The Marrone family has been cultivating the hills of La Morra, in the heart of the Langhe, with passion and dedication for over a century. Its history is a combination of tradition and innovation, of tenacity and ambition.
A love of the land, dedication to hard work and the constant search for quality are the values that have guided four generations of this family of winemakers, custodians of a precious heritage that is renewed year after year. A winery projected into the future: a future built on solid, deeply entrenched roots.
The origins
It all began in 1887 with Pietro Marrone, a young farmer with a dream: to grow the finest grapes in the country. His ambition drove him to experiment with new cultivation techniques, defying customs and certainties. Acting on nothing more than a hunch – which turned out to be really lucky – he decided to reduce the amount of fruit produced by his vines, in the hope that this would correspond to an improvement in the quality of the grapes.
With the same aim, he also decided to avoid sowing wheat between the rows of vines, which was a very common practice at the time. With his audacity and intuition, Pietro actually pre-empted certain techniques and strategies typical of modern vineyards: his grapes soon did become the finest in the country, and all the family vineyards began to be progressively cultivated in this way.
The second generation
Pietro’s son, Carlo, inherited his father’s passion and contributed to the expansion of the business, both in terms of area and quality. His wines, some of which Pietro himself described as “Pichemej” (“more than the best” in Piedmontese dialect), captivated the palates of connoisseurs. The farm quickly became renowned for its prestige in the area, coming to be known by everyone as “Cascina Carlot”, meaning Carlo’s farm. With the advent of the Second World War, the young man was forced to leave the fields and his family for a while: obviously the business was also affected, suffering a sudden setback.
After returning from the front, Carlo was faced with a seriously uncertain scenario: hunger, poverty and progressive depopulation. Despite the fact that the conditions seemed to suggest otherwise, he resumed his work in the vineyard and cellar with strength and conviction, determined not to abandon his land and his dream. He was truly convinced that one day the wine he produced, Barolo, would obtain the recognition it deserved.
The third generation
Gian Piero was born in 1955. Fuelled by the same tenacity and passion as his father and grandfather right from the start, he devoted his time to working in the vineyard and producing exquisite wines, with a growing desire to export them abroad, making them known to the whole world. He decided to expand the range of wines produced on the estate and planted new native white grapes: Arneis, Favorita and Moscato joined the rows of Barbera, Dolcetto, Nebbiolo and Nebbiolo for Barbaresco and Barolo. Supported and spurred on by his wife Giovanna, the beating heart of the business, Gian Piero succeeded in taking the family business to new levels, never reached before. The birth of his three daughters, Denise, Serena and Valentina, began a new chapter in the family’s story.
The fourth generation
It is impossible to think of Agricola Marrone without seeing the smiling faces of Denise, Serena and Valentina. Today, over a century after the dawn of this great adventure, the three sisters devote themselves heart, body and soul to the family business, with their eyes firmly focused on the future, without forgetting their roots.
Valentina is the family oenologist: every day she pursues the highest quality, with passion and tenacity. Serena is in charge of administration and export markets; she is the heart of the entire company organisation. Denise is responsible for hospitality at the winery and for the German export market. Assisted by her tireless mother Giovanna, she also takes care of the management and organisation of the winery’s kitchen: a unique place where the family’s wines meet and merge with the timeless flavours of Piedmontese tradition.
Agricola Marrone: a winery projected into the future without forgetting its roots
A love of the land, dedication to hard work and the constant search for quality are the values that have guided four generations of this family. Agricola Marrone is a place just waiting to be discovered, a unique experience for wine lovers and those who enjoy authentic experiences. At this winery you will find a solid family with a great story to tell, excellent products, the result of careful and painstaking research, and genuine and welcoming people, capable of drawing you into their world with sincere and authentic passion. A world built with perseverance and passion spanning four generations.