Piemonte dry white wines: Cortese

One of the unifying themes in the Piemontese white wines that I have explored on this journey is the freshness of the wines, a result of the high levels of natural acidity in the source cultivars. You can add the Cortese variety to this list. 

The cultivar makes its first appearance in the literature in 1659. It is a highly productive, thin-skinned grape that is grown mainly in the provinces of Asti (35 municipalities) and Alessandria (51 municipalities). It is noted for delivering bone-dry wines that are crisp and flinty with floral and peach aromatics. It is sensitive to powdery mildew.

The chart below shows the Cortese wines approved for production in the Piemonte region.

 

The chart does show that, except for the Piemonte and Colli Tortonesi regions, the wines are confined to Monferrato. With the exception of Gavi DOCG (100% Cortese) and the Colli Tortonesi Bianco (any proportion in blends with other white varieties), all of the sub-Piemonte regions prescribe a minimum of 85% Cortese in their wines.

The regions within which Cortese is produced are discussed below. It is generally held that the best of the wines are produced in Gavi because the grape is properly ripened therein. Not so much in the other regions as they have a harder time getting the grapes fully ripe, leading to heightened acidity.

Gavi/Cortese di Gavi DOCG

Gavi (also called Cortese di Gavi) is a Piemonte region dedicated to the production of wines from the (white) Cortese grape. According to enricosrafino.it, "The Gavi area, the southern part of Alto Monferrato, rises from the banks of the Tanaro River into the mountains of the Apennines and the water divide between Piedmont and Liguria."

Gavi DOCG indicated by red circle to the bottom-
right of the Piemonte map

The region spools out over the hills of 11 communes in the province of Alessandria. It gained DOC status in 1974 and was promoted to DOCG in 1998. The allowed wines in the appellation are a Bianco, Bianco Riserva, Spumante, and a Spumante Metodo Classico, all made from 100% Cortese.

The Gavi climate is characterized by cold winters and hot, airy summers. Again from enricoserafino.it: "The combination of the Ligurian sea breeze and the Apennine snow make this particular corner of Piedmont so special." In addition to the Apennines, the region is also influenced by the presence of the Alps. Significant day-night temperature variation allows flavor concentration while preserving crisp acidity in the wines.

The mineral-rich soils of the region are purported to contribute to the flavors of the Gavi wine. The complexity of the soilscape is displayed in the chart below.

To summarize the chart, the northern part of the region is dominated by red ferrous soils and gravel mixed with clay from ancient alluvial activity while the central area alternates between soils of marl and sandstone. The south has fossil-rich white soils composed of clay-calcareous marls.

Serafino.it credits the region's climate and the soils on the hillside vineyards as being responsible for the complexity of the wines. "Highly reputed for its 'white soils' is the area of Gavi Village, very well known for clear-cut character, amazing freshness, as well as complex wines that here become the Gavi del comune di Gavi DOCG."

I tasted two Gavi wines as a part of this exercise: a 2018 Marchesi di Barolo and a 2018 La Scolca Gavi dei Gavi.

The Marchesi di Barolo showed parsley on the nose, along with a red pepper spice and expansive minerality. Broad on the palate, with citrus (young lime) and minerality preceding a long spicy finish.

The La Scolca was intense on the nose, with green herbs, lemon and muted honeydew melon. Intense acidity on the palate with a sourdrop character yielding to a cupric mineral finish. Much more acidity than the Marchesi di Barolo wine. This wine screams out for food. Both wines were of excellent quality but the Marchesi is a more all-purpose wine in that it can be drunk on its own while the La Scolca needs a friend.

Monferrato DOC Casalese Subzone

Monferrato DOC encompasses 689 ha of vineyards spread over 229 municipalities (116 in Asti and 113 in Alessandria). Monferrato is a set of recently formed hills with the oldest in the upper and lower regions and comprised of crenaceous and calcareous marls and fossil shells from the Miocene. The area around the Tanaro River is the most recent and is primarily Pliocene Astian sands of sedimentary origin.

The Casalese subzone covers vineyards in 39 municipalities in the Province of Alessandria. It is the same area as for the Grignolino del Monforte Casalese DOC.

Cortese dell'Alta Monferrato DOC

This 200-ha zone received its DOC status in 1979 and is allowed to produce Cortese wines with grapes grown in 51 municipalities in Alessandria and 35 in Asti. It is the largest of the areas planted to Cortese.

Cortese dell'Alta Monferrato

The disciplinaire requirement calls for vineyards on hills and with suitable position and orientation on clayey-calcareous soils. The vines prefer these hilly soils, poor in organic and mineral substances and arid in the summer due to poor water retention.

Allowed yields in this area are 10 tons/ha.

Colli Tortonese DOC

This 191-ha zone encompasses 30 municipalities and, before the onslaught of Timorasso, Cortese dominated its hills.

According to italianwine.guide, the Cortese wines produced herein are light and straw-colored, with green reflections. "The bouquet is extremely delicate, pleasant, persistent and characteristic. The taste is dry, light and with a hint of almond. 

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