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 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 flavors of green almond, white pepper and fennel frond. A little weightier than most versions of Arneis we see, it gets its chutzpah from ripe fruit from old vines rather than extensive lees contact or wood aging so it maintains a lovely sense of freshness for years and years after bottling while tasting great all through its life. Its acidity, so brash when it first arrived last summer, has mellowed a lot with time and the fruit has taken on even more definition and character. Nicely balanced, it’ll definitely liven up your next backyard fete, whenever that might be!

Yes, it is still our mission to make food-flexible, tasty, distinguished Arneis your go-to for fresh Italian whites and it is wines like Cornarea’s that will make that happen. Drink it with all sorts of first courses. How about this spring’s first asparagus and a saffron fonduta? Other proven winners include pesto sauced pasta, grilled chicken or fish or other Piemontese specialties like agnolotti dal plin in sage butter, vitello tonnato and vegetable flans. It won’t take long to find your favorite combination.