Colombera & Garella

Nebbiolo—not from Barolo, but from the alpine regions of Piedmont. Carlo Colombera laid the foundation for his winery in 1992, when he, weary of working in the rice fields of Vercelli, decided to buy a run-down old farmhouse and two hectares of vineyards and become a winemaker. Since then, his son Giacomo and partner Cristiano Garella have taken over, continuing Carlo’s pioneering work with increasingly exciting and elegant wines.

IN THE SHADOW OF THE ALPS

The 8 hectares of vineyards farmed by Carlo Colombera, his son Giacomo, and Cristiano Garella lie within the three DOC appellations of Bramaterra, Lessona, and Coste della Sesia—ancient winegrowing regions in northern Piedmont. Wine has been documented here since the 14th century, and it's likely that Nebbiolo, the region's defining grape variety to this day, already played a role back then.

Carlo Colombera laid the foundation for the winery in 1992, when he decided to leave behind his job in the rice fields of Vercelli and buy a dilapidated farmhouse and a couple of hectares of vines to become a winemaker. At the same time, he gained experience working for Ottilio Antoniolo—then considered the best grower in the area—mostly as a tractor driver. After some private winemaking experiments, Carlo bottled his first vintage of Bramaterra in 2001 and gradually acquired additional small plots in the surrounding area. During these years, he produced earthy, honest, and rustic wines that reflected his personality—though they sometimes lacked finesse and elegance.

GIACOMO & CRISTIANO

That changed in 2010 when Giacomo joined the winery after completing his oenology studies, together with his partner Cristiano Garella. Giacomo took the lead in the cellar, while Carlo focused more on the vineyards.

The two brought fresh energy and a clear vision to the project. They began harvesting earlier, fermenting spontaneously, shortening maceration times, minimizing pump-overs, carefully selecting aging vessels, doing away with filtration, and leaning more heavily into the factor of time. Their declared aim was to let the origin speak—to capture the coolness of this Alpine-shadowed zone and to express the distinctive geological conditions: sandy, iron-rich soils with extremely low pH levels in Bramaterra and Lessona, and porphyry-based soils in Coste della Sesia.

Already in their first vintage (2011), they admirably fulfilled their goals. Their growing experience and deepening understanding of their terroir have led to increasingly precise and impressive wines with each passing year.

They vinify the traditional varieties of the three zones, with Nebbiolo always playing the lead role (about 70%), supported by Vespolina and Croatina. Each DOC receives its own dedicated interpretation, and recently, they’ve added an outstanding single-varietal Vespolina to their lineup.