L'Ardita: Unique White from Piedmont
As you’ve come to know, a big part of our job is to seek out new and unique wines -- survey the outer regions, find overlooked producers, taste unpronounceable grapes, leave no barrel unturned etc. We’re alway excited and proud to share with you our discoveries - something heretofore unavailable. But sometimes, these brilliant new discoveries are right under our noses… sometimes, the new and undiscovered something is from one of our favorite producer we know and love alreay.
So recently, when we were putting together a reorder from Contrada di Sorano, Cristina sent me an email, mentioning a new release that would be ready in time for us…was I interested?
This is not the sort of thing you dismiss, from winemakers like these. Yes! Tell me more!
Contrada di Sorano, located just outside of Seralunga, in the southern portion of Barolo, has become our go-to supplier of spectacular Piedmontese wines; not just Nebbiolo, but Dolcetto and Barbera as well. It is decidely not a region for white wine, and we never intended to go searching for one there. But then again Paolo and Cristina don’t have a need for convention, and have been quietly following their own muse and making choices to suit their own passions, so I was not at all surprised to hear their latest project was a white wine.
It’s called, fittingly, L’Ardita, which translates as “The Bold”. It is made from a variety specific to Piedmont, called Favorita, which is closely related to Vermentino. Bold, because Paolo is crafting a white wine every bit as refined and worthy of the table as their reds, breaking the mold of even the typical Favoritas in the region. Paolo opts for a brief maceration of the wine on skins, to add color, structure and complex perfumed aromas to this wine.
Contrada Di Sorano
• L’Ardita Bianco 2021 •
100% Favorita from vines planted in 1991, just below the hilltop municipality of Serralunga
Maceration on the skins for 10 days, resulting in extraction of complex flavors and texture
Golden yellow in color, delicate stone fruit aromas; full-bodied and texturally rich on the palate. Long and persistent finish with a delicate aftertaste
Refreshing and enticing as an aperitivo, but you’ll probably want some food on the table to really make it shine
Italy continues to surprise me with the diversity of their wines and flavors, particularly the white wines, which sit so comfortable along side bold flavors on the table, every bit as much as their famous red wines. Paolo and Cristina have crafted another winner with this one, cementing their status in our books as supremely gifted winemakers.
Contrada di Sorano