Braida: Barbera and more

The Braida brand is a synonym of Barbera, in Italy and around the world. Yet Raffaella Bologna, daughter of Giacomo and enthusiastic soul of the family company explains how the production of white wines started. «I went up to my father, one day, and asked him if I could make a wine of my own. A white one though. He looked at me, showed me his arm and said: "Blood is red, and Barbera is flowing in these veins”. But then he didn’t know how to say no to his children...».

The idea was then to focus on Nascetta, a Piedmontese autochthonous grape variety that was disappearing: they first started to plant it in 1990. In 2008 Langhe Nascetta was acknowledged the Doc.

In particular, we’ll focus on two white wines by Braida: Fiore, made mostly with Chardonnay grapes and 30% Nascetta, which is more straightforward, easy to drink and very fresh, and Regina, Langhe Nascetta Doc which is certainly more complex and structured, with a pleasantly acid beginning and excellent longevity. They’re both ideal for this end-of-summer. And if a storm arrives to freshen up the air, you can always take a few nice bottles of Barbera from the cellar.

Because in the end, Braida is still a synonym of Barbera. The pride, of Barbera. «I remember 1986 – says Raffaella Bologna – The methanol scandal shook the entire nation. At the time, unsigned, a page on La Stampa appeared, it was a cry full of rage and pride, defending the Barbera grape variety and all the honest wine producers in Italy: "Viva la Barbera!" was what my father, Giacomo Bologna, had proudly written.

Moreover, the methanol scandal arrived in a key moment for the company. The latter was focusing with determination on an important Barbera after the great success of La Monella, «a young and lively Barbera with a fragrant bouquet. An intriguing and pleasant wine despite its significant body» is how Raffaella Bologna describes it.

Indeed, Bricco dell'Uccellone was launched right in 1985. This wine became an emblem of Braida. It made plenty of noise as it was a “different” Barbera (especially for the time), one full of depth.

And Raffaella Bologna ends: «We grew up with our motto: "Build a large, airy cellar and cheer it up with many beautiful bottles, some standing, some leaning. Bottles to watch with a friendly eye in the evening, in Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter, sniggering at the thought of the man without song and without sound, without women and without wine, who’s meant to live some ten years longer than you"». A cellar in which, we can imagine, can make space for a few nice bottles of Braida too.