Arneis from Tintero in a Sea of Moscato

Every July my brother hosts his annual company BBQ that I look forward to. It’s always a great time.  Great company, great food, fireworks so I thought it would be the perfect time to open a 2018 Tintero Arneis and pair it with this delicious orzo shrimp pasta salad dish my mom loves to make in the summer.  Plus, the convenience of a screw cap was perfect to bring to a party. 

The Winery ~ Azienda Agricola Tintero 

The winery was started by a Frenchman, Pierre Tintero, known to the locals as Pietrin.  It’s located in the commune of Mango within the Cuneo province.  In 1900, Pierre traveled to Piedmont in search of work.  He found a small estate where he helped a widow, Rosina Cortese, with some work.   They fell in love and 2 years later got married.  They decided to make a go at producing their own wine and bottled up their first wine in 1914 with Dolcetto grapes. 

Later, their two sons, Giovanni and Carlo, took over the business expanding the acreage of the winery.  their focus was on Moscato grapes and selling it to large negociants.  In the 1980’s Carlo’s son, Elvio, experimented with making Moscato Frizzante wines.  Today the winery is operated by the 4th generation, Elvio’s son Marco and his daughter-in-law, Cinzia.  They own about 74 acres and almost 50 of them are dedicated to the Moscato grape.  They practice sustainability across their South and Southeast facing vineyards.  I’d love to try their Moscato since this seems to be their specialty, but came across this Arneis in the store and don’t have the opportunity to try this grape often. 

The Grape ~ Arneis 

Arneis is a white grape native to the Piedmont region in northwestern Italy, more specifically the subregion of Roero.  It was an Italian grape that at one time in the 60’s faced extinction, but was rescued by Alfredo Currado of the well-known Vietti winery.   

Arneis can be a challenging grape to grow struggling at low yields and the potential to face powdery mildrew.  It has to be picked at just the right time as it can face becoming overripe and therefore has a tendency to lose acidity at higher ripeness levels.  Due to all these challenges its name in local dialect is called “little rascal”.   

Many of the producers today will produce Arneis as a single varietal bottle, but it is historically known for being blended with Nebbiolo for its floral aromatics and to help soften the big tannins of Nebbiolo.  It’s a grape that is on the drier side with medium body showing notes of pears, yellow apples, stone fruits and some nuts like almonds or hazelnuts.   

The Wine 

The 2018 Tintero Arneis Langhe DOC wine is grown on clay and limestone soil.  The juice spends 20 days fermenting in temperature-controlled tanks. The wine was brightly straw colored.  A soft, medium-bodied wine with lots of juicy pears and some yellow apple.  Not high on acidity, but rather round on the palate with a little creaminess potentially due to this wine spending 2 months on the lees.   ABV 13% SRP $16.  Imported by Kermit Lynch.    

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Pairings with Nebbiolo and Arneis from Chiesa Carlo

Piedmont is home to many great wine appellations and fantastic indigenous grapes produced in a variety of styles dependent upon each individual terroir.  Today we explore the southern sub-region of Alba, specifically a couple of appellations within the Cuneo province, Nebbiolo d’Alba DOC and the Roero DOCG featuring wines from Azienda Agricola Chiesa Carlo. 

The winery 

Azienda Agricola Chiesa Carlo is located in Santo Stefano of the Roero.  The winery was founded in the 1700’s and is operated today by the 5th generation of the Chiesa family.  Their vineyards occupy about 20 acres of sandy soils.  They’re known for producing quality DOC and DOCG wines practicing sustainability and working with indigenous yeasts. 

The appellations 

Nebbiolo d’Alba DOC – To be labeled with this DOC designation the wines must contain 100% nebbiolo and age for at least 1 year.  The area spans both sides of the Tanaro River around Alba and the hills of the Roero.    The wines produced here are more approachable compared to the nebbiolo in the nearby Langhe (Barolo and Barbaresco).  Plus, they are also more affordable and allow one to experience many similar characteristics with less boldness and structure.   

Roero DOCG – Nebbiolo and Arneis are the key stars in the Roero.  This appellation was upgraded to DOCG status in 2004.  Arneis is a native white grape variety that mostly calls the Roero home dominating the plantings.  This grape almost faced extinction in the 60’s.  It’s a challenging grape to grow due to poor yields and achieving the correct ripeness balanced with acidity.  The wines labeled Roero Arneis DOCG must be made of at least 95% arneis.   

