Who makes it
Antica Cantina Di Calosso is a cooperative winery in Calosso, a small municipality in the Asti province of Piemonte where vines cover two-thirds of the land. The cooperative was formed in 1898 when an agronomist named Giuseppe Guaita gathered Moscato growers from the village to pool their harvest rather than sell it individually. It has operated from the same village for more than 125 years.
The cooperative is a member of the Consorzio dell'Asti DOCG, which places it inside the appellation governing Moscato d'Asti and Asti Spumante, both made from Moscato Bianco grown across a band of hills between Asti, Alba, and Acqui Terme. Moscato was the founding crop and remains the institutional reason for the cooperative's existence. Its other confirmed bottling is Monlusso Barbera, a Barbera d'Asti red that reaches export markets in Sweden.
Where it grows
Calosso sits in the Monferrato hills south-east of Turin, inside the province of Asti. The village is densely agricultural: around 380 farms share a territory where roughly two-thirds of the ground grows grapes. That concentration is not unusual for this part of Piemonte, where the Asti DOCG zone covers 52 communes and the land has been shaped by vine cultivation for centuries.
The Asti DOCG designation covers two wines from the same grape, Moscato Bianco: Asti Spumante, which is fully sparkling, and Moscato d'Asti, which is gently fizzy, low in alcohol, and high in residual sweetness. Barbera d'Asti DOCG is a separate red wine appellation covering the same general territory. Calosso sits inside both zones, which is why the cooperative produces from both grapes.
How it is made
The cellar
The cooperative draws from member growers in and around Calosso. What is known comes from the wines themselves. Monlusso Barbera 2022 reaches 14. 5% alcohol, a figure that points to ripe fruit at harvest and warm growing conditions. Barbera d'Asti at this alcohol level typically comes from fruit picked at full maturity to build body while retaining the grape's natural acidity. The grape's low tannin concentration means the wine does not require extended maceration to become approachable.
What they make
Two grapes anchor the confirmed range. Moscato Bianco is the founding variety, and the cooperative produces it under the Asti DOCG. Moscato d'Asti, produced under the Asti DOCG, is gently sparkling, typically around 5 to 6 percent alcohol, and carries high residual sweetness balanced by the grape's natural aromatic lift. Peach, apricot, orange blossom, and white flowers are characteristic. The mousse is soft and the finish brief and sweet.
Monlusso Barbera is the confirmed red bottling and the cooperative's best-documented export wine. Barbera d'Asti DOCG is built on low tannic concentration and a firm acid backbone. In the 2022 vintage, Monlusso shows dark cherry, plum, cinnamon, and cocoa alongside the grape's natural grip of acidity. At 14.5% alcohol, the wine has body and weight, with fruit that sits squarely in the dark register. The acid line keeps it from feeling heavy.
Wines to try
First bottle
Start with Monlusso Barbera. It is a Barbera d'Asti made from the cooperative's village-grown fruit, and it gives you the grape in a direct, full-fruited form: dark cherry and plum on the nose, smooth texture from Barbera's characteristically low tannin, and the firm acidity that runs through every Barbera d'Asti worth drinking. At 14.5% it has genuine body. The finish is warm and clean. It is not a complex bottle, but it is an honest one, and it puts Calosso and its cooperative tradition on the table in a form you can taste.