Piedmont Vintner Giuseppe Boffa, of Pio Cesare, Dies at 89

Posted: December 18, 2000

One of the great pioneers of Barolo, Giuseppe Boffa, died today in a hospital in Alba, Italy, following a long battle with prostate cancer. He was 89.

Boffa -- who ran the well-known Piedmont winery Pio Cesare, in Alba, for decades before handing it over to his son Pio Boffa -- is credited with being one of the first vintners in Piedmont to understand the importance of making small-production, quality-oriented wines in the region.

"The wines of Piedmont were all about volume when he took over the company from my grandfather during the war," said his son Pio. "He knew that Piedmont could not carry on that way and that it was indispensable to go for quality."

Today, Pio Cesare is considered one of the leaders of the region, particularly in Barolo, with its superb, estate-produced Barolo Ornato. The 35,000-case firm makes a range of wines, from Dolcetto to Barbaresco to Barolo to Chardonnay. All the wines are consistently good to outstanding quality.

Giuseppe Boffa began his career as an engineer, running a shipyard in Palermo, as well as an office in Milan. In 1940, he married the granddaughter of the winery's founder, Cesare Pio. Three years later, Boffa decided to take over the wine company, since his father-in-law was considering selling the entire enterprise.

Pio Cesare (it's an Italian custom to use a person's surname first in business names, correspondence and legal documents) was created in 1881. But, said Pio Boffa, "It was my father who made the company what it is today. Without him there may not have been Pio Cesare wines any more."

Giuseppe Boffa is survived by his wife, Rosy; his sons, Pio and Cesare; and his daughter, Frederica. Frederica's son, Cesare, started working at the winery in September.

-- James Suckling

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