The wines 

2013 Chiesa Manascarda Nebbiolo d’Alba - 100% Nebbiolo grown on south to south east facing slopes with sandy soils.  The grapes are manually picked spending 20 days of maceration and 12 months in big oak.  A very transparent, pale garnet colored wine.  Heavy notes of black licorice on the nose and cherries.  Medium bodied, cherry notes with good acidity.  Tannins present towards the finish lending vanilla, tobacco and cedar notes. 14.5% ABV 

The pairing: I paired this Nebbiolo d’Alba with some tasty Italian sausage stuffed four cheese ravioli from Trader Joes.   A wonderful complement to one another.   

2015 Chiesa Quin Roero Arneis DOCG – 100% Arneis grown on sandy soils south east facing.  The grapes are softly pressed with low temperature fermentation.  It then spends 6 months in stainless steel vats.  This wine is bright straw colored with a tinge of green.  Stone fruit on the nose.  Lively, bright acidity right up front.  A dry, medium-bodied wine with good texture.  Notes of apple, pear, almond and minerality are present with the higher alcohol of 14% lending some warmth.   

The pairing: I paired this Arneis with baked stuffed haddock.  The flavors and texture of the wine went well with the ritz cracker crumb topping.

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*The wines were provided as samples, but opinions are all my own.  Importer: Mariposa Fine Wines

Win a Case of Piedmont Wine for a Worthy Cause

Happy New Year!  Buon Anno Nuovo!  I wanted to share some information on a contest being conducted by a fellow wine blogger and friend, Valerie of Girl's Gotta Drink.  She is raising money for a well worthy cause close to Valerie's heart.  Plus, it gives you the opportunity to win a case of wine with some expensive, quality wines from the Piedmont wine region.

I met Valerie initially some years back via blogging and we finally got to meet face-to-face when I was in Verona for the Anteprima Amarone event back in 2015.  I had dinner with her and her husband Evan whom live in Piedmont and conduct food and wine tours.  I'd check them out and what they have to offer if you'll be visiting Piedmont. 

Unfortunately Valerie's friend was recently diagnosed with Stage 4 colon cancer that has spread to her liver.  Valerie started this fundraiser to help provide financial relief by utilizing her connections in the wine producing areas of the Langhe and Roero in Piedmont by collecting wine bottle donations from local producers.   You can win this fantastic case of wine by purchasing entries valued at about $650.

The mix features big names, cult producers, up-and-coming producers, bottles from the acclaimed 2013 Barolo vintage, top single-vineyard Barolo and Barbaresco wines, and other unique wines that tell a regional story.

The case includes 8 standard sized bottles and 2 magnums including mostly wines made from the nebbiolo grape, but also included are wines produced from the arneis and barbera grapes, indigenous to Piedmont.  Here is a list of what the case includes:

• 2012 Domenico Clerico Pajana Barolo DOCG
• 2013 E.Pire & Figli/Chiara Boschis Masconi Barolo DOCG
• 2013 Palladino Ornato Barolo DOCG
• 2013 Palladino Parafada Barolo DOCG
• 2013 Josetta Saffirio Barolo DOCG
• 2014 Marchesi di Gresy Martinenga Barbaresco DOCG
• 2014 Ca' del Baio Asili Barbaresco DOCG
• 2013 Cantina del Pino Barbaresco DOCG
• Deltetto Barbera d'Alba Rocca della Marasche (magnum donated by the Alba wine bar Voglia di Vino)
• Demarie For You Roero Arneis Spumante Extra Brut (magnum)
• 
  

How to Enter: Simply donate $25 per entry and fill out the entry form.  The last day for entry is January 17, 2018.  One lucky winner will be selected at random.  Find all the details for the wine, on the donors, the recipient and entry instructions here.

For every $25 donated, you will receive one entry into a random drawing for the case.  There is a 10 per person cap on entries, but please feel free to donate more.  The cap is in place to generate as much interest as possible from different parties.  The last day for the fundraiser is January 17, 2018 and the drawing will take place on January 18, 2018.  The winner will be notified for shipping details (for shipping eligibility, see terms and conditions at Girl's Gotta Drink).

