Why it matters
The producer
Marenco makes a specific argument about southeastern Piemonte: that Strevi, a quiet village between the Tanaro and the hills of Monferrato, is one of the best places in the region to grow Brachetto and Moscato. The estate began there in 1925, when Michele Marenco farmed a vineyard in Strevi's Bagnario Valley. A century later, three sisters run the winery from the same valley.
Michela, Patrizia and Doretta Marenco are Giuseppe's daughters. Patrizia is the winemaker. Filippo Furlani manages the vineyards as agronomist, and Giovanni and Andrea Costa work alongside the family in production and management. All wines come from the estate's own parcels and are vinified and bottled at the cellar in Strevi.
Place and vineyards
Where the wines begin
Strevi sits in the southeastern corner of Piemonte, inside the broader Acqui Terme zone. It is the geographic centre of Marenco's work and the source of the estate's two DOCG wines. Brachetto d'Acqui DOCG covers the red sparkling wines made from Brachetto grown in this part of the Monferrato hills; Moscato d'Asti DOCG covers the frizzante sweet white made from Moscato grown further northwest, toward Asti and Canelli, with Strevi and Cassine at the southernmost edge of that appellation.
Both appellations share a climate shaped by Mediterranean warmth funnelling up the Tanaro valley and cooled by the Ligurian Apennines to the south. That combination supports long, warm autumns without excessive heat, which suits both Brachetto and Moscato: the grapes reach aromatic ripeness while holding natural acidity, and harvest in early September keeps alcohol low.
In the cellar
Vineyards and cellar
All Marenco vineyards are farmed under sustainable agriculture principles. Permanent ground cover between rows, green manure, periods of soil rest, and biodegradable treatments are used in vineyard management. Vineyard rows are oriented horizontally across slopes to slow water runoff and reduce erosion. Weather stations placed across the estate allow the team to track conditions and time operations accurately.
In the cellar, Pineto shows the estate's technical approach most clearly. After manual harvest in early September, Brachetto grapes are destemmed and left to macerate on their skins for two to three days. This short maceration extracts colour. Fermentation then takes place in temperature-controlled pressurised tanks. When alcohol reaches 5%, the process is stopped by filtration: the remaining grape sugar becomes the wine's sweetness, and the trapped carbon dioxide becomes its delicate sparkle. No sugar is added at any stage.
Wines to know
The range in view
Marenco's range divides into two zones and three grape types.
From Strevi and Cassine, Brachetto d'Acqui DOCG and Moscato d'Asti DOCG are the foundation. Brachetto d'Acqui is a lightly sparkling sweet red wine made from Brachetto. Moscato d'Asti is a frizzante sweet white from Moscato grapes, typically showing peach, apricot and orange blossom with bright, mouth-watering acidity that prevents the sweetness from feeling heavy. Both wines finish at low alcohol, around 5 to 5.5%, because fermentation is arrested before it completes.
A useful way in
A bottle to begin with
Start with Pineto Brachetto d'Acqui DOCG. It is 100% Brachetto from the single Pineto vineyard, southeast-facing, on sandy limestone, harvested by hand in early September. The colour is a deep rose-pink from two to three days of skin maceration. The nose shows rose and raspberry aromas. In the mouth it is sweet, delicate and sparkling. The 5% alcohol is not a compromise: it is the point at which the winemaker stops fermentation by filtration so that grape sugar, rather than added sweetness, becomes the wine's character. This is what Brachetto d'Acqui tastes like when it is made from one parcel, without shortcuts.