G.D. Vajra, Barolo, Piedmont, Italy
Bricco delle Viole
G.D. Vajra, Barolo, Piedmont, Italy
G.D. Vajra is a tale of youthful rebellion and agrarian passion. In the tumultuous year of 1968, young Aldo Vaira, aged 15, found himself banished to his grandparents’ homestead in Barolo after getting mixed up in political riots. It wasn’t long before Aldo channelled his fervour into viticulture, and he swiftly took over the running of thefamily vineyards in località Vergne, 3 km from the centre of Barolo.
G.D. Vajra’s pioneering ethos was manifested when G.D. Vajra became the first winery in Barolo to embraceorganic viticulture in 1972, and again in 1985, it was the first to plant Riesling.
Vajra has always championed Piedmont’s lesser valued indigenous varietals, such as Dolcetto, Barbera, and Freisa, and crafts three distinct single-vineyard Barolos, notably the esteemed Bricco delle Viole which sits at elevation of 480 meters, one of the highest in the commune of Barolo.
Today the estate is a family run entity steered by Aldo and his wife Milena together with their childrenGiuseppe, Francesca and Isidoro, upholding its commitment to organic farming and the care of its old vines.
“Ours is a story of challenges, opportunity and growth,” explains Isidoro Vajra “We really love our work andrespect our land and the people who work with us. Each year we plant new vineyards as a sign of hope for those who come after us, so that one day they will enjoy our old vines. We have taken over an old Barberavineyard, but we are still reconstructing its history; we are also in negotiations for a Dolcetto vineyard that isabout 80-90 years old. We will see, I will update you later.”
The vineyards that reach 35 years and older were established before 1970-1975 through massal selection (thefirst massal selection in Piedmont was conducted on Dolcetto grapes, as they were the most significant varietyat the time). Isidoro believes that these ancient vines are a treasure to be conserved. “Their flavour isexceptional, and during challenging vintages, they yield the finest fruits,” says Isidoro.
D.G. Vajra is currently collaborating with Dr Anna Schneider and Dr Stefano Raimondi, both recognisedauthorities working together in Italian and international ampelography: researcher at CNR, Institute forSustainable Plant Protection, to catalogue all the vine populations and to identify those with distinctivecharacteristics or qualities. They have already created an ampelographic collection of grape varieties fromPiedmont that have been abandoned by farmers. Furthermore, their research aims to find vines that areresistant to diseases such as Flavescence Dorée and Esca and have already made some promising observationsin this area.
