Cascina degli Ulivi Montemarino 2022

Cascina degli Ulivi is a biodynamic farm in the hills around Novi Ligure in Piedmont, where the late Stefano Bellotti pioneered a holistic estate growing cereals, fruit and livestock alongside the vines. Montemarino is a single-variety Cortese, the grape of nearby Gavi, here made in a fuller, skin-contact style rather than the crisp white the variety usually yields. The vineyards sit on clay and limestone soils worked without synthetic chemicals, which gives the wine its savoury depth and herbal lift. Fermentation runs with native yeasts, and the must spends time macerating on the skins, drawing tannin and phenolic structure that frame the wine and deepen its colour. Ageing in wood adds slow oxygen exchange that builds nutty, dried-fruit complexity and rounds the texture. The colour is golden to light amber. The nose shows pear, dried apricot and hazelnut over chamomile, beeswax and a touch of earth. The palate is dry and textured, with a gentle tannic grip and a long savoury finish. Serve at 12 to 14 degrees in a wide glass. It suits roast pork, poultry, nutty hard cheese and earthy autumn vegetables.