Pico Maccario is based in Mombaruzzo, in Monferrato, and was founded by the brothers Pico and Vitaliano Maccario. The estate works in two areas. In Monferrato the main grapes are Barbera, Viognier, Sauvignon Blanc, Cortese and Moscato d'Asti. In the Langhe it's Nebbiolo, grown in the communes of Neive, Serralunga d'Alba and Barolo.
The two areas have different soils. Monferrato has clay and medium-textured soil, which the winery says gives balanced wines with plenty of variety. The Langhe soils date to the Miocene, and the winery credits them with the elegance of its Nebbiolo. Among the Barolo vineyards is Cannubi, a cru the winery describes as Italy's oldest, dating to 1752.
Wines are aged in steel, large oak cask, tonneau or barrique, depending on the wine. The vineyards are easy to spot by the coloured pali matita, the pencil-shaped posts at the ends of the rows. The winery's Matita gift box takes its shape from them.
Not tasted yet
I haven't reviewed a wine from Pico Maccario yet. They're on my Top 100 list, which is built from awards.