Cascina Zerbetta

Monferrato, Piemonte, Italy

Cascina Zerbetta is a small estate located in Monferrato in a beautiful corner of Piemonte. It is a one-man operation run by Paolo Malfatti, a humble, wise and gentle farmer who has been quietly making stunning wines since 2013. 

Paolo studied agriculture at university and ended up working for various wineries in Barolo, Lombardia, and Tuscany before settling near Quargnento where he is now based. He farms a total of seven hectares, three of which are vines, and the rest are organic hazelnuts which he sells locally to various shops and companies. He has been farming organically since he first planted vines in 1997, and his wine production has always shared the same values: hands-off, the use of only natural yeasts and little to no sulphur additions. 

His focus has always been on Barbera, and his flagship wine is his yearly ‘La Zerbetta’ Barbera del Monferrato. Additionally he farms 1 hectare of Sauvignon Blanc from which he makes a natural sparkling, a still wine, and a late harvest passito when conditions allow. In recent years Paolo has started experimenting with plantings of more local and rarer varieties, something we look forward to hopefully introducing soon.

 

The estate sits on proper Terra Rossa - a heavy, rich red clay with fantastic water retention, which happens to give the grapes some serious concentration. In comparison with nearby regions Alba and Asti, Monferrato tends to produce higher concentrations in Barbera, and in some instances longer-lived wines. 

The estate is part of a very old two-house farm - the main unit (his neighbour) was called La Zerba (meaning 'wild' in the local dialect), whilst his, the smaller of the two, was hence named by Paolo as La Zerbetta.