From Terroir to Bottle: Data Makes the Difference

The LoraWine event in Alba: research, innovation and precision viticulture for the future of Piedmontese wine

On Wednesday 11 March 2026, the Ampelion in Alba – home to the Viticulture and Oenology degree programme of the University of Turin – hosted the closing event of the LoraWine project, an ambitious applied research programme funded by NODES (North-West Digital and Sustainable) – Spoke 7 (Agrifood). An afternoon rich in content, bringing together academia, the region's finest producers and leading technology innovators around a central theme: how data can transform viticulture and oenology in Piedmont.

The event, coordinated by Dr. Francesco Rogna Manassero di Costigliole – agronomist, oenologist and LoraWine's technical director – presented the results of a project built on close collaboration between the Politecnico di Torino, the University of Turin and some of Piedmont's most prestigious wine estates. At the heart of the research: the development and validation of an innovative methodology for the large-scale collection of environmental and agronomic data using IoT (Internet of Things) devices, next-generation sensors and advanced spatial data analysis techniques.

An afternoon of dialogue between science and the land

Following institutional greetings from the University of Turin and a contribution by Dr. Dario Vallauri, head of the AGRIFOOD Hub, the focus turned to the results of the field trials. The project was put to the test across a vast open-air laboratory spanning Piedmont: from the Langhe hills, involving historic names such as Poderi e Cantine Oddero and Luciano Sandrone, to the Monferrato with Cantina La Maranzana, and on to Turin with the technological vineyard "Campus Grapes", created by startup Citiculture.

The centrepiece of the event was the panel "Data in the World of Wine", an open exchange between producers, researchers and innovators that highlighted how collecting and interpreting data can become a strategic tool for the entire wine industry.

Luca Veglio (Poderi e Cantine Oddero): data as a company asset

Luca Veglio, oenologist at Poderi e Cantine Oddero, offered the perspective of a historic Langhe estate facing the challenges of climate change and global competition. He stressed that the Langhe's 50 years of historical climate records are no longer sufficient to characterise vintages and microclimates, and that LoraWine's sensor network – capable of providing one day's advance notice of what is happening in the vineyard – represents a crucial competitive advantage. The goal, he explained, is not to replace the grower's intuition, but to give it a solid scientific foundation for navigating increasingly unpredictable conditions.

Alessia Sandrone: collaboration and shared territorial growth

Alessia Sandrone, third generation of the Luciano Sandrone estate, emphasised the importance of data interpretation in identifying critical points and opportunities for improvement in production. She expressed a vision of shared territorial growth: when producers collaborate in sharing data and knowledge, the whole sector advances far more quickly than any individual approach could achieve. There is no competition between unique, unrepeatable wines – only teamwork to make an entire region shine. As she put it, "the best wine is built on knowledge."

Innovation from the Politecnico: contributions from Demarchi and Balbiano

Prof. Danilo Demarchi of the Politecnico di Torino presented pioneering work on biometric sensors implantable in vines, capable of producing a genuine "electrocardiogram of the vine" and opening new frontiers for monitoring vineyard health. Luca Balbiano, founder of Citiculture, described the experience of "Campus Grapes" – the first urban technological vineyard, created within the grounds of the Politecnico di Torino, where viticultural tradition and technological innovation meet.

Project results: a data ecosystem for viticulture

The technical presentation confirmed that LoraWine achieved all of its objectives. The system developed enabled the installation of more than 70 IoT sensors across several production areas in the Langhe, gathering continuous data on temperature, humidity, ventilation and other relevant agronomic parameters. Advanced processing and spatial mapping of the data made it possible to quantify microclimatic differences between plots, identify phytosanitary risk conditions and generate operational maps for targeted vineyard management.

Also unveiled was the LoraWine software platform – an open, interoperable system designed to interface with devices and software already in use on the estate, offering an intuitive interface for data visualisation, analysis and traceability across the entire supply chain, from vine to bottle.

Looking ahead: from research to service

The event closed with a shared reflection on the strategic importance of data for the future of the wine sector. The message from Alba was unambiguous: in a world of accelerating climate change and increasingly demanding markets, the shift from empiricism to data-driven decision-making is no longer an option – it is a necessity. With its sensor network, digital platform and methodology validated by academic research, LoraWine positions itself as the reference service for guiding Piedmontese wine producers – and beyond – through this transition.

The initiative was supported by: Polo Agrifood, Slow Wine and MilleVigne.