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Piedmont · DOCG
Gavi/Cortese di Gavi DOCG Piedmont's Definitive Cortese White Wine
Gavi is Piedmont's definitive Cortese, refined over a thousand years on the chalky clay hills of Alessandria. The DOCG spans 11 towns between the Ligurian Apennines and the Po Valley. It makes still, frizzante and spumante whites. Expect crisp acidity, citrus blossom and a stony tension. Over 13 million bottles are produced each year, and 90 percent are exported.
55
Wines live now
£12-£98
Price range today
21
UK retailers
The boundary
Where it is
Everything on this page, the estates, the bottles, the sub-zones, sits inside this line.
Gavi/Cortese di Gavi DOCG zone
Estates you can visit
In the glass
What it tastes like
Green Apple
Lemon
White peach
Pear
Acacia
Almond
Honey
Flint
The disciplinare
The rules that define it
The same table on every denomination page, straight from the production rules.
Grape & its role
Share of the blend
050100%
Cortese100% Cortese per DOCG disciplinare100%Solid means the rules demand it. Striped means optional, up to that amount. The words on the right say the same rule.
Yields are capped at 9.5 tonnes per hectare by the production rules.
Every wine must pass a release tasting before it may carry the denomination.
Editor's cellar
Bottles to try, and what Gavi/Cortese di Gavi costs in the UK
Every live Gavi/Cortese di Gavi listing, cheapest to dearest
48 wines · 21 retailers
Live prices, compared across 21 UK retailers.
Cellar doors · inside the zone
Estates you can visit
One estate inside the zone opens its doors today. A small list, honestly kept: only working cellars with confirmed visits appear here.
No estates match these filters. Clear a filter to see more.
Experiences in the Gavi/Cortese di Gavi zone
Cellar experiences here average around €41. These are the strongest fits for this page.
Experience
The Scolca Masterclass
La Scolca
Discover La Scolca through its most complete experience: the Masterclass. In the cellar that was its cradle, Cortese di Gavi reveals its mos…
2 h From €56 pp
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Winedering
Tasting
The La Scolca Experience
La Scolca
A great wine is made with great grapes. A simple principle, but the foundation of oenology. La Scolca will take you to discover this grape a…
1 h From €25 pp
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Winedering
Experience
Caviar Experience
La Scolca
An exclusive experience combining two great classics of elegance: Vivari caviar and the Cortese expressions signed by La Scolca. The preciou…
1 h From €45 pp
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Winalist
The years
Gavi/Cortese di Gavi vintages, 2011-2025
2011
Attractive freshness, past peak for standard…
2013
Aromatic, mid-weight, fresh (general Piedmon…
2014
Cool year benefited white-grape acidity (Ber…
2016
Structured, balanced (Bersano 88)
2017
Fresh, aromatic character (Bersano 90)
2018
Warm vintage, solid concentration (Bersano 8…
2019
Excellent growing season across Piedmont (Be…
2020
Lighter weight, early drinking (Bersano 89)
2021
Good structure and freshness (Bersano 91)
2025
Balance and resilience, return to equilibriu…
Reading the years
2013
Very Good · 4/5
Aromatic, mid-weight, fresh (general Piedmont)
Tap a year for its note.
How Gavi/Cortese di Gavi is made
Gavi DOCG requires 100 percent Cortese. The grapes must grow across 11 towns in Alessandria province, at 150 to 450 metres. The soils are chalky clay. Minimum vine density is 3,300 plants per hectare. The maximum yield is 9.5 tonnes per hectare for standard versions. It drops to 8.5 for single-vineyard (vigna) bottlings and 6.5 for Riserva. Three styles are permitted: Tranquillo (still), Frizzante and Spumante. Minimum alcohol is 9.5 percent for Tranquillo and Frizzante, 9 percent for Spumante and 11 percent for Riserva. Riserva wines need one year of ageing, with six months in bottle, and are released from 1 November. Riserva Spumante made by the traditional method demands two years, including 18 months on the spent yeast. Natural cork is required for every Riserva. Most producers work in stainless steel. Five to six months of contact with the spent yeast builds texture, without masking Cortese's native acidity.
In depth
The earliest documented mention of winemaking around Gavi dates to 972 AD. In that year Genoa's bishop leased vineyards in the Meirana locality. By 1659, local records described the area as planted entirely with 'viti tutte di Cortese'. Count Nuvolone's 1798 survey of grape varieties praised Cortese for making 'good wine that ages well'. The current style of production dates to 1876. DOC status followed in 1974, and DOCG status in 1998.
The production zone sits at the south-eastern corner of Piedmont, where the Ligurian Apennines meet the Po Valley. Three distinct soil bands cross the 11 towns. The north has red clay-limestone soils and sandstone, known locally as terre rosse. The centre is mixed. The south has white chalky clays. That geological variety lets producers draw very different wines from the same grape. Villa Sparina, Nicola Bergaglio with its Minaia vineyard, Broglia with La Meirana, and La Scolca all show it. Wines from vines inside the town of Gavi itself may carry the prestigious 'Gavi di Gavi' designation.
Cortese's high natural acidity is the hallmark. Young Gavi opens with citrus blossom, green apple and white peach, over a salty, stony thread. Riserva bottlings develop almond, honey and flint notes that reward cellaring. La Mesma's Etichetta Nera, aged in cement for a year, is one example. The Consorzio Tutela del Gavi has united 190 member estates since 1993. It oversees production of around 13 million bottles a year. Approximately 90 percent is exported, and the United Kingdom and the United States are the two largest markets.
On the table
What to eat with Gavi/Cortese di Gavi
The home country leads; global pairings that genuinely work follow.
Meats
Vitello Tonnato
Vitello Tonnato is the Piedmontese cold summer veal, sliced thin and covered with an emulsion of tuna, capers, anchovy and egg yolk.
In-depth guide
Gavi/Cortese di Gavi, answered
Gavi DOCG is made from 100 percent Cortese. It is a native white grape, documented in the Alessandria hills since at least 1659. No blending is permitted under the DOCG rules.
Gavi di Gavi comes only from vineyards inside the town of Gavi itself. Standard Gavi DOCG may take Cortese from any of the 11 permitted towns in Alessandria province. The distinction is geographic, not stylistic, though Gavi di Gavi wines often carry a premium.
Cortese is the grape and Gavi is the denomination. Cortese can be grown elsewhere in Piedmont and Lombardy under other names, such as Cortese dell'Alto Monferrato DOC. Only Cortese from the 11 DOCG towns in Alessandria may be labelled Gavi.
Gavi's high acidity and stony profile suit seafood, such as fritto misto or grilled branzino. They also suit light pasta dishes, such as trofie al pesto, which shares Ligurian roots. Soft cheeses and vegetable antipasti work too. Riserva bottlings with more body can stand up to white meat and risotto.
Standard Gavi Tranquillo is best within two to three years of the vintage. Riserva and single-vineyard (vigna) bottlings from top producers can develop positively for five to eight years. They gain almond and honey complexity. Villa Sparina and Nicola Bergaglio are two such producers.
Yes. Gavi DOCG is exclusively a white wine made from 100 percent Cortese. The denomination permits still (Tranquillo), lightly sparkling (Frizzante) and fully sparkling (Spumante) styles, but all are white.
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