Iole Rabasco left her career as a lawyer in the early 2000s to take over her family's vines and olive trees in Pianella, a small hill town in Abruzzo's Pescara province. Halfway between the Adriatic Sea and the Gran Sasso mountains, the 3.5-hectare estate sits at approximately 450 meters elevation on calcareous clay soils mixed with alluvial sediments. In 2006, Iole converted the entire operation to biodynamic farming. Everything she has done since has been in service of that commitment.
Maximum Restraint in the Vineyard and Cellar
Iole's winemaking philosophy is one of radical minimalism. She harvests by hand. Fermentation is spontaneous, driven by indigenous yeasts. All vineyard and cellar activities are timed according to the biodynamic lunar calendar. The wines are bottled without fining, without filtration, and without any sulfite addition whatsoever. Nothing is added and nothing is taken away. These are among the most unmediated expressions of Abruzzo's two great varieties, Montepulciano and Trebbiano, available anywhere in the world.
The Cancelli Range
Iole's flagship wines are the Cancelli Rosso, made from Montepulciano, and the Cancelli Bianco, made from Trebbiano. Both wines emerge from southwest-facing slopes that receive maximum sun exposure while the altitude preserves freshness and acidity. The Damigiana series, released in large-format damigiana bottles, offers some of the same wines in a format that speaks directly to Abruzzo's tradition of wine as daily sustenance rather than special occasion beverage.
Abruzzo at Its Most Honest
Abruzzo has long been one of Italy's most underestimated regions, a place where great indigenous grapes and genuinely committed farmers have produced wines that rarely receive the attention they deserve. Iole Rabasco is one of the most important reasons to pay attention. Her estate is small, her methods uncompromising, and her wines, tasted alongside Abruzzo's more produced offerings, reveal what this mountainous Adriatic region is truly capable of when left to express itself.
