Wines I'm Drinking: 2006 Beni di Batasiolo "Granée" Gavi di Gavi

I reviewed two wines from producer Beni di Batasiolo not long ago, the 2005 "Serbato" Langhe Chardonnay and the 2003 "Vigneto Morino" Langhe Chardonnay. Both wines were from my local (Santa Rosa) Grocery Outlet. I visited Grocery Outlet  today for the first time in a couple of months and found a Gavi di Gavi from the same producer that I thought worth a try, because I liked the other Beni di Batasiolo wines and because the Gavi was priced at only $3.99 a bottle. It's from the 2006 vintage, and older whites at Grocery Outlet are always a gamble; I didn't have high expectations, but this was delicious. Gavi di Gavi is made from Cortese grapes in the eastern part of Italy's Piemonte region, famous for Barolo and Barbaresco among reds, Roero Arneis, Langhe Arneis, and others among whites, including modern (light, crisp) white wines made from such international grapes as Chardonnay (the two wines mentioned above being good examples). Gavi di Gavi was a darling of the wine media in the 1980s and much of it was over-hyped and mediocre, but at its best Gavi can be very tasty indeed. Brief tasting notes follow.

A pretty, pale gold in the glass with limes, honey, and floral scents--the latter something like a restrained gardenia. A hint of hazelnuts perhaps, too. Very attractive and appetizing on the nose. I was reminded of some of the white wines of France's Costieres de Nîmes district (near the town of Nîmes, just west of the mouth of the Rhône)--wines that always smell of honey and have a certain waxy texture on the palate. This wine had those qualities and more--a subtly fruity mid-palate, a nuanced finish, and a crisp, balancing tartness throughout. Although low in alcohol by California standards (at 12%) this is the sort of wine that's very easy to drink too much of: Each sip leaves you wanting to go back again to try to pin down the tantalizingly elusive flavors. The current vintage (2009) sells locally for $15.99. Recommended.

I have no financial connection with any producer or retailