From Gavi with Love: A Mythical Princess & Cortese's Courteous Charm
– a white wine's heritage explored
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Today let’s travel to Piemonte (Piedmont in English) in Northwest Italy. This wine region, known for red wines, was highlighted in the Bewildered by Barolo, Barbaresco and Barbera article. But it is also home to a dry white wine of recently improving quality. The wine is made from 100% Cortese grapes grown within Gavi, the sub-region. On the label you may see one of these three wine names:
Gavi
Cortese di Gavi
Gavi del Commune di Gavi – in this case the Cortese grapes are grown within the municipality of Gavi.
According to Wine-searcher, Gavi was Italy’s first white wine to gain international reputation and is considered one of Italy’s top-ranking whites.
Whoa Whoa - Hold your horses, where exactly is Piemonte again?
Piemonte is the wine region in the northwest corner of Italy, bordering France to the west and Switzerland to the North. Torino (Turin), its major city, is located in its heart. The towns of Asti and Alba are relevant as they can appear on wine labels.
Gavi is on the southeastern portion of Piemonte and smells of the sea from the cooling Mediterranean breeze. This cooling effect is why Gavi is suited for white grape growing. Generally white grapes do well in cooler regions as they ripen faster than reds.
I have not heard of the Cortese grape.
Cortese is one of thousands of indigenous Italian grapes. As with many European wine regions, the grape name may not appear on the wine label. But all Gavi wines must be made with 100% Cortese.
There is a legend about a very beautiful Princess named Gavia, the namesake of the Gavi village. In the year 528, the girl was fleeing troops under the command of her father, Clodomiro, King of Franks.
She was in love with a young man from her father’s court, but her father did not approve because of the young man’s lower rank. Having a very strong personality, she decided to escape and took shelter in a village. This safe haven was eventually named Gavi after her.
The myth goes on that her courteous nature gave the grape its name - Cortese being Italian for courteous.
Why did the Gavi wine improve in quality?
In the past Gavi wines were quite neutral in taste.
aka boring
Wine quality starts with the grape itself. In the case of Gavi, the wine laws have now lowered the maximum allowable yields, and it shows!
Good raw material makes for good wine!
Lower yields have provided greater concentration of flavors and crisper acidity. Gavi is a dry, typically unoaked wine, allowing the citrus, white and yellow fruit, and mineral notes to come through.
The featured wine is a Gavi del Commune di Gavi from Tenuta Olim Bauda. (Tenuta is Italian for estate.)
Does the producer of your featured wine have a fun story?
Indeed, and one steeped in history, as you would expect!
Documentation of the property and its name “the Bauda” goes back to 1220. Throughout history ownership changed hands several times, providing a summer residence to the famous 19th century opera tenor De Negri, serving as a World War II refuge and infirmary, and finally, becoming a wine estate.
In 1961, Angostino Bertolino purchased the historic property as a family residence, recognizing the land's suitability for quality grape growing. The Bertolinos were not new to wine, coming from four generations of wine producers, including Giovanni Bertolino, Angostino’s father.
And bam, Tenuta Olim Bauda is born!
Angostino died prematurely, forcing the estate to cease winemaking, while continuing to grow grapes, for roughly a decade. In 1998, Angostino’s children Diana, Gianni, and Dino, now in their 20s, made their first Barbera, the winery’s previously best-known wine.
This kicked things off again for Olim Bauda.
And presto, a wine estate is born again!
Since then, the siblings have run the business together, divvying up the responsibilities with Diana responsible for administration and logistics, Dino vineyards & cellars, and Gianni handling the marketing, media, and customer relations.
Isn’t this the same producer that made the wonderful Barbera d’Asti we drank this weekend?
It IS delicious! I will include it below as well!
Tenuta Olim Bauda Gavi del Commune di Gavi 2023 from Piemonte, Italy
Style: Dry minerally White Wine
Varieties: 100% Cortese
This crisp and steely wine has citrus, white and yellow fruit flavors, including hints of pineapple and underripe mango and the complexity of salinity and wet stone notes. It has a lively nature and a long finish.
Best pairings: Hot or cold vegetable appetizers, White fish & shellfishes dishes, Roasted chicken or Poulet Cordon Bleu, and Soft cheese: Brie and Harvarti
Serving Temperature: 7-10 degrees Celsius
Serving Tips: Enjoy with or without food particularly on a shady patio on a warm summer’s day!
Cost: ~$26 Canadian
Tenuta Olim Bauda Barbera d’Asti La Villa 2022 from Piemonte, Italy
Style: Old World Medium Body Red
Varieties: 100% Barbera
This vibrant wine is stunning with various forms of red cherry flavors from fresh and crunchy to freeze-dried and kirsch. On the palate continues concentrated raspberry, dried blueberries, rich blackberry, black plum, and cassis notes. The complexity of anise, milk chocolate, malt chocolate ball candy, vanilla, and sweet spice complements the long finish.
Best pairings: Pasta with tomato-based sauces, Mushroom tart, Ratatouille, Bruschetta, Pork roast with a berry or cherry reduction, Beef Stroganoff, Sausage pizza, Aged cheese like Parmigiano-Reggiano and Pecorino.
Serving Temperature: 15-17 degrees Celsius
Serving Tips: Optimally decant it and serve it right after (but delicious without decanting too!)
Cost: ~$26 Canadian
I have compiled all my wine recommendations in one place. I will do my best to keep this up to date. I also include the link(s) to the article in which the wine was featured.
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SOURCES:
Camuto, R. (2023) The comeback of a cool piedmont red, Wine Spectator. Available at: https://www.winespectator.com/articles/the-comeback-of-a-cool-piedmont-red (Accessed: 08 July 2024).
Cortese (2020) Piemonte Land of Wine. Available at: https://www.piemonteland.it/vini/cortese/ (Accessed: 08 July 2024).
Cortese di Gavi Docg, Piedmont - italian wine region (2024) Wine Searcher. Available at: https://www.wine-searcher.com/regions-gavi+-+cortese+di+gavi (Accessed: 08 July 2024).
Gavi DOCG (2023) Consorzio Tutela del Gavi. Available at: https://www.consorziogavi.com/gavi-docg-2/ (Accessed: 08 July 2024).
Harding, J. and Robinson, J. (2023) The oxford companion to wine. Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.
Home (2024) Tenuta Olim Bauda. Available at: https://www.tenutaolimbauda.it/en/ (Accessed: 08 July 2024).
Piemonte Land of Wine (2020) ‘cartina-gavi’. Piemonte Land. Available at: https://www.piemonteland.it/vini/cortese/ (Accessed: 08 July 2024).
Rocca, C. (2021) Gavi Wine, from princess Gavia, Sale&Pepe. Available at: https://www.salepepe.com/gavi-wine-from-princess-gavia (Accessed: 08 July 2024).
Wine & Spirit Education Trust (2021) D3: Wines of the World - An accompaniment to the WSET Level 4 Diploma in Wines. Version 1.2. London: Wine & Spirit Education Trust.