Paitin is the name of the property owned by the Elia family, which has an important history in Piemonte stretching back to 1630. Initially associated with Turin and then Costigliole d’Asti, they carried out administrative duties on behalf of Carlo Emanuele I, Duke of Savoy. They bought the farmhouse at the current site in the commune of Neive (Barbaresco) at the end of the eighteenth century in the Napoleonic period. As early as 1893, they labelled their wine Barbaresco del Bricco di Neive, bricco being the local name for the best, warmest vineyard site at the top of a hill. Today, the winery is managed by the eighth generation, Giovanni, Silvano and Luca. The winery’s total number of hectares under vine is 20, with a further two still to come into production, of which eight are Nebbiolo registered for Barbaresco. 

Paitin now owns several vineyards within the Barbaresco denomination. With the introduction of the MGA (subzone) system in 2007, the home vineyard took the name of Serraboella. Two wines are made from this area: one labelled Serraboella and the other Sorì Paitin, a bottling of fruit from the oldest part of the vineyard. The winery also makes MGA wines from Basarin and Albesani (both also in Neive) and Faset (in the commune of Barbaresco). 

The production from the prestigious Faset MGA is small, from just 0.5 ha. The soils are based on Sant’Agata Marls at an elevation of 240-260 metres, and the plots face south and southwest. The first Paitin vintage was in 2019. The land belongs to two friends of Luca, but Paitin works the vineyard. Again, the vines are a good age, having been planted in 1975–1990. The wines tend to be more open on release than the other wines of the company. The Basarin vineyard is also a relatively recent acquisition in 2018, again with Sant’Agata Marl-based soils, which are very sandy in the highest part. The elevation is 260–320 metres, with south and southeat aspects, and the vines were planted in 1985–1995. Here, the expression is relatively powerful and dark-fruited, with more time needed in the bottle. 

Given its history, it is unsurprising that the Elia family is motivated by continuing the work of preceding generations: grape growing, which has happened for centuries, and winemaking, which is also of longstanding. There is a real respect for the labour of earlier generations but also a keenness to maximise elegance in the wines, the hallmark of many of the best Barbaresco.