Cortese is a white grape of Piedmont, grown mainly in the southeast of the region near the border with Liguria. It is the grape of Gavi, one of Italy's best-known whites: crisp, dry and mineral, with lemon, green apple, white flowers and almond.
Cortese has been grown in the hills around Gavi and Novi Ligure for centuries, and the first records of the grape date from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Its success came from its closeness to Genoa: Gavi was the white wine of the Genoese nobility and restaurants, a fresh match for Ligurian seafood. In the second half of the twentieth century, producers such as La Scolca helped make Gavi an internationally known wine. Gavi became a DOCG in 1998.
The sea breezes from Liguria and the poor marl soils give Gavi its fresh acidity and mineral character.
Most Gavi is best within two or three years. Wines from top vineyards, Riserva versions and wines aged on the lees can develop honey, hazelnut and mineral notes for several years.
Start with a Gavi DOCG or a Gavi del Comune di Gavi. Producers worth knowing include La Scolca, La Raia, Villa Sparina, Broglia, La Bollina, Cinzia Bergaglio, La Toledana, La Mesma and Michele Chiarlo.
Cortese shares southern Piedmont with Timorasso in the Colli Tortonesi, and is a crisper alternative to Arneis from the Roero. In the Veneto it is blended with Garganega. Read our best Piedmont wines, the Italian white wine guide, or browse the grape varieties index.