Nizza

Styles

Principal grape varieties

Terroir

• The production area encompasses 18 communes in the Province of Asti, adjacent to the commune of Nizza, a traditional zone of excellence for the cultivation of the Barbera variety.
• The hill system is of modest elevation, ranging between 150 and 400 metres above sea level, with a temperate climate, light winds, and mean annual rainfall of around 700 mm.
• The soils are predominantly calcareous, of medium depth, and rest on calcareous-arenaceous marly bedrock matrices belonging to the Pliocene basin of Asti.
• The soils display a high calcium carbonate content, with generally low organic matter and nutrients present in moderate but ideally balanced quantities.
• Hilltops and north-facing slopes with gradients not exceeding 8%, lying between −45° and +45°, may also be registered as vineyard land. (via Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0)

• The vine is trained using the traditional girapoggio system, in a vertical-shoot-positioned trellis with Guyot pruning or occasionally spur-cordon pruning, and producers forgo the practice of enrichment.

• Wines from soils with clayey-sandy marls show greater colour intensity and deeper hue, medium-to-high pH, more restrained acidity, and very intense aromas, including earthy notes.
• Wines from zones with predominantly sandy soils display more pronounced average acidity, lower colour intensity, and fine, elegant aromas with balsamic and aromatic-herb nuances, and a harmonious structure.

• The hillside aspect of the vineyards, chosen to capture solar radiation as effectively as possible, promotes grape ripening by increasing the concentration of sugars and polyphenolic compounds.
• The wide diurnal temperature ranges, combined with the low yields per hectare achieved through Guyot pruning and bunch thinning, allow the Barbera grape to ripen in an optimal manner.

Facts drawn from the specification's terroir-link section by automatic interpretation — see the source.

All appellations in Italy

Sources

• Specification (EUR-Lex, single document)
• eAmbrosia register (EU) — File number PDO-IT-01896
• Official trade body site — Consorzio Barbera d'Asti e Vini del Monferrato