Who: Diego Carrea
Where: Francavilla Bisio, Alessandria• Piedmont, Italy
Founded: Under Diego since 2000
Orientation: southwest
Land: 7 hectares, 300 meters above sea level
Average age of the vines: 35 years
Soil: mostly calcareous - clayey
Training System: Guyot
Grapes: Cortese only
Appellation: Gavi DOCG
Viticulture: Organic certified
Harvest: By hand
Annual Production: 15,000 btls (1,250 cases)
The farm was left to Diego Carrea a few years back by his father. At the time of his father's passing, Diego was pursuing a different career, far from the world of wine in which he grew up. Life changes and you are left to make choices, and with 7 hectares of Cortese vineyard in the jewel of Gavi, the choice for Diego was not hard. Working with the memory of his father, in the name of family, on the land of his ancestors- what more could one want?
Making organic wine in the beautiful hills of Piedmont, with fantastic sea air and soil rich in history, is Diego's world now. Two wines, one grape, on a plot of land grown in an organic manner paying tribute to the soil and grapes: you can taste it in every bottle: a fragrant and fruity white wine, soft and elegant. A Gavi worth singing about.
His soils are a mixture of limestone and clay, with “terra rossa” or iron-rich, red clay veins. Harvest is done by hand, fermentation happens with indigenous yeasts, and he adds a minimal amount of sulfites during winemaking.
ABOUT THE GAVI / CORTESE DI GAVI DOCG
History: Established as a DOC in 1974; became a DOCG in 1998
Vineyard Area: 1,253 ha / 3,095 acres (2018)
Production: 90,500 hl / 1,006,000 cases (2018)
Principal White Grape Varieties: Cortese
Styles and Wine Composition:
WHITE WINE: Bianco + Riserva (Wh, WhFr): 100% Cortese
SPARKLING WINES: Spumante + Riserva MC: 100% Cortese
ITS THE LAW:
ALCOHOL: (Minimum alcohol level)
10.5% for Bianco and Spumante;
11.0% for Riserva and Riserva Spumante Metodo Classico
AGING: Bianco Riserva, minimum 1 year, including 6 months in bottle (ERD = November 1, V+1); Riserva Spumante Metodo Classico, minimum 2 years, including 18 months on the lees (ERD = October 15, V+2);
Molinetto | Gavi
Gavi di Cortese DOCG
Cortese from the heart of Gavi grows out of dense calcareous clay soils, lending itself to a hearty mineral focus at the core of these wines.
GRAPE: 100% Cortese
VINEYARD LOCATION in Tassarolo (AL)
EXPOSURE + ALTITUDE: South - South-West, 250 meters above sea level SOIL: calcareous - clayey and sometimes red earth
TRAINING: guyot, 4000 plants per hectare
HARVEST: manual
WINEMAKING: traditional with a soft pressing of the whole grapes FERMENTATION + MATURATION: in steel tanks
AROMA: characteristic, delicate, fruity, floral
TASTE: typical, dry, pleasant, with a fresh and harmonious taste
Manually harvested and gently pressed in whole clusters, the delicate and quietly elegant nature of this wine speaks in hushed tones. Fermented and aged in stainless steel the true expression of the terroir shines through this wine with a harmony of soft yellow fruit and pleasant mineral freshness.
FOOD: it is ideal as an aperitif; it goes well with elegance with appetizers of fish, seafood, shellfish, chicken and rice salads, white meat escalopes, light roasts, and mixed fried foods
Bottles produced: 12,000
Bottle: 750 ml
Pack: 12
Closure: Cork
Alc: 12.5%
M E D I A
“Delicate aromas of peach blossom and citrus zest guide the nose. The rather lean palate suggests beeswax, lemon juice and bitter almond alongside bright acidity.”
-Kerin O’Keefe WE 2018 86 PTSDECANTER 2016 - BRONZE
Molinetto | "Re-Lys" Gavi
Gavi di Cortese DOCG
Grown from vines dating back to 1964, this bottling is the magnum opus of Molinetto.
GRAPE: 100% Cortese
VINEYARD LOCATION in Tassarolo (AL)
EXPOSURE + ALTITUDE: South - South-West, 250 meters above sea level SOIL: calcareous - clayey and sometimes red earth
TRAINING: guyot, 4000 plants per hectare
HARVEST: manual
The clarity and focus of Molinetto’s Cortese radiate through a soft layer of complexity added to the wine from a third of the production spending six months in French oak barrel while the rest ages in stainless steel. A period of skin maceration adds another layer to this contemplative, lovely wine. Perfect for oysters, risotto, and even truffled dishes.
WINEMAKING: crushing-destemming of whole grapes, maceration of the must on the skins, and soft pressing Fermentation in steel tanks with minimal use of sulfur. Maturation in 1/3 in French oak barrels for 6 months- 2/3 in steel tanks for 6 months.
AROMA: characteristic, delicate, fruity, floralFOOD: it goes well with oysters, seafood, shellfish and fish, first courses, risotto, truffles, and fish soup. A particular pairing is the elegant and delicate "Risotto al Gavi"
Bottles produced: 3,000
Bottle: 750 ml
Pack: 12
Closure: Cork
Alc: 12.5%
M E D I A
DECANTER 2017 - BRONZE 89 PTS
DECANTER 2016 - BRONZE 88 PTS
Allora, shelf talker !
Molinetto
1, 15060 Francavilla Bisio AL, Italy
+39 329 490 3500
[links + doc info credit: italianwinecentral.com]