Meet Michelle: At 39 years old, Michelle is a single mother, now undergoing chemotherapy with a 50% chance of survival.  As a single mother, Michelle has been struggling to make ends meet working 2 jobs to provide for her and her 10 year old daughter.  She gives on a daily basis both in her personal life and as an emergency dispatcher.  Between health insurance and a loss of income due to the physical toll of both the illness and the chemo, the goal of the fundraiser is to provide financial relief while also providing a little pot of gold for 1 lucky donor.

Meet the donors
Domenico Clerico: Those familiar with the region surely know of the legendary Barolo winemaker, Domenico Clerico.

Over the summer Domenico passed away at 67 years of age

from a long battle with cancer. That makes the bottle

donated by the winery bearing his name even more poignant.

E. Pira & Figlia/Chiara Boschis: Chiara Boschis is a Barolo legne in her own righta s the lone  Barolo girl in the Barolo

Boys movement.  Her wines sell out every year and 2013 was no different; she has few 2013 Barolo left at the winery.

Palladino: The historic Palladino winery sits at the base of the village of Serralunga, surrounded by the Serralunga hills.  The winery itself dates back to 1870, making most revered winemaking areas.  In 1978, it was purchased by Mauro whose grandchildren now oversee the winemaking and operations.  Here you find wines classic in style with the signature Serralunga power and elegance.  The 2 wines donated are ones to cellar.

Josetta Saffirio: Josetta Saffirio is a small biological and sustainable producer nestles in the Monforte hills.  The winery is run by Sara Vezza, who represents the fifth generation of farmers in Castelletto of Monforte; the torch for this winery has passed through a line of female winemakers.  the winery is committed to limiting its environmental impact, particularly at the energy level.  The cellar was designed to minimize energy needs; they have cultivated a forest to bring oxygen into the environment creating space where viticulture is king.

Voglia di Vino Wine Bar, Shop & Restaurant (Alba, Italy): Voglia di Vino is a wine bar in the Langhe.  If you make it to the area, you can't miss the primary wine town of Alba and you will find Voglia di Vino in Alba's historic center.  Run by husband and wife Luca and Daniela, you can enjoy area wines by the glass, curated tasting flights, and unique wines (older bottles, big name producers, etc) via their Coravin program as well as a traditional dinner menu.  Luca, Daniela and their friendly staff are always on hand to make recommendations and provide insight into the wines in your glass.

Marchesi di Gresy: The historic Marchesi di Gresy winery dates back to the 18th century.  It is located in the middle of a primary wine growing area of Barbaresco, surrounded by the Martinenga vineyards.  They make 3 labels of their prestigious Barbaresco DOCG, which are the only Barbaresco wines permitted to have "Martinenga" on the label.

Ca' del Baio: The winery is run by winemaker Giulio and his wife Luciana.  The supporting cast includes their 3 daughters: Paola, Valentina and Federica.  When the girls were deciding the direction they wanted to take their careers, Giulio and Luciana insisted they try something else and not simply go into the family business.  The girls all did just that, but each returned to carve out their own place in the winery operations.  The wines from this family are a beautiful expression of Piemonte featuring a portfolio of the traditional wines of the region as well as Riesling and 3 single vineyard Barbaresco and a recent addition of a single vineyard Riserva.

Cantina del Pino: The winery sits a stone's throw from the village of Barbaresco with the landmark Tower of Barbaresco visible from the porch. Renato is a 4th generation Barbaresco producer who is very much both a grower and winemaker.  His great-grandfather worked the land 70 years ago, planting many of the same vines he tends today.  His production is small and renowned all over the world.

Azienda Agricola Demarie:  The Demarie winery is located in the lesser known Roero section of Piedmont.  The area sits to the left of the Tanaro River, neighboring the Langhe and Monferrato.  The nebbiolo based wines drink a little younger, so you can get all the quality for less the price.  The area is not to be missed for its indigenous white, Roero arneis.  Demarie offers a still and sparkling Roero arneis.  The wine they gave to honor Michelle's fight is their For You Metodo Classico Spumante, which they only producer in the best years.

*Pictures property of Girls Gotta Drink.

