![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Soil-Journey_Italy-02_01.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cWine is magical because, through it, you can speak to people\u201d (Enrico Rivetto)<\/strong><\/p>\n Enrico Rivetto is a fourth-generation winemaker whose family started producing wine originally in Alba, in the Langhe area of Piedmont, under the Rivetto<\/a> name in 1902. Yet his approach represents a strong departure from the established way of making Barolo, Barbera d\u2019Alba, Barbaresco and other wines this region is famed for.<\/p>\n Rivetto is the area\u2019s only winery certified as biodynamic \u2013 an agricultural practice that sees the farm as a living organism to be managed holistically \u2013 by the world\u2019s largest biodynamic<\/a> federation, Demeter<\/a>. Biodynamic agriculture is a step ahead of conventional farming techniques in that it seeks to draw on the forces of nature rather than relying on artificial tools. Its origins can be traced to an ancient method of cultivation that links guidance from the cosmos to soil health by sowing seeds, harvesting, and spreading compost according to an “agricultural calendar” based on the lunar calendar and astrology.<\/p>\n Drinking Rivetto\u2019s deep reds, such as Nebbiolo d\u2019Alba, and smooth whites like Nascetta (a recently recovered indigenous wine) is a window onto this unique winery, which also sells jams and juices made from freshly harvested crops. Only half of its surface is occupied by vineyards and the rest is home to a staggering biodiversity, including fields of ancient grain varieties, fruit orchards, medicinal plant gardens, six beehives and three donkeys, Filippa, Giulia and Lella. \u201cI see this project as a renaissance,\u201d says Rivetto. \u201cOur goal isn\u2019t merely to have a profitable business, but to create beauty\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cHumus is the most important part of the vineyard\u201d. Rivetto\u2019s philosophy starts from the earth, which is enriched using self-produced humus and biodynamic treatments such as horn manure, obtained from cow manure that is inserted in cow horns and buried over the winter. \u201cIn addition to leveraging the beneficial action of microorganisms, arthropods, and earthworms, the use of biodynamic fertilisers revitalises the soil and improves its fertility.\u201d he says.<\/p>\n After joining the family business in 1999, Rivetto converted the winery to organic agriculture ten years later and started producing its first certified biodynamic wines in 2019. Through this process, he\u2019s strived to generate new knowledge by balancing science and spirituality, a path that led him to rebel against the mainstream approach to viticulture. \u201cI learnt to unlearn\u201d is one of the ten points of Rivetto\u2019s manifesto<\/a>: he\u2019s abandoned the paradigm that a winemaker should squeeze the highest yield and therefore maximum economic benefit from the land at the cost of sacrificing soil health and biodiversity.<\/p>\n \u201cWinemakers of the Barolo region believe they can\u2019t waste even a centimetre of land because its value is so high,\u201d Rivetto explains. \u201cI think the opposite: because of its value, I can afford to give up some land to create something beautiful that benefits everyone and benefits me\u201d.<\/p>\n This philosophy is clearly visible in the Rivetto vineyards of Lirano, a hill sandwiched between the Alta Langa and Barolo areas, and Briccolina, Rivetto\u2019s most important cru<\/a>, where Nebbiolo grapes destined to become Barolo are part of a garden ecosystem entirely farmed by hand.<\/p>\n In Lirano, over 1,000 trees and two kilometres of flower and herb bushes have been planted between vines, creating ecological corridors for pollinators such as bees, birds and small animals. The area, nourished by a rain and spring-water pond used for irrigation and biodynamic treatments, is surrounded by seven hectares of forest; a sanctuary for wildlife and people, and \u201ca great source of wisdom,\u201d says Rivetto.