Alto Piemonte: a buried volcano and an old sea
Twenty kilometres west to east, from the sea sands of Lessona over the Bramaterra porphyry, across the Sesia, to the Sizzano ridge. Tap a layer to read it.
Swipe the plate sideways to see the whole section.
Schematic, with strong vertical exaggeration: these are low hills. The contact between the Pliocene sands and the Permian volcanic rock is simplified, and the porphyry surfaces mostly north of this line, around Villa del Bosco, Roasio and Sostegno. Brusnengo is 1 km and Villa del Bosco 4 km north of the line. The Sizzano subsoil follows the grower's description (porphyry, schist and pebbles) and the published moraine ridge. Check against the Regione Piemonte geological sheets and the Sesia Val Grande Geopark maps.
6 layers, youngest at the top
Why Alto Piemonte Nebbiolo is lean and long
- Both rocks, volcanic sand and sea sand, are acid and poor, so vigour stays low.
- The wines are taut and slow to open, and want time in bottle.
- Close to the Alps and Monte Rosa, the season is cooler and later than in the Langhe.
- Vespolina and Croatina in the blend add spice and colour where Nebbiolo alone would be thin.
Did you knowThe Sesia caldera is one of the few places on Earth where a supervolcano's whole plumbing, from the surface down to about 25 km, can be walked: the Alps tilted the crust on its side.
Pas Mal wines on this ground
Lessona: sea sands
- Lessona — Nebbiolo, VespolinaTenute Sella
Bramaterra: volcanic porphyry
- Bramaterra — Nebbiolo, Vespolina, CroatinaTenute Sella
Sella whites: porphyry and sea sand at Brusnengo and Villa del Bosco
- Doranda — ErbaluceTenute Sella
- Piemonte Bianco Piandoro — RieslingTenute Sella
Sizzano: the moraine ridge
- Colline Sizzano — Nebbiolo, Vespolina, Uva RaraFratelli Negri Viticoltori
- Uva RaraFratelli Negri Viticoltori
Sources: Sesia Val Grande UNESCO Geopark; Quick et al., Geology 2009, on the Permian Sesia caldera; Gambero Rosso and Liberty Wines on Lessona sands; winewithseth.com on Sizzano and Alto Piemonte; Tenute Sella and Fratelli Negri grower data; AWS Terrain Tiles.