FONTANAFREDDA

Fontanafredda was purchased by the first King of Italy, Vittorio Emanuele II, as a hunting retreat. On his death it was left to his firstborn, Count Emanuele Alberto di Mirafiori who, it seemed, was more interested in drinking wine than making it. Such profligacy could only have one outcome, and the party- loving Count’s bankers became winemakers. One of the region’s great estates, the 250-acre property at Serralunga produced some good wines, but seldom lived up to its potential until 2008, when Oscar Farinetti and Luca Baffiso purchased a large part of the estate and instigated a successful programme of rejuvenation.