2023 Agricola Brandini, Langhe Arneis ‘Le Margherite’ Piedmonte White, Italy.
This new release of Le Margherite Arneis by Brandiini is a gorgeous wine and a great value for what you get in the glass, it is fast becoming a favorite of mine from the Langhe and there’s a beautiful purity and dry, crisp and mineral focus with bright citrus and stone fruits leading the way on the vivid medium bodied palate. This vintage again, like the 2021, impressed me, with its fresh intensity with lemon/lime, white peach and melon fruits along with bitter almond, chalky stones, star anise, delicate jasmine and a faint herbal element in a fine tuned dry white wine with a salty zip on the finish, making it excellent with sea food and or creamy cheeses. The Bagnasco sisters, Serena and Giovanna, have really turned Brandini into a must have label in the region and while most of the attention is on their fabulous set of Barolo offerings, they have a quality throughout their lineup, with the Arneis and Dolcetto being outstanding efforts and great wines for the price, and they also have added Alta Langhe sparkling wines, inspired by grower producer Champagne, which have gained a following too. The Le Margherite vineyard sits on an exposed slope in the Canale zone, in Roero, getting a firm wind at about 350 meters up and has sandy calcareous soils, prime terroir for Arneis that provides exceptional fruit, as seen here.
Arneis, a native Piemonte grape, born in the Langhe area, that not too long ago almost went extinct before making an astonishing comeback with local legends, Giacosa and Vietti being leaders in the Arneis revival and who still craft fine versions of this grape. Now there are many other producers that are now doing fabulous things with Arneis, and I think Brandini’s version, which I’ve mentioned before, is one of the best I’ve had in recent years. The excellent draining calcareous in the Roero zone sandy soils are, as the Brandini’s note, part of what part of the puzzle that allows their Arneis to do so well and showcase its best attributes, saying the grape actually struggles in heavy clay soils. So much attention is payed to small yields and organic methods in the vines, while in the cellar Brandini is intent on purity of form and terroir transmission, especially on the Arneis, which is fermented and aged exclusively in stainless steel. The perfectly ripened golden Arneis berries are whole cluster pressed and fermented with spontaneous yeasts with temperature control, starting cool, warmed slightly to finish primary and chilled down to prevent Malo (malolactic conversion) from happening, all to preserve vitality and verve in the wine. After that non malolactic fermentation, the Arneis is kept cold and the lees are stirred a few times, as they say, to bring a little more texture to the body and highlight the floral elements, then the wine is gently fined and filtered just prior to its bottling. Repeating myself, you should ge to know these Brandini wines as soon as possible.
($27 Est.) 93 Points, grapelive