The Roero tells its story through soils and Nebbiolo: Rotaria

Rotaria: A cultural platform that starts from geological roots and arrives in the glass

On November 24 in Pollenzo, at the Agenzia di Pollenzo—neo-Gothic architectural complex, once a Savoyard (the Italian Royal family) farm and today home to the University of Gastronomic Sciences, the Banca del Vino, and the Albergo dell’Agenzia—Rotaria was presented, an enocultural collective that brings together eighteen producers from the Roero. (Memberships could have been more numerous, but for this first edition it was decided to limit the group to a representative core.) The initiative is entirely self-financed. Not a traditional association, but a family of “Rotari,” as the promoters defined it: a group that chooses to tell the territory through shared storytelling, avoiding rankings and scores, and placing at the center the complexity of the soils and the interpretation of Nebbiolo.

ROTARIA WEBSITE

Rock formations as the key to interpretation

After a brief introduction by Nicola Pasquero (Hilberg Pasquero winery), the opening section was entrusted to Edmondo Bonelli, oenotechnician and Doctor of natural sciences, environmental consultant for agriculture. Bonelli contributed to the writing of the volume “Geologia e Turismo nelle Langhe” for Meridiani Società Scientifica and to the creation of the geoviticultural map of Barolo alongside Alessandro Masnaghetti. His presentation was a long and necessary geological introduction: a journey that starts from the Messinian (7 million years ago, Sant’Agata marls) up to the Astian sands of the Piacenzian, passing through gypsum banks, blue clays, and fluvial deposits. Bonelli recalled how the ‘capture’ of the Tanaro River, around 60,000 years ago altered the river’s course for some 40 km and, with it, the landscape of the Roero, emphasizing how the Rocche generate the shape of the territory and become filters for reading the surrounding environment.

Bonelli explained and showed how geology is not a technical detail, but a determining factor: how calcium carbonate and gypsum (regulate water absorption and minerality), marine and fluvial deposits (give freshness and sapidity), blue clays (power, dense tannins, longevity) and silt (balance and regularity of ripening) influence grape maturation, the absorption of minerals and water by the plants and the entire annual cycle of the vine. Ultimately, each geological matrix becomes a filter for reading the landscape and the wine, directly influencing the annual cycle of the vine and the style of Roero Nebbiolo. 

Photo: the new Langhe & Roero soils map

Moreover, we must not forget that the Roero is a territory balanced between woods (about 40%), agriculture and mixed crops (about 40%), and specialized vineyards (about 15–20%), with local variations. This tripartition explains its landscape identity: a mosaic of nature, crops, and high-quality viticulture. In general, the Roero has greater biodiversity than the Barolo Langhe and retains a strong presence of woods, orchards, and mixed crops that favor a variety of flora and fauna.

Nebbiolo as the unifying theme

In 2023, prompted by Nicola Pasquero, the Roero territory was simplified into three macro-areas, identified through the study by Edmondo Bonelli and Gian Piero Romana, using as scientific and visual basis a portion of Alessandro Masnaghetti’s Geoviticola Langa e Roero map. The aim is to represent the three main reference zones of the Roero, which share similar characteristics from a geological and naturalistic point of view, offering an immediate reading of their different nuances and identities. The map thus becomes a tool for orientation and interpretation, useful for understanding the differences between soils, exposures, and landscapes that define the complexity and richness of this winegrowing territory. For the first appointment, Nebbiolo was chosen as the common denominator: the second most planted variety in the Roero, where Arneis remains dominant. Nebbiolo is considered one of the most sensitive and demanding grape varieties: it requires very specific conditions and small changes in soil, climate, or vineyard management can radically influence quality, as can the personal interpretation of producers, who add to the wine their own vision and personality of the territory.

The tasting

Photo: MW Wojciech Bońkowski by Nicola Barbato

Polish Master of Wine Wojciech Bońkowski— notably fluent in Italian—led the subsequent and complex comparative tasting of 18 samples, showing how different soils are reflected in the glass. The key of interpretation focused on fruit concentration, acidity, and structure of tannins, with variables linked to the vintage and harvest time, adapted to Bonelli’s reading of the soils and to the personal interpretation of each producer. The tasting was divided into four flights, based on the predominant soil matrix of the vineyards. Most of the wines were labeled Roero, three Nebbiolo d’Alba and one red wine.

Photo: all 18 wine tasted

Wines from sands (two flights, samples 1–9)

Sand – Elegance and finesse Composition: 70% sand – 20% silt – 10% clay Geological formations: Sabbie di Asti and Villafranchiano Complex (light calcareous sands of marine origin and red lagoon sands, ridge tops) 

Sandy soils generate more graceful, aromatic wines with fine, less drying tannins.

Aromatic profile: fresh red fruits (strawberry, raspberry, cherry, pomegranate), floral accents (poppy, cyclamen) and light vegetal or iodized nuances.