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Arneis through the eyes of Malvira in the Roero

This Wine Pairing Weekend (#winepw) on wine and food pairings with arneis is right up my alley, not only because the focus is on this Italian white grape from Piedmont, but also because in the last month I just had the opportunity to meet one of the charming owners and winemaker, Roberto Damonte, of the Malvira winery in the Roero of Piedmont. I'll very rarely pass up an opportunity to meet an Italian winemaker visiting the Boston area if I can help it. They always have such great stories to tell and information to share.

Me with Roberto Damonte, Owner of Malvira winery in the Roero of Piedmont

The Malvira winery
The Malvira winery began in the 1950's when Roberto's father started the winery. The name stems from the word "mal" meaning badly and "vira" meaning situated.  The winery used to be north facing, obviously being a bad situation for a winery as the most ideal conditions for grape growing are south facing.  Roberto and his brother Massimo took over the winery in 1974 and their mission was to focus more on quality than the quantity of wines that were being produced previously. Malvira produces organic wines on 104 acres across 6 vineyard sites with about 380,000 annually. 

Azienda Agrizola Malvira - copyright www.Malvira.com

Malvira produce a variety of Italian grapes including barbera, nebbiolo, birbet and favorita, but its their arneis that they pride themselves on. Their arneis vines are 40-45 years of age,which lend to lower yields with higher quality grapes.  The arneis grape itself translates to “little rascal”.  Fortunately arneis was saved and is one of the most widely planted white grapes in Piedmont as it was facing extinction in the 20^th century.

The two arneis wines I sampled from Malvira were the the 2012 Malvira Roero Arneis and the 2009 Malvira Roero Arneis Trinita.  The '12 Malvira Roero Arneis DOCG is a blend of the different vineyard sites of the Malvira winery that is aged 4-8 months in stainless steel.  The '09 Malvira Vigna Trinita DOCG is a single vineyard that is aged 90% in stainless steel for 6 months with 10% of the juice aged in French oak for 6 months.  My personal preference was for the 2012 Malvira Roero Arneis as I appreciated the crisp, clean, ripe fruit with minerality opposed to the Trinita, named after the small church at the top of the vineyard, that had a hint of oak and more tropical flavors.

The Roero
The Roero is located in the southern part of Piedmont known as the Langhe, but is further within the Cuneo province.  According to Malvira's website the Roero is named after the Conti-Roero family that lived there in the 14th century.  What's unique about the Roero is that prior to 1000 A.D. this area of Piedmont was covered by the sea so it's not uncommon to come across sea fossils from ancient seabeds within the vineyards themselves.  

Copyright of Federdoc

Food pairing with Arneis
In deciding a food pairing with arneis it brought me to the idea of using the fresh vegetables that I just got this week from my  CSA farmshare.  I have always grown my own large garden, but last year we had a little mischievous critter, woodchucks, that ate all my produce so this year I decided to give the CSA a shot and hopefully the woodchuck will venture off without a year of the fruits of my labor.  He sure had a big belly at the end of the season I must say.

I chose to pair with the Arneis a recipe from David's new cookbook of Cooking Chat, the original founder of our #WinePW.  He just recently published his first book Collards and Kale and I thought it was a great opportunity to test out one of the recipes by using his Creamy Penne with Kale and Mushrooms recipe.  I made some adjustments to the recipe. I'm always looking to boost up my protein intake so I chose to add some sliced chicken into the recipe.  The healthy alternative was a 1/2 pack of silken tofu, but my experience with tofu so far hasn't been to my liking so I choose to use a olive oil garlic sauce instead.  Lastly, fusilli is my favorite pasta so I was in the mood for that this week.

Fusilli with Kale and Mushrooms
 

Ingredients

1 pound of fusilli
1 onion chopped
12 oz of mushrooms sliced
Head of kale
1/2 tsp of rosemary
1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
2-3 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp of parsley
Sliced chicken or sausage
fresh grated parmesan for serving
sea salt and pepper to taste

Preparations

• On low heat, heat up olive oil in pan and add minced garlic along with a sprinkle of sea salt.  In meantime boil pot of water for pasta adding salt to the pot.
• After a few minutes add chopped onions to garlic and olive oil.  Cook until onions begin to go clear and soften.
• Add mushrooms and cook until softened.
• Chop kale and begin to add to the mushroom, onion and olive oil mixture.  Add rosemary, additional salt and pepper to taste.  Cover ingredients and simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes
• Saute chicken or sausage in separate pan in a couple tablespoons of olive oil
• Add pasta once water has begun to boil and prepare until dictated time.
• Once pasta and chicken are fully cooked, add both to saute pan with other ingredients and mix together. Upon serving top with fresh grated parmesan cheese.

