Pietro Stara è autore del libro “Il discorso del vino” (ZIC Milano, 2013), con cui ha vinto, nel 2015, il premio per la saggistica edita del Centro Pavesiano – CEPAM e del libro “Il vino e la storia” (Sabatelli editore, Savona 2025). La sua ricerca si concentra sul mondo del vino, esplorando temi legati alla sua storia, alla viticoltura e all’enologia. Collabora con diverse testate giornalistiche, sia online che cartacee, approfondendo le tematiche relative al settore. Oltre al suo impegno nel giornalismo, insegna antropologia culturale e sociologia dei consumi, come docente a contratto, presso l’Università di Scienze Gastronomiche di Pollenzo.

Pietro Stara

Pietro Stara, autore di "Il discorso del vino" e "Il vino e la storia". Scrittore ed esperto che esplora cultura, storia e filosofia del vino.

Pietro Stara - Autore | Il discorso del vino, Il vino e la

The history of grignolino: roots and legacy of a great Piedmontese grape Dive into the enigmatic world of grignolino with this compelling historical investigation by renowned researcher Pietro Stara. Using an "evidential paradigm"—a detective-like approach—Stara uncovers the mysteries and complex identities of a grape variety that has shaped Piedmontese viticulture, yet whose history has often been overlooked. A historical enigma unfolds The journey begins in the 13th century (1249), tracing the grape’s earliest footsteps back to the monks of Sant’Evasio in Casale Monferrato. At the time, it was known as "Berbesino" or "Barbesino". It wasn’t until a 1614 inventory of the Casale Castle that the name "grignolino" finally appeared in official records. Key highlights of the research: The identity quest: discover how 19th-century ampelographers like Demaria, Leardi, and the traveler Giorgio Gallesio solved the puzzle of its many synonyms, confirming that the "barbesino" of Alessandria and the "grignolino" of Asti were, in fact, the same soul. The etymological debate: the book tackles the fierce disputes linking grignolino to barbera, debunking myths through the rigorous historical analysis of scholars like Senator Desana and Dalmasso. A sparkling past: in a surprising revelation, the text explores grignolino’s role as a pioneer of Italian sparkling wine. Long before its current still-wine reputation, it was crafted using the Méthode Champenoise, winning prestigious awards and ranking as a top choice for spumante production as late as 1924. The white mystery: the investigation even touches upon the elusive "white grignolino," a rare variety mentioned in historical texts and immortalized in the famous 1858 wax fruit models by Francesco Garnier Valletti.

1. History, mathematics and abduction

2. The nineteenth-century ampelographies and Grignolino, or Barbesino

3. Grignolino - TABLE XXI

4. Giorgio Gallesio. The travel journals

5. The nineteenth and twentieth centuries

6. Aldo di Ricaldone and the erroneous attribution of barbesine grapes to ancient Barbera

7. Desana and the refutation of the theses proposed by Father Coppo and then by Giovanni Aldo di Ricaldone

8. A viticultural sub-lexicon

9. A white barbesino or a white Grignolino?

10. Grignolino and the traditional method

11. Documentary appendix

12. Bibliography

PAPERBACK VERSION - Paperback

PAPERBACK VERSION - Hardcover

The nineteenth-century ampelographies and Grignolino, or Barbesino In the 19th century¹, modern ampelography was born thanks to the studies of botanists and vine specialists. The first to give a scientific imprint to this discipline was Count Alexandre-Pierre Odart (1786–1866), with the publication of (1845). In Italy, during the same period, three scholars distinguished themselves in the field: Count Giuseppe di Rovasenda (1824–1913), author of (1877), Marquis Leopoldo Incisa della Rocchetta (1793–1871) and Baron Antonio Mendola di Favara (1828–1896). Essai d'Ampélographie Saggio di un'Ampelografia Universale Previously, in a document of extraordinary importance, the farmer Allisio provided a precious list of old and new plantings that His Excellency, Marquis Filippo Asinari di San Marzano (1753–1828), wants to be made along the new road of the vineyard from Luz : the marquis had contributed as many as 78 varieties of vines, which were then catalogued in the « » including documents relating to the shipment of seedlings and indexes of the vine species present in my vineyards³. 2 Notes and records of foreign vine plantings in my possession ¹ Cf. Giuliana Gay Synard (Giovanni Valmasso Foundation), Vittorino Novello, Giacomo Iacurti (University of Turin), Ferdinando Viglione-Cossalino (Painter), , at — G. Licandro, A. Barbato, , Informatore Botanico Italiano, 47 (1) 38-33, 2015 38 at Le Collezioni Ampelografiche in immagini https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/3383139479.pdf Su un erbario ampelografico della seconda metà dell'800 conservato presso l'Archivio Storico di Moncalvo (Asti) https://www.societabotanicaitaliana.it/SBI/IBI-2015-47(1)-2015/038-033-Licandro-Barbato-Erbario-ampelografico-presso-l'Archivio-Storico-di-Moncalvo-(Asti).pdf Giuseppe Aldo di Ricaldone, , Municipality of Costigliole d'Asti, Grafica Monferrina, 1983, pp. 113–114 2 Il marchese Filippo Asinari di San Marzano (1753–1828) viticultore a Costigliole d'Asti Native grapes. Red: Nebbiolo grande, Nebbiolo piccolo, Nebbiolo rosato, Grignolino, Barbera, Malvasia nera, Moscato nero, Passaretta nera, Neretti grandi, Neretti piccoli, Bonarda, Caro, Freisa, Lambrosca, Rossetti, Barbarossa, Barbarossa moscato. White grapes: Moscato grande, Moscato piccolo, Malvasia, Passaretta, Legnenga, Cotese, Erbalus, Nostrale. Foreign grapes: Red: Aleatico Tuscan, Brachetto di Nizza, Hermitage Côtes du Rhène, Chambertin, Romanée, Chassagne from Burgundy, Alicante Fondigliol, Alicante Tinto, Aleglie Catalonia, Garnacho Catalonia. Foreign grapes. White: Moscato Saint Laurent, Nizza, Hermitage Côtes du Rhène, Montrachet Burgundy; Xeres Spain, Malvasia Siges Catalonia, Chadalvuás Catalonia, Malvasia di Frontignan, Málaga Moscato, Málaga Pedro Ximénez, Grapes for dessert from Catalonia. 3

Roots and Evidence of a Great Piedmontese Grape Variety - The History of Grignolino