The heroic vineyards of Carema, the great drought has reduced the numbers

The Grape and Wine Festival returns to the small town. Bosonetto: “We need a lot of work with the institutions”

CAREMA. While the harvest is underway, the photographic exhibition by David Mannarino, dedicated to the tiring work of the vignolants in the vineyards and in the cellar, set up in the spaces of the Nebbiolo wine cellar in Carema, welcomes visitors who, since last Friday, want to discover the charm of heroic viticulture. and terraced landscapes, taking advantage of the opportunity offered by the grape festival. The exhibition is titled “Actions for wine, Caremese viticulture”. «The 44 shots – says Matteo Bosonetto, the new president of the winery, which is also home to the Slow Food presidium – are a narration of our pride, of our people. Of the DOC Carema, and of the Nebbiolo grapes, from which it derives, cultivated since the Middle Ages. We obtained the Doc in 1967. And since then it has been a long way to improve quality, to find new markets, even abroad ». A path made up of continuous studies, studded with prizes, including the three glasses of Gambero Rosso for the Carema Riserva 2009, the Douja d’or in Asti, just to name the major ones. The numbers are the litmus test of the winery and of a niche production: a vineyard area of ​​22 hectares, of which 15, cared for by the winery’s members, 60 thousand bottles sold, with a turnover of about 600 thousand euros (data from 2019). In addition to the black label Carema, and the Riserva Carema, the two Spumante Villanova labels, the red Canavese Turel, and the Canavese rosé, met the taste of consumers. And Matteo Bosonetto, 29, intends to accelerate, starting from the work done. «I thank the president Viviano Gassino and the outgoing board of directors who have done an excellent job. Now the Carema is spoken all over the world – observes the new president -. But to do even better we must be able to sell the beauty of our territory together with wine. And overcome the difficulties that we encounter every year. Direction will be the issue linked to climate change: this year we had to deal with the drought that led us to an early harvest of two weeks compared to the average. The grapes have suffered, and only the possibility of deriving water from the Chiussuma stream, which marks the border of the Carema doc, has saved us. The wine will be of good quality, with an excellent sugar content, but the quantity slightly lower than in previous years. On this front, therefore, a great deal of work by the institutions is needed ». «In the meantime, the Carema grape and wine festival – adds the mayor Flavio Vairos – tries to tie the threads together. In the last ten years, the festival had been given a brand to promote the territory: of the wine of course, of the effort of the winemakers too. But above all of our landscape. Which is unique, a work of art of nature, with the terraced vineyards and the topiuns supporting the vines. The vast Caremese basin forms an architectural landscape that arouses the admired attention of enthusiasts and urban planning scholars. Thanks to a series of regional funding, we have implemented the sentiI was from the vineyards along the Via Francigena, and then created the Andar event for ancient cellars, which has become our flagship ».

And the Slow Food Presidium of Carema is part of the development path linked to viticulture, born in 2014 to safeguard a rural landscape and a traditional wine at risk of extinction. The presidium aims to maintain the pergola cultivation method, the picotener ecotype, vinified in purity, the traditional vinification in large barrels and groups all those who are committed to adopting sustainable agricultural practices that must be as respectful of health as possible. of the earth, as well as of the consumer.