When you arrive in the Gavi region – or even better, when you return to it – you will perceive a “sense of place”, which turns this territory into something unique, and distinguishes it from other well-known wine regions in southern Piemont, such as the Langhe and Monferrato (which it borders).

The small town of Gavi with its imposing fortress Forte di Gavi n the background, Photo: Consorzio di Tutela del Gavi

The aesthetics of nature in the land on the other side of the mountains

It is difficult to define this sense or spirit. It is all about a special kind of light, a brightness that wafts on the southerly mountain breezes and pushes fog and mists away to the north, towards the Po plains. One cannot see the ocean from here, but you can almost feel it, as it is located only slightly more than thirty kilometres away, as the crow flies. Located in between are the Apennine mountains, and the small wild Lemme brook gurgles along in light blue among the rocks of white marl. There are extensive forests with indigenous plants such as oak and the copse beech tree (Carpinus betulus), which manage to withstand the growing influence of the American Robinia, which in other regions has expanded relentlessly, occupying the territory. Thanks to its wide diversity of fauna and flora, the region is particularly popular with nature lovers. You can enjoy a delightfully fresh climate in the forests in summer, and in winter a white coat of snow often hides the scenery, a rather rare event these days in other parts of the Piemonte region.

In summer, the differences between daytime and night-time temperatures are extreme. The vineyards are generally young and well tended, even from an aesthetic point of view, as the producers in the Gavi region are more concerned about the integrity of their landscape, and are keen to demonstrate this concern. Ancient houses and impressive country manors appear here and there among the vineyards and forests. Not too showy, just comfortably wealthy, elegant and well proportioned, fitting perfectly into the environment. One appears to be entering a domain of an enlightened aristocracy that sees the land not only as a resource to be bled to death, but also as a heritage that must be preserved and maintained for the future – and that even uses this heritage as a source of enriching one’s life, with hunting, hiking and walks, riding….Don’t get me wrong. Gavi is not only these things, and perhaps it is no more than these, but at least that is the impression that is most often conveyed, and it is not an unpleasant one. You can also follow this up through history. In the times of the Republic of Genoa, the Genoese merchants established their noble country manors in the region of Gavi and its environment, financed from the profits of their trade in the capital of the foundry industry. Thus Gavi became something like the Riviera of Brenta for Venice, with its famous palladium villas, for Genoa, which has a mountainous hinterland. And protected by one of the access roads that leads from the Po plains to the ocean, the Genoese erected an impressive fortress in Gavi, which remains well preserved to this day. A sort of border dialect prevails here, a mixture of the typical Ligurian sounds with that of the inhabitants of Gavi, though it owes a little more to its Piemontese roots.


Cortese – White beats Red

The Gavi grape variety: Cortese, Photo: Consorzio di Tutela del Gavi

Gavi wines are made exclusively from a single indigenous grape variety, Cortese. The word „Cortese“ is found for the first time in a letter by the manager of the Montaldeo castle to margrave Doria in 1659. Up until then, and for a long time after, the vineyards were planted mainly with red varieties, such as Nibiö (local name for Dolcetto) or Barbera. Cortese, together with other white varieties, was distinctly in the minority. The first large-scale vineyard blocks of Cortese went into production as of 1856, on the properties of the margrave Cambiaso, La Centuriona and La Toledana in Gavi.

In 1869 Demaria and Leardi, two scientists on the ampelographical commission, which was established by the province of Allessandria, defined Cortese as “an indigenous, robust and fertile grape variety, that has been known and cultivated in the region for a long time“.

In the 19th century, important wine-producing estates were established, run by families such as the Raggio, Serra, Sartorio and Spinola. They accompanied the rise of Cortese as a wine of international standing, and at the same time ended the era of domination by red varieties in the old vineyards. Towards the end of the 19th century, the dominance of Cortese increased even further, once it had survived the phylloxera threat. New vines had to be planted, and at the same time the vineyard area was expanded, mainly to satisfy the increasing demand for white wines in the neighbouring region of Liguria. The „Cortese di Gavi” experienced changing fortunes in the 20th century. In the heyday of the typically aromatised wines of the Piemonte – from the first decades of the 20th century until after the Second World War – it was in great demand mainly as a base wine for vermouth. In the second half of the last century it is thanks mainly to the Soldati family and the “La Scolca” estate that the reputation of Gavi was improved. The real world of production today is extremely varied, there are huge wineries, medium-sized and small ones, and one can find excellent products in each of these categories.

Vineyard with Cortese vines, Photo: La Scolca

The protected classification of origin (Denominazione di Origine Controllata - DOC) dates back to 1974, with both „Gavi“ or „Cortese di Gavi“ being permitted. Over time, the naming of the grape variety has fallen into disuse. The Consorzio di Tutela del Gavi (www-consorziogavi.com) has been active since 1993, and elevation to DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita) status followed in 1998.


From a fresh, light wine to a „vin de garde“

The past two decades have partly altered the image of this wine, o rat least they have differentiated it in various ways. Today, Gavi is no longer regarded only as a light, fresh white wine that needs to be drunk young. Although the Cortese grape does not produce a great deal of sugar, and the wines therefore rarely show a very high alcohol content, modern viticultural and cellar practices (including a trend to harvest at a later stage) have tremendously improved the maturation potential of this wine. While the young wines are aromatic, with notes of white flowers and citrus fruit, it gains in complexity over time, developing mineral notes that are well supported by its particularly prominent acidity. For this reason, too, the variety is suitable for the production of sparkling wines. A wide spectrum of aromas may be found, but these are always delicate and never obtrusive, as Gavi is not an aromatic wine, not a fruit bomb, rather it is the perfect food wine among the white wines, superb with fish, but also excellent with a focaccia (pizza bread with cheese), ravioli with a cheese filling, fairly young cheeses and many other dishes, for instance also with a simple salami roll and the famous „testa in cassetta“ from Gavi, a sausage made from parts of a calf’s head.


Facts and figures on the Gavi DOCG

DOCG recognition	By ministerial decree dated 9 July 1998. The region had been classified as a DOC region since 26 June 1974.
Production area	Total of eleven communes: The entire area of the towns of Bosio, Carrosio, Gavi, Parodi Ligure and San Christoforo. Parts of Novi Lingure, Serravalle Scvrivia, Francavilla Bisio, Caprita d´Orba, Pasturana and Tassarolo in Alessandria province.
Permitted variety	Cortese
Types of wine	Three variants are produced: still wine, frizzante (perlé wine) and spumante (sparkling wine)
Maximum yield	9,5 t grapes per hectare
Must yield	maximum 70 %
Minimum alcohol content	10,5 % Alc. by Vol.
Production area (as per Nov. 2007)	1.224 ha
Production volume 2006	9.400.000 bottles

Translated by Katrin Walter/Peter Gebler