This weekend at Piazza Italian Market we will taste the Roero Arneis DOCG ($21.50) from the Matteo Correggia winery in Canale, Piemonte. Founder Matteo Correggia wrote “On the Roero hills every vineyard has its own wine, unique and unrepeatable as unique are the combinations between man, earth, and sky”. The abstract label design pays homage to the winery’s twenty hectares of rolling hills under the watchful eye of the sun. It is hard to believe now that Arneis was first interspersed in rows of Nebbiolo as bait for birds who seemed to prefer its sweet, early ripening grape and it was also used during vinification to soften Nebbiolo’s edge! Piemonte’s iconic reds will always garner the most attention but the ancient grape Arneis has quietly become a stellar white.
After founder Matteo Correggia’s untimely death, his widow Ornella carried on and continues to manage the organic winery whose vines’ ages range from 50-80 years old. She has become a champion of sustainable viticulture and her natural approach is defined by working her land while being fully aware of the surrounding environment. In recognition of her dedication, Gambero Rosso has consistently awarded over 31 due and tre bicchieri to her wines, divided between the white and red collections.
In the Piemontese dialect, “arneis” can also mean a rascal who gets on one’s nerves, for the older clones of Arneis who produced poor yields and were difficult to manage. Arneis has never gotten on my nerves as it is the first Italian white wine I tasted and it still is my fave medium-bodied white wine. I love its aroma of white flowers and white peach, its flavor of apricot, citrus, ripe pear, and sweet almond. I usually pair it with white meat entrees or pasta carbonara.
Come join me for a taste on Friday from noon to 5:45 or Saturday from noon to 4:45- the projected weather both days in the low to mid 80″‘s is perfetto for a glass of chilled Arneis.
Cin Cin!
Jenn
Piazza is located in the Talbottown Shopping Center, 218 N. Washington St., Suite 23, in Easton, Maryland.
