Livestock, orchards and hazel groves: a farm at the service of sustainability
In addition to the 25 hectares of vineyards, we own another 75 divided between hazel groves, orchards, arable land, pastures plus 10 hectares of protected woods.
While the others are part of our production cycle, the forest is a civil commitment that the Rabino family have taken up generations ago: safeguarding the biodiversity of a territory that increasingly tends to monoculture, taking care of and protecting centuries-old wild areas, important for the climate and the well-being of Roero.
Breeding
The Fassona Piemontese, great ally of corporate sustainability
Today, our stable has 220 heads of cattle, divided between two floors.
The upper level is dedicated to the fattening of beef cattle, the castrated males that we prepare for slaughter.
The lower floor is instead that of the nursery, where the 50 brood cows and their calves are left in the wild in two hectares of pasture.
In each group of cows we keep a bull, allowing them to reproduce completely naturally.
The well-being of the animal is always put in the foreground, with measures that aim at the health, but also at the quality of life of our animals.
The spaces are large and frequently cleaned, the power supply is 70% self-produced. The remaining 30% is represented by the bran, which we commission from a local mill to which we deliver our wheat, and by the straw used as litter for the animals.
In summer we feed the cows and oxen with the fresh grass of our fields, while for the winter we prepare sufficient stocks of hay.
As anticipated in the description of our self-production cycle, cattle cooperate in an indispensable way in corporate sustainability, guaranteeing us a supply of “m 0” (literally a few steps away) of fertilizers, which we use in the vineyard and in the orchards to minimize chemical interventions.
Every year we take part in the “Carrù Bue Grasso” fair, usually with excellent results. Only last year we arrived 3rd in the category of local ox.
This is because our breeding method, focused on respect for the animal, gives life to strong and genetically advantaged oxen.
The supply chain contract with Macelleria Testa
As the founder of Coalvi I particularly care about the path of the meat we produce from slaughter onwards.
It is now 5 years that every piece of cattle raised is sold exclusively to Macelleria Testa in Turin, with which I share the quality standards.
This family-run business has many elements in common with our family, including centuries of history and sustainable footprint.
We have signed a supply chain contract, guaranteeing more security to both: sales to us, high quality to them.
Orchards
Roero is a land historically devoted to the production of quality fruit, which has always been part of Rabino’s work.
The Piedmontese hazelnuts…
We complete our production with hazelnuts and apricots, which we partly sell as raw materials and partly process.
The 10 hectares of hazelnut grove follow the same managerial line as any other production sector, with an almost biological management.
Even here we avoid weeding, as it’s easy to guess from the thick vegetation and the ecosystem that surrounds the trees. All work is carried out manually, with total respect for the environment.
While the majority of the harvest is sold in bulk, a part is processed by an external collaborator who withdraws the hazelnuts and then shells them, toasts them and vacuum-seals them.
This delicious typical Piedmontese snack is always served with our tasting, and can be bought in the cellar!
… And the apricots
As for apricots, a part of the harvest is sold to the general markets of Milan.
Since for the sale to the public only the fruits that are free from aesthetic defects are accepted, which in a handicraft production like ours represent a limited quantity, the remainder of the apricots is processed and turned into jam.
Not having the appropriate equipment, for this step we rely on a small laboratory near Chieri, specifically chosen for the working method.
After much research, in fact, we found what we were looking for: someone who produced a natural jam, like that of grandmothers, made of apricots and a minimum dose of cane sugar, required by the disciplinary to be able to write “jam” on the label.
The production is extremely limited, with about 1200 cans a year, of which the majority is sold at the winery during the tasting.