<\/p>\n Studies by the University of Turin have shown how pollinators close to the forest have four times more yeasts in their gut, including yeasts used in winemaking. \u201cWithout the forest, grapes are less prone to fermenting,\u201d Rivetto explains. \u201cOther producers use cultured (lab-grown) yeasts because this is how things are done in the Langhe. But this area, our land, is defined by those gut yeasts in pollinators near the forest. Therefore, the forest is our land\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cFarmers are the custodians of the agricultural organism for future generations,\u201d says Rivetto, who sees education as the key to real change. Last September, the Lirano school was inaugurated in a farmhouse on the winery\u2019s property. Here, elementary schoolchildren (and middle schoolers next year too) complete the Italian curriculum and learn about the environment embedded in nature. \u201cThis was the missing link in our project, the expression of everything we\u2019ve learnt so far,\u201d says Rivetto.<\/p>\n The biodynamic winemaker, whose children also attend the school, stays true to his belief that \u201cyou are what you do\u201d. His goal is to show that an alternative isn\u2019t only possible, but essential. \u201cMaterialism isn\u2019t the end-all, and we\u2019ve forgotten other truths, such as art, empathy and doing good. Life can\u2019t be reduced to material needs. Aren\u2019t we also bodies and souls?\u201d Part 1 <\/strong>:\u00a0Learning sustainability by doing: A young woman\u2019s journey to Italy<\/a><\/p>\n Part 2 : <\/strong>Rivetto\u2019s vineyard-garden in the heart of the Italian Barolo region: Increasing biodiversity through winemaking<\/p>\n Part 3 : <\/strong>Eta Beta, the social cooperative rebuilding people\u2019s lives through work<\/p>\n Part 4 : <\/strong>Self-sufficient communities create edible gardens all over Venice<\/p>\n Opening photo\u3000by Masato Sezawa<\/p>\n The four-part series “Journey through soil full of life” is presented in collaboration Author: Mara Budgen<\/strong> Rivetto\u2019s vineyard-garden in the heart of the Italian Barolo region: Increasing biodiversity through winemakin […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":53,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-61","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":85,"href":"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61\/revisions\/85"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/53"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Soil-Journey_Italy-02_02.jpg\")
A view of the Langhe area in all its vineyard glory. Across the forest in the foreground are Rivetto\u2019s vineyards and compost heap.
\nPhoto by Masato Sezawa<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Soil-Journey_Italy-02_03.jpg\")
Cute donkey decorations on the tasting table
\nPhoto by Masato Sezawa<\/p>\n<\/div>\nA revolution born of the soil<\/h4>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Soil-Journey_Italy-02_04.jpg\")
Enrico (left) explains composting
\nPhoto by Masato Sezawa<\/p>\n<\/div>\nA vineyard-garden<\/h4>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Soil-Journey_Italy-02_05.jpg\")
Pond is a source of life and wisdom. On the left is theLirano School.
\nPhoto by Masato Sezawa<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Soil-Journey_Italy-02_06.jpg\")
Bees are important pollinators
\nPhoto by Masato Sezawa<\/p>\n<\/div>\nA school for the future<\/h4>\n
\nTo learn more about Enrico Rivetto\u2019s philosophy, visit Rivetto winery\u2019s website<\/a>, and if you wish to experience it first-hand, accommodation is available at the Rivetto Suites<\/a> in Alba, Italy. Enrico, the Rivetto family, and donkeys Filippa, Giulia and Lella would be happy to guide you around the vineyard-garden. And remember to choose wines and foods that contribute to the health of the ecosystems where they\u2019re grown!<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Soil-Journey_Italy-02_07.jpg\")
Vineyards are also places of learning
\nPhoto by Masato Sezawa<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Soil-Journey_Italy-02_08.jpg\")
Everything goes back to the soil as compost.
\nPhoto by Masato Sezawa<\/p>\n\u3010Series\u3011Journey through soil full of life \u2013 Italy \u2013<\/h4>\n
\nwith media partner IDEAS FOR GOOD<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.ishizaka-farm.co.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Mara-Badgen-1024x1024.jpg\")
<\/div>\n\n
\nMara Budgen is a Tokyo-based freelance journalist specialised in sustainability, development and human rights. Former Editor-in-Chief of sustainability news website LifeGate.com, she is currently dedicated to bringing social, cultural and environmental stories from Asia Pacific to global audiences in written, audio and video form. She has written for The Japan Times, The Guardian, BBC Travel and Gastro Obscura. You can see her latest work at marabudgen.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"