Cortese is a white grape variety with roots in Piemonte in northern Italy, where it has a long history. It was first documented in the 1600s, among other places in the cellar books of Casale Monferrato in 1614, and received its first proper ampelographic description in 1799 from Count Nuvolone for the agricultural society in Torino. Today it is grown above all in the Piemontese provinces of Asti and Alessandria, but also in areas such as Alto Monferrato, Tortonese and Cuneo.
The grape is known for its great biodiversity, with 75 identified biotypes and more than 30 certified clones. It has good vigour and high yield, ripens around the middle of September, and is valued for its resilience to cool conditions. On the other hand, the thin-skinned berries are sensitive to grey rot in damp or rainy autumns.
Cortese gives dry white wines with high acidity, and the grape is equally suited to still wines and to mousserende vin. The style ranges from fresh, unoaked versions to variants aged in barrel. The lighter wines from Alto Monferrato and Tortonese are typically drunk young.
The best-known setting for Cortese is Gavi, whose designation is reserved for ten towns in the Alessandria province, including Gavi itself as well as Novi Ligure, Serravalle Scrivia and Tassarolo. Beyond Gavi, the grape appears in a number of DOCs such as Cortese dell'Alto Monferrato, Cortese di Monferrato Casalese, Piemonte Cortese and Cortese dell'Oltrepò Pavese. It is also grown in Lombardiet (Oltrepò Pavese) and in Veneto, where it forms part of DOC wines such as Garda Cortese and Bianco di Custoza, both as a varietal and as part of blends. Internationally, Cortese can also be found in places such as Australia and California.
If you want to explore Cortese, it is a variety that unites fresh acidity and an unpretentious elegance. It does well as a young, everyday white wine, but also shows a more serious side in the finest Gavi wines. In Piemonte the grape has even traditionally been used as a table grape, which says a good deal about its accessible, straightforward character.