Wine Country: Italy

Wine Subregion: Piemonte

 The discovery of Cornarea was the product of several years hard research in the Langhe- a search for an Arneis we could recommend to our customers that the locals there themselves loved.  I looked at what winemakers ordered when I ate out with them, what local sommeliers recommended, and what bottles I saw in people’s fridges.  The answer was consistently Cornarea.  And Cornarea, once we started putting it on our own shelves, has proven every bit as popular here as it is there.   The property, I found out over a lunch in Alba with owner Pier Bovone, was the first in Roero dedicated solely to the production of Arneis and, after the Currados then at Vietti, who have been making Arneis for nearly fifty years, Cornarea has been bottling it the longest.  The Rapetti family first planted their vines high on the mineral-rich Cornarea hill, near Canale, in the heart of the Roero, back in 1975- a time when others were busy ripping their Arneis vines out and scrambling to plant other, far more productive varieties. And now, at over 45 years old, they are among the oldest in the entire area.  These old vines produce Arneis with great intensity of fruit and plenty of the variety’s hallmark almondy, white pepper and fennel frond flavors.  A little weightier and more textural than most versions of Arneis we see, this is Arneis for those who love a little more oomph.

Let’s show these two would-be cowboys there’s a new sheriff in town and that it’s YOU!  Take ‘em both home and see which of these excellent wines you like better- or, if you’re me, you’ll love them the same!