Piedmont. Tenute Cisa Asinary dei Marchesi di Grésy
Life is full of surprises. Meeting Jeff Chilcott, New Zealander and celarmaster at Tenute Cisa Asinary dei Marchesi di Grésy at the Koki Wine Bar in Barbaresco on the last night when restaurants were still open before the second wave of COVID restrictions in Italy was one of those happy coincidences.
Jeff invited us to visit him before we leave Piedmont, so one afternoon we made a trip on a rented Vespa from Barolo to the steep hills of Barbaresco.
Marchesi di Gresy winery is located at the very heart of the Barbaresco region surrounded by the lovely theatre which is their most famous parcel: Martinenga. Marchesi di Gresy owns 38 hectares of vineyards in total split across four parcels: Martinenga, Monte Aribaldo, La Serra and Monte Colombo. Di Gresi family has owned the place since 1797 and began producing wines in 1973. This is the year the great wines are born: Barbaresco Martinenga, Martinenga Langhe Nebbiolo and Dolcetto.
The focus today remains on Martinenga which is a stunning vineyard surrounding the estate. The 24 hectare parcel is source for three different Barbaresco wines: Martinenga Barbaresco, Camp Gros Martinenga Barbaresco and Gaiun Martinenga Barbaresco. 2010 was another milestone for the winery – producing for the first time Camp Gros Martinenga Riserva which is the flagship wine. They also produce a range of white wines from Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay.
First we had a walk in the cellars and listened to the history of the Marchesi di Gresy family and the vineyard. We also had a look at the production, where the tanks were being cleaned after the production of the 2020 vintage. Then we sat down in a very beautiful round tasting room with a view on the surrounding hills.
Jeff is a very generous host and treated us with a complex tasting through out Marchesi di Gresy line up, we’ve spent quite a few hours talking about talking about life and wine adventures over some excellent bottles. The funny story is how Jeff ended up in Piedmont instead of Tuscany just because his friend bought him a wrong train ticket. We had a pleasure to try:
Langhe Sauvignon 2019
Langhe Gresy Chardonnay
Barbera d’Asti Monte Colombo 2013
Langhe Virtus Ross 2010
Barbaresco Martinenga 2017
Barbaresco Gaiun Martinenga 2016
Barbaresco Camp Gros Martinenga Riserva 2015
Monferrato Merlot da Solo 2011
White wines were very focused and fresh. We remember Chardonnay resembling the style of Burgundy Chardonnay, rather Mersault than Chablis style which was to our liking. Then with the reds we were treated with Merlot which we found very nicely balanced and giving away grape characteristic. The Barbarescos were simply sublime. Martinenga 2017 had a lovely nose of flowers and spices like mint and tobacco. In the end Gaiun stole our hearts. This really is a class of its own. Again spices came through like mint or cinnamon. They were all beautifully wrapped around succulent cherry note which immediately told me it is ageing worthy. In other words one of the cellar favourites for the future! Camp Gros Martinenga Riserva was impossible to judge. Jeff opened a brand new bottle for us and it was very closed at the beginning, begging for more time to open up. Alas time was the asset we were desperately running out of (we still had to make a trip back to Barolo on a Vespa!). This is the wine we will be looking forward to coming back to next time around. It holds a great promise.