 

Food and Wine Pairing with Arneis
The Arneis was a nice complement to the Fusilli with Kale and Mushrooms.  I felt that the citrus and crisp acidity of the wine paired well with the slight bitterness of the kale along with the other components of this dish.  I think if this dish had a creaminess to it as the original recipe had it would still be a nice choice.   

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June Wine Pairing Weekend Round-up: More Summer Arneis Food Pairing Recipes!

We'll be talking about Arneis and summer wine pairings later today during our Twitter chat at 11:00 ET by following the hashtag #WinePW.

• Esplorando Arneis con #WinePW, Dracaena Wines
• A Summer Arneis Food Pairing: BBQ Chicken in a Citrus Butter Curry Sauce, GirlsGottaDrink
• Spaghetti alla Carbonara for #SummerOfArneis #WinePW, Curious Cuisiniere
• Kale Pesto Tortellini Paired with Arneis, Cooking Chat
• Shrimp and Fennel Risotto with Arneis, FoodWineClick
• Heritage Grain Risotto with Roero Arneis, Wine Pass
• Damilano Langhe Arneis Paired with Dungeness Crab and Pea Purée Crostini, Pull That Cork
• Maltagliati con Sugo dei Porri e Trotte alla Salvia, Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Italian Arneis Wine for #WinePW (yum - linguini and clam sauce!), A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Summer of Arneis on #WinePW, Rockin Red Blog
• Shrimp and Cheese Grits with Vietti Arneis, Enofylz Wine Blog
• Shrimp, Fennel, Fava Bean Pasta with Vietti Arneis, Tasting Pour

Wine Pairing Weekend July: Join us next month!

In July Americans celebrate Independence Day and the French celebrate Bastille Day. July's Wine Pairing Weekend will take place on Saturday, July 11, led by Michelle Williams of Rockin Red Blog. The group will explore food and wine pairings from the United States and France. Get creative and make your favorite all American food and wine meal, your favorite all French food and wine meal, one of each or a combination of both! With these two regions the sky is the limit!

 
Source: Malvira Winery

Arneis wines from Malvira winery in the Roero

I thought it would be fun to compare one grape, Arneis, but in two different styles, a still white wine and a dessert style. Both of these wines are from the winery, Azienda Agricola Malvira, located in the Roero, a town in the northwestern region of Italy in Piedmont. Two brothers, Massimo and Roberto Damonte, run the vineyard and winery that they took over from their father Giuseppe that began production in the 1950's. Their winery produces about 380,000 bottles a year on about 103 acres.

Compliments of www.langhevini.it

The white wine I tasted was a 2012 Malvira Roero Arneis. This is their Arneis that comes from multiple vineyard sites, where some of the other Arneis are single vineyard. It's made of 100% Arneis and is fermented in stainless steel for 4-8 months. It was a light wine with acidity up front, but aromatic fruit in the middle. 

The other wine was a dessert style, Malvira Renesium Arneis, that is sourced from their Trinita vineyard and is made up of 90% arneis and 10% other aromatic grapes. The difference between this and the other is that the grapes for the dessert wine were affected with botrytis, also having a form called noble rot, which is a beneficial fungus that grows on the grapes. It takes place drier conditions take place after wet weather. Botrytis starts to remove the water within the grapes, therefore making them more concentrated. In addition, this wine was aged for 2 years in french oak. It had that nice honeysuckle taste that is typical of botrytis affected grapes.

Drinking this Arneis reminded me of the time that I had a private tour set up through Martignetti's to meet with the owner, Matteo Ascheri, of the Ascheri winery in Bra, Piedmont. I think that is a great place to pick up next time so stay tuned of some great pictures and my meeting with Matteo and his winemaker Giuliano.

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