I hope that you enjoyed last week's introduction into the magical kingdom of the Gaja Family. At the very least, I hope it prompted you to explore the wines themselves.

My goal for this week is to articulate in words the brilliant nature of the interview that I had with the lovely Gaia Gaja.

Many people have referred to Angelo Gaja, current owner of Gaja Vineyards, as the King of Piedmont. His eldest daughter, Gaia, is most definitely worthy of the hyperbolized title of princess. She carries on the family name and tradition with pride and passion, while holding "court" with the perfectly blended air of confidence and grace.

Yet if you ever attempt to draw a parallel to her pseudo-royalty and fame as the daughter of one of the most prestigious winemakers in history, she will almost be affronted by the inference and immediately, but delicately, steer the conversation away from herself and back to the only thing that matters to her when the name Gaja is attached -- the wine.

I will tell you right now that the goal of my interview was to have a wine-world superstar like Gaia explain her life in a way that you could all relate to -- and I told her as much. I wanted an inside peek, not at her as a wine celebrity, but of her as an individual and her life as a Gaja.

I began by asking her to describe to the layperson what growing up among all the vines and wine culture in Barbaresco was like.

She said that she had no idea growing up what Gaja really was and no idea what Gaja meant to the rest of the world. Of the 600 or so inhabitants, EVERYONE makes wine. It was a way of life and something that mother and father came home from work and talked about every day. Her grandfather made wine, the entire culture revolves around wine. There is a glass of wine at every table from a young age and with such a small village, very little outside influence to compete with the culture of wine.

I tried to get her to open up a little more about what life was like growing up in such an environment. Trying hard not to be nosy or irritating, I attempted to push a little deeper. She wasn't having it. Instead, she laid out pretty much the same spiel she had given to various other journalists in several other publications I had already read. Even the same line about not ever dreaming about being a ballerina and Barbaresco being a great place to live until you are 14, because after that, it becomes suffocating.

I detail this unwillingness to speak candidly not because I criticize her for not wanting to open up to a complete stranger, and a goofy-looking and awkward one to boot, but as the highest of compliments and the beginnings of a portrayal into the all-encompassing passion this woman possesses for her family and their product.

You see, it wasn't just a mere dodge of a question, but one that seemed in her mind to be absolutely irrelevant.

This was evidenced even more clearly by her answers to the next questions I asked her. First, I wanted to know if she could explain the decision to work for her family.

She first explained that no, her father had not ever voiced expectations or desires for her to join the family business. She had the freedom to pursue what she liked, but she could see from time to time in her father's eyes that it meant a great deal to him. In fact she said, he never once mentioned anything about working for the family during her entire life, but the day she informed them of her decision, her father was so pleased that he bought her a car

She then began to detail her decision to start working for her father. She said that at first it was her desire to carry out the family tradition. As the fifth generation of Gaja wine-making Gajas, she felt a deep sense of pride and honor to be a part of something to much bigger than herself. After learning much more about the operations and receiving more responsibility in the business, it was only then that the passion began.

She explained that it is learning that comes before passion. "Wine is easy to be passionate about. You are selling wine, not Coke, not food, you are selling the history and tradition of your family, but first you must KNOW that product and that history." She said, "And that is the difference between mass-produced and regionally produced wine. Wine that can be made everywhere versus wine that can only be made by one person from one region."

 Page 1 of 2 (view all on one page)

Next >>

5 comments about this article. Post a comment / write a review.

Recent Talkbacks ...

Posted by PacoMunsin on July 18, 2009 at 3:49 p.m. (report)

Devidia - Yo...i 2nd dat emotion Girl is fine. Nate Dawg - you still be killing it but howz come everytime I axe you a question in da talkback, you never be responding? Email me son - paco.munsin#gmail.com yo!

Posted by ozricale on July 18, 2009 at 1:12 p.m. (report)

Natemarq: I can assure you that Saltydog has an informed opinion. Salty, care to elaborate why you think Gaja is overrated?

Posted by devidia on July 17, 2009 at 11:37 a.m. (report)

Could you fix the article's picture to just stay on Gaia Gaja? Wow!!!...

Posted by Saltydog on July 16, 2009 at 10:10 p.m. (report)

Extremely over-rated wines.

Posted by Natemarq on July 16, 2009 at 4:32 p.m. (report)

So what you are telling Mr. Bauer is that your taste buds are better than any of the rest of us, and that we should listen your taste buds over are own? What makes you an expert on something that is pure opinion.