Roero · Winery · Curated profile

Rabino

Rabino

Rabino is a family farm in Località Rabini, outside Canale in the Roero, where Luigi Rabino is handing the cellar to his son Paolo. The family says it has farmed these hills since the Middle Ages, and Antonio Rabino began bottling wine in the mid-1800s. Vines are one part of a mixed property of about 100 hectares: 25 hectares of vineyard, all owned and within 4 km of the cellar between Canale, Cisterna and San Damiano, alongside hazelnut and apricot orchards, pasture, woodland and roughly 220 Piemontese cattle whose manure feeds the land. Weeding was dropped eight years ago, and the farm calls itself eco-sustainable though not certified organic. About 50,000 bottles a year are split across many single varieties, from Arneis and Favorita to Nebbiolo, Barbera, Freisa and Grignolino, plus a Nebbiolo Chinato. Canale sits on the left bank of the Tanaro, north of Alba, on sandy Roero soils.

At a glance

Region
Roero, Piemonte, Italy
Address
Località Rabini, 102, 12043 Canale (CN)
Winemaker
Paolo Rabino
Tours
Available
Tastings
Available
Wines listed
18
Website
https://rabinoluigi.com/

Visits & tastings

A Rabino family member hosts every visit at the farm in Canale and builds the walk around what guests want to see. Payment is taken in advance.

Tastings

  • Classic tasting · 4 wines · estate hazelnuts and jam, cured meats and cheeses · €15 per person
  • Gourmet tasting · 4 wines · 12 Fassona beef sushi uramaki per person · min. 4 people · €20 per person

Tours

  • Estate visit · vineyard viewpoint, cattle stable, winemaking rooms, 18th-century cellar · ends with a tasting

Good to know

  • Book by form or phone; slots at 11:00, 14:30 and 16:30
  • Closed Easter, Easter Monday, 15 Aug, Christmas and New Year
  • Italian, English, French; German on request
  • Groups up to 25; parking for campers and coaches
  • Dogs welcome if gentle with other animals

Contact

Wines from Rabino

  • Barbera d'Alba: Barbera d'Alba DOC, Barbera 100%, Red. Barbera d'Alba DOC from 100% Barbera, aged 18 months in large French oak barrels, 12.5% alcohol. About 3,000 bottles are made; ageing potential 7 years.
  • Birbet: Mosto d'uva parzialmente fermentato, Brachetto 100%, Sweet. A lightly sparkling sweet red from 100% Brachetto grown on the sandy Bric Tupin hill, 6.5% alcohol with 70 g/l residual sugar. About 3,000 bottles are made; ageing potential 1 year.
  • Cavajè: Vino Spumante Brut, Arneis 100%, Sparkling. A Brut sparkling wine from 100% Arneis, made in autoclave; the estate has made an Arneis spumante since 1979. 12.5% alcohol, about 6,000 bottles.
  • Complici: Vino Rosato, Arneis 70%, Barbera 30%, Rosé. A rosé blended from 70% Arneis and 30% Barbera with a brief maceration, fermented and aged in steel. 13% alcohol, about 2,000 bottles; ageing potential 1 year.
  • Furbet: Mosto d'uva parzialmente fermentato, Arneis 100%, Sweet. A lightly sparkling sweet white from 100% Arneis, 6.5% alcohol with 70 g/l residual sugar. About 2,000 bottles are made; ageing potential 1 year.
  • Gioca: Roero Arneis DOCG, Arneis 100%, White. Roero Arneis DOCG from 100% Arneis planted in 2011, a selection of the estate's best grapes with batonnage on the lees. 13.5% alcohol, about 2,500 bottles; ageing potential 2 to 3 years.
  • La Ciapa: Barbera d'Alba Superiore DOC, Barbera 100%, Red. A selection of Barbera d'Alba Superiore first made from the 2017 harvest, grown on the south-east slope of the Gran Madre hill in Canale. 14% alcohol, about 2,600 bottles; ageing potential 10 years.
  • Langhe Chardonnay: Langhe DOC Chardonnay, Chardonnay 100%, White. Langhe Chardonnay DOC from 100% Chardonnay planted in 1993, fermented in steel. 13% alcohol, about 2,500 bottles; ageing potential 2 to 3 years.
  • Langhe Dolcetto: Langhe DOC Dolcetto, Dolcetto 100%, Red. Langhe Dolcetto DOC from 100% Dolcetto planted in 1994, 12.5% alcohol. About 2,500 bottles are made; ageing potential 2 years.
  • Langhe Favorita: Langhe DOC Favorita, Favorita 100%, White. Langhe Favorita DOC from 100% Favorita grown on the Ca' di Carli hill, 13% alcohol. About 2,000 bottles are made; best within about a year.
  • Langhe Freisa: Langhe DOC Freisa, Freisa 100%, Red. Langhe Freisa DOC from 100% Freisa, 12.5% alcohol. About 1,500 bottles are made; ageing potential 3 years.
  • Langhe Nebbiolo: Langhe DOC Nebbiolo, Nebbiolo 100%, Red. Langhe Nebbiolo DOC from 100% Nebbiolo planted in 1982, kept in steel. 13% alcohol, about 3,000 bottles; ageing potential 8 years.
  • Piemonte Barbera: Piemonte DOC Barbera, Barbera 100%, Red. Piemonte Barbera DOC from 100% Barbera, 12.5% alcohol. About 2,000 bottles are made; ageing potential 2 to 3 years.
  • Piemonte Bonarda: Piemonte DOC Bonarda, Bonarda 100%, Red. Piemonte Bonarda DOC from 100% Bonarda, a variety the family says came from the hills near Turin in the early 1800s. 12.5% alcohol, about 2,500 bottles; ageing potential 2 years.
  • Piemonte Grignolino: Piemonte DOC Grignolino, Grignolino 100%, Red. Piemonte Grignolino DOC from 100% Grignolino, grown on land in the province of Asti. 12.5% alcohol, about 1,500 bottles; ageing potential 2 years.
  • Roero: Roero DOCG, Nebbiolo 100%, Red. Roero DOCG from 100% Nebbiolo planted in 1979 on sandy-clay soil with south-west exposure, aged 24 months in large French oak barrels. 13% alcohol, about 2,000 bottles; ageing potential 10 years.
  • Roero Arneis: Roero Arneis DOCG, Arneis 100%, White. Roero Arneis DOCG from 100% Arneis planted in 1990, fermented in steel. 13.5% alcohol, about 3,000 bottles; ageing potential 2 to 3 years.
  • Vino Chinato: Vino Chinato, Nebbiolo 100%, Fortified. A Nebbiolo-based aromatised wine infused with herbs and calisaya cinchona bark, 16.5% alcohol with 30 g/l residual sugar. About 1,000 bottles are made; ageing potential 6 years.