Her organic vineyards stand out with their autumnal leaves. Marina’s been organic since 1982, being certified in 1993. The vineyards are grassed over and the rows of vines are a haven for wild mint and wildlife. This means the vines are forced to compete naturally for the already scarce nutrients, so focus their energy into fewer bunches making them more self-reliant in the process, rather than waiting for the next drop of fertiliser to come their way.

This has been an unusual year, with the Nebbiolo harvest taking place in October amid the fog and autumnal colours. A very wet and cool spring followed the cold winter, complicating flowering and so reducing the crop naturally. What was left was ripened by a short but hot June, July and early August, while September was cooler than previous years, ushering in an early autumn. This is positive news for late-ripening, thick-skinned local varieties such as Nebbiolo: it needs the hang time to develop its complex aromas and flavours slowly. The harvested fruit tasted very fine, with racy acidity, fine tannins and a sweet note at its core: the resulting wine should be finely poised, rather than being rich as in 2003, 2007 and – currently on sale – the 2009 vintage of Barbaresco Basarin.

Perhaps 2013 is the start of a cycle of cooler vintages. Still, it hasn’t been unlucky for the Langhe so far…