Giovanni Rosso - Roero Arneis 2023

Although the Rosso family has been tending vines in Serralunga d’Alba for more than a century, Azienda Agricola Giovanni Rosso has only been a label since 1995, when Davide Rosso took the helm. Davide is a conscientious man who studied at Domaine Jean Grivot and Domaine Denis Mortet. This Burgundian training is evident in his vines, which are grown organically with no pesticides or herbicides. His wines reflect terroir first and foremost. And what terroir! Grapes come from the famed Crus of La Serra, Cerretta, Broglio, Meriame, Sorano, Costa Bella, Lirano, and Damiano.

In July of 2016, Davide purchased a small vineyard of decades-old vines on the northern slope of Mount Etna. He plans to vinify small lots of indigenous varietal Nerello Mascalese (a bit like Nebbiolo, but with thicker skin to withstand the Sicilian sun). As Wine Spectator’s Robert Camuto reported, “Rosso won’t be the first Piemontese to make wine on Etna; Piedmont enologists have been consulting there for years. But he is being heralded — and largely welcomed — as the first high-profile Barolista to expand here.”

Fermentation occurs with wild yeasts in cement tanks without temperature control; wines age in 5000 litre French oak barrels. This is a departure from tradition, which would see these made of Slovenian oak. Although a young winery, Giovanni Rosso has quickly proven to be one of the best in the region.

The grapes are harvested by hand in September. After de-stemming and short cryo-maceration the juice is fermented at controlled temperature in steel tanks for 21 days. Aged in steel tanks for 6 months and in bottle for 3 months.

Producer: Giovanni Rosso

Country: Italy

Region: Piedmont

Varietal: Nebbiolo

Appellation: Roero Arneis

Vintage: 2023

Size: 750ml