Tannic texture: fine, often vertical, rarely aggressive; contributes to a sense of smoothness. 

Acidity and freshness: present and juicy, sometimes with an almost sweet or saline trait that lightens the structure.

Overall style: slightly paler colors, towards pale ruby with a clear rim; immediate and aromatic wines, elegant and already open; less structure than marls and clays, but great ability to express drinkable lightness.

First flight: Manuele Priolo – Roero DOCG Anime Nere Vigneto Eroico 2021 Rabel – Vinorosso Acustico 2020 Alberto Oggero – Roero DOCG Anime 2021 Bajaj Adriano Moretti – Roero DOCG Bric Nota 2021 Giovanni Almondo – Roero DOCG Bric Valdiana 2021

Second flight: Cascina Chicco – Roero DOCG Riserva Valmaggiore 2021 Valfaccenda – Roero DOCG Riserva Valmaggiore 2022 Sandrone Luciano – Nebbiolo d’Alba DOC Valmaggiore 2021 Matteo Correggia – Roero DOCG Riserva La Val dei Preti 2021

Photo: all 18 wine tasted

Wines from clays (one flight, samples 10–14)

Clay – Composition: 30% sand – 40% silt – 30% clay Geological formations: Blue Clays (stratified marine deposits, gray-blue in color, composed mainly of silt with variable percentages of clay and sand)

Clays enhance intensity and power, without giving up finesse. 

Aromatic profile: riper red fruits (cherry, plum, marasca), balsamic and spicy notes.

Tannic texture: more grippy, persistent and dense, with greater horizontal grip than sands. 

Structure and intensity: rich and powerful wines, full-bodied, with great aging capacity.

Overall style: Clay gives rise to powerful expressions, with more intense color, rich aromatic profile, and dense tannins. Wines with great longevity, capable of evolving for a long time and forcefully narrating the character of the territory.

Samples tasted: Angelo Negro – Roero DOCG Riserva Ciabot San Giorgio 2021 Marco Porello – Roero DOCG Riserva San Michele 2021 Malvirà – Roero DOCG Riserva Renesio 2021 Cantina Cornarea – Roero DOCG Santa Margherita 2021 Deltetto 1953 – Roero DOCG Riserva Gorrini 2021

Wines from marls (samples 15–18)

Marl – Composition: 20% sand – 60% silt – 20% clay Geological formations: Sant’Agata Fossili marls, Vena del Gesso Formation, Conglomerates of Cassano Spinola (gray silty marls, gypsum layers and rare sandy levels)

Marls confer structure and depth, with a broad and balanced texture. 

Aromatic profile:  fresh ripe fruits (marasca cherry, raspberry), balsamic and talc-like, earthy accents. 

Tannic texture: dense, fine and complex, integrated horizontally and vertically, capable of supporting the structure with balance. 

Structure and complexity: multifaceted and layered wines, balanced among freshness, sapidity and depth.

Overall style: harmonious and complex expressions, elegant and solid, with a “classic” (Barolo‑like) and layered character. Marls provide structure and balance. Here Nebbiolo takes on greater depth, with spicy hints and an enveloping tannic texture, more decisive yet harmonious, yielding wines that combine complexity and versatility.

Samples tasted: Ghiomo – Nebbiolo d’Alba DOC Superiore Sansteu 2021 Cordero Gabriele – Roero DOCG 2021 Hilberg Pasquero – Nebbiolo d’Alba DOC Superiore Mon Suri 2021 Benotti Rosavica – Roero DOCG 2021

Photo:Tasting of Rotaria

Why Rotaria is relevant?

Because Rotaria brings together a heterogeneous collective of historic producers and new companies, where each brings their own voice but shares method and vision, and the project marks an important step for the Roero:

Geology as storytelling: soils become narrative and identity tools.

Nebbiolo as a common lens: a grape that reveals the nuances of the territory.

Community as ambassador: producers and professionals united in an independent observatory.

No barriers, no rankings! This why you will not find on the this article the Best of the tasting: this is all about Rotaria,                                                                                               
Rotaria was not just a tasting, but a cultural platform that intertwines geology, viticulture and productive sensibilities, transforming scientific complexity into accessible, contemporary language. It does not stop at offering wines to taste: it proposes a method for reading the territory, a shared observatory that unites historic producers and new generations. A name that aims to build bridges and not walls, with the sole objective of making our extraordinary territory known to all: rich in cultures, uncontaminated natural landscapes, and those agricultural and peasant traditions that have proudly written our History. If this first edition laid the foundations, the second— which Nicola Pasquero hopes will be scheduled biennially—will be the opportunity to expand the number of producers and also give space to Arneis (this would be my wish), the Roero’s identity grape that deserves to be told with the same depth as Nebbiolo.

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