Ep 182: Marina Marcarino of Punset, Organic Winemaking Pioneer of Barbaresco

Wine for Normal People - A podcast by Elizabeth Schneider

Categories:

Arts

Continuing the Women's History Month winemaker series, I speak with Marina Marcarino of Punset in Barbaresco, Italy. She is one of Italy's most respected and influential female winemakers. In the late 1980's, she ignored the norm and converted her family’s estate into a 100% certified organic vineyard. She is a kind, smart, savvy woman in wine and I learned so much from her about Barbaresco and organic farming -- you will too!

Here are the show notes:

  • We discuss Marina's childhood in Piemonte, the town of Alba and what it's really known for (hint: NUTELLA!) and why being a "bad baby" led her on a path to making organic wine.
  • It's Women's History Month so we spend some time discussing her experiences as a woman in the wine industry and what it's like to raise a child and be a winemaker.
  • We learn all about Barbaresco -- the difference with Barolo, the unique geographic features -- the Tanaro River, the consistent breezes, the differences between the diverse winemaking areas, and why the wines are so consistently good.
  • We pivot to discuss farming and Marina's passion for organics. We discuss her philosophies, why she must do organic farming (or else no farming at all!) and why, despite being called "The Crazy", she has persevered and now has others following her lead.
  • We tackle the importance of certification in organics and the difference between certifying a practice (organic) and a philosophy (biodynamic).
  • Finally we discuss winemaking and Marina's goals to make her beautiful, wonderful wine. Marina gives advice to future female winemakers and we agree to meet in Italy someday soon (I love this lady!)!

Here's where you can find the outstanding Punset wines in the US, Canada, and UK markets (use wine-searcher.com to see if it's available near you, if you live outside these countries):

The US: http://www.wine-searcher.com/find/punset/1/usa 
Canada: http://www.wine-searcher.com/find/punset/1/canada 
The UK: http://www.bbr.com/producer-2695-punset-piedmont

 

And thanks to The Great Courses for sponsoring this episode. Get your free trial subscription at https://www.thegreatcoursesplus.com/wine