Strevi (Strevi Passito in full) is one of the newer DOC titles to be introduced to the Piedmont wine region of north-western Italy. It exclusively covers sweet white Muscat wines made from 100% Moscato Bianco. This is hardly surprising, given that the area lies at the very eastern edge of the Moscato d'Asti viticultural area. Strevi became an independent DOC in its own right in the warm July of 2005, specifically as a dried-grape passito wine.
Strevi is the name of the commune in which the wines are made and the grapes grown. It is blessed with a low-lying ridge which runs east-west beside the village, providing many hectares of south-facing slopes. Naturally, almost all of the hillside is covered with vines. The nature of the topography and mesoclimate here means the Moscato grapes attain considerably higher levels of phenolic and physiological ripeness than in most other areas around Asti. This creates a style of wine which is fuller and riper than its more famous d'Asti cousin.
Strevi is located just within the boundaries of the Moscato d'Asti DOCG, so wines from the village can claim either title (at the discretion of the winemaker). The Bormida river, which marks the eastern boundary of several local DOC/DOCG titles, runs past Strevi's eastern side on its way from the Ligurian hills to meet the Tanaro river just outside Alessandria town. This marks the junction between the 'Astigiano' (the winelands around Asti) and the eastern fringes of Piedmont, where the Colli Tortonesi, Gavi and Ovada are to be found.
As a result of the local geology and the river systems which have helped to create it, the soils around Strevi are largely calcareous and have a high clay content. The DOC laws take the trouble to specify that only grapes grown in "vigneti acclivi, ubicati in pendii e dossi collinari soleggiati, a struttura prevalentemente argillosa" (steep vineyards on hilly, sunny ridges with clay soils based on marl and limestone) qualify for the Strevi title. These sites are what distinguishes Strevi from other Piedmont moscato, and justifies its very existence as an independent DOC.
