circle in Monforte d’Alba. This wine seduces from the first sip with lush fruit and silky tannins caressing the palate and the deliciously rich, multi-layered fruit is balanced through all-new acidity and complex notes of tar and intense minerality at its heart. Despite its opulent palate, it remains finely explained with the best precision on a very long finish. A wine that’s already a superstar now, but those wines age really well, so try to muster every ounce of willpower to put some of those excellent beauties in the cellar.