This historic family-owned estate is named after its founder Cesare Pio, who established the business in 1881. The winery is based in Alba, in the heart of Piemonte and is now run by Federica Boffa and Cesare Benvenuto, the fifth generation of the family. Pio Cesare developed Barolo’s reputation overseas in the 1950s by being one of the first producers to export the wine to the UK. The founder’s great grandson Pio Boffa was deeply convinced of the importance of cultivating and growing owned land to produce high quality wines and played a key role in the acquisition of vineyards in the same locations where Cesare Pio used to buy his grapes from. Today Pio Cesare owns 70 hectares in the hills of Barolo and Barbaresco and makes wines in a style that manages to balance the best of the old with the best of the new. The estate includes most of the municipalities in the Barolo and Barbaresco areas.
In addition to absinth which is essential for the preparation of the Vermouth, Pio Cesare uses a mixture of 26 aromatic herbs such as marjoram leaves, gentian roots, orange zest and others, which all together compose the family recipe. A blend of different Pio Cesare white wines, including our Moscato d’Asti, are then added. After a 15-day maceration, the Vermouth is aged in oak barrels for at least four months. The recipe is finally completed with the addition of burned sugar, which gives the Vermouth its light color, and its distinctive aroma and taste.
In order to better appreciate Pio Cesare Vermouth, the winery recommends drinking it in the old “piemontese style”, sipping it with no ice, but just a little slice of lemon zest.
“Chardonnay, Moscato Bianco macerated with more than 25 botanicals and sweetened with burnt sugar. Candied orange, cinnamon, and vanilla redolent of panettone; balsamic tarragon and polished wood nuances.” – Michaela Morris
Decanter: 95 POINTS
January 1, 2018, Michaela Morris
“Chardonnay, Moscato Bianco macerated with more than 25 botanicals and sweetened with burnt sugar. Candied orange, cinnamon, and vanilla redolent of panettone; balsamic tarragon and polished wood nuances.”
Piemonte, Italy
Chardonnay
Moscato Bianco
16%
Yes
Yes
