To the great dismay of his father, Elio Altare turned his back on many traditions in Barolo.

From green harvesting to reduce yields, to aging his wines in French barriques in lieu of the classic botti, every tradition was questioned in the spirit of innovation, with the ultimate goal to raise the quality of the region’s wines. With the adoption of many of these new winemaking techniques, Elio Altare quickly became known as the leader of the “modernist” movement. Alongside Angelo Gaja, this coterie of winemakers dared to be different and by doing so, helped raise the standard of quality throughout the region.

Altare’s estate is located in the Barolo commune of La Morra, famous for producing wines of finesse and elegance. For much of the estates’s history, wines were made uniquely from grapes grown in this commune. More recently, grapes from select parcels in Saralunga and Castiglione Falletto have been introduced into the mix.

Constant innovation has remained the axiom at the Altare family estate which is now run with the same degree of enthusiasm and innovation by Elio’s daughter, Silvia. Wether it’s doing two completely different types of vinification for the same parcel as in the Barolo “Arborina” and Langhe “Arborina,” or de-stemming bunches by hand for an experimental micro-cuvée, the goal remains to keep pushing forward and raising the bar, and to show that tradition and innovation are not mutually exclusive.