NV Cellario É Orange Vino Bianco 1L

Region: Langhe < Piemonte < Italy

Grapes: Nascetta, Arneis, Incrocio Manzoni

Vineyard/Cellar Stats: Certified organic farming; marl and tuff soil, 350 meters altitude; 5 days skin maceration then aged in amphora for 6 to 8 months until bottling with minimal sulphur (~10ppm) and without filtering or fining; 12.5% ABV

Winemaker: Fausto Cellario. 

The Cellario family takes joy in their native surroundings of the hills around Carrù in Piemonte, and make an effort to channel the environment around them through in their wines. With a history in the region that spans generations, they ultimately they feel that the wines reflect themselves as well. They work only with native grapes for this reason, farm organically and are hands off in the cellar. No new wood is allowed, and only minimal sulfur added at bottling. The elevation is high here, and the soil is predominately marl, combined with some tuff. Marl, the typical clay-based Piemonte soil type, adds acid to resulting wines, and the tuff, which is of volcanic origin, adds a smokey quality. While the Cellario’s vineyard holdings include esteemed Piemonte sites, they choose to adopt a philosophy they describe as “wine of the people”.

This beautiful orange wine is a new addition to their fairly traditional lineup.  The color of an almost-ripe tangerine, it smells divine -- citrusy and aromatic, like there are some candied flowers in there. In the glass you get extreme citrus along with candied ginger, palpable minerality and racy acidity that lingers. SO GOOD!  And sadly, so limited - we were only able to get our hands on one case!