Posted on in Vigna
Nuclear engineer, wine taster, Veronelli’s student, journalist, gastronome. One could use dozens of adjectives to describe Alessandro Masnaghetti, but the most accurate remains one and one only: “Wine geographer.”
He claims that title proudly, and has dedicated a large part of his time to the meticulous mapping of vineyards throughout Italy. “I inherited this directly from Gino [Veronelli, ed.]. He was the first to believe in the systematic and coherent classification of crus in our country. And you can see this in his Catalogo Bolaffi dei vini d’Italia (Bolaffi Catalogue of the Wines of Italy), published in 1969. A work that was lightyears ahead of its time.”
After the success of BAROLO MGA, today Masnaghetti returns with a new book: BARBARESCO MGA, the most complete—and only—geographically descriptive monograph of the 66 crus of Barbaresco DOCG.
If we’re not wrong, your first geographic work on wine was actually a map of the Barbaresco zone?
“That’s right. It was a crazy undertaking that Luigi Veronelli and I attempted in 1994. We were pioneers in this project, and maybe it was for that that it was a commercial failure unlike any other. However, that experiment still represents my first geographic work and it was the initial spark that made me fall in love with a certain way of describing wine. What’s more, that map has a definite archival value, such that I carried it over in the new book to highlight the changes made in over 20 years of history.”
Why did you start with the Barolo crus?
“The fact that BARBARESCO MGA comes after BAROLO MGA is purely by chance. In fact, I wanted to make just one book, but its publishing costs would have exceeded beyond any reasonable limit. So I decided to focus first on Barolo because I had more up-to-date data and could finish the book in a more reasonable amount of time. That’s all.”
How do you work on a project like that?
“You have to visit vineyards and meet with producers, have a good eye, and the right amount of passion. You work with land registries, historical maps, and aerial photographs. But above all, you have to dedicate a lot of time. Just to give you an idea, BAROLO and BARBARECO MGA together took about eight years of work. Work that included visiting about a hundred wineries between January and December. One by one.”
Which sources did you consult?
“They were few and hard to come by, because they were all from the past. Renato Ratti’s maps are always essential, and then as I said there is the meticulous, monumental work of Veronelli, who was always looking for a true classification of the crus. Finally, there was the invaluable book Italy’s Noble Red Wines by Sheldon and Pauline Wasserman: a rich manual of information created out of a true passion and curiosity for Italian wines. I highly recommend it, even with its many errors.”
Did you intend for your book to be a snapshot of the current situation?
“Yes, exactly. It is a snapshot of what Barbaresco is today, which with time, I hope to join to other snapshots and therefore create a complete route. Something that stands the test of time. Without opinions but full of information. A book to consult.”
An encyclopedia?
“You could say that…in fact, that is the subtitle of the first two books. And the MGA are described in alphabetic order with an essential box of information. Nothing poetic but lots of data, information, and maps that give you the chance to explore the territory while sitting on the couch.”
What part did you enjoy writing the most?
“The Chronology of vintages and the Index of names. In the Chronology, menzione by menzione, I indicated the wines that first used the menzione names and the year they were used. Some of the wines are forgotten, made by producers that today many people don’t remember anymore. The Index is a section dedicated to the names and their relative explanations, their place names that have been created in the folds of everyday life. I really like that chapter.”
How much does geography matter in a wine?
“Its provenance is the starting point of any wine. Because we begin by telling people where we are: in the hills, the plains, mountains, by the sea, in Italy, France, or Spain…And with this information, you can pull out many other arguments: the variety, the terrain, the productive techniques, the traditions. An infinite number, or just about.”
One last question. What can you tell us about the cru of your family, Rabajà?
“Speaking in a gourmand’s vocabulary, we could say it’s all filet, a MGA without a crumb of “waste.” And those who cook it well, and there are many, can’t do other than producea great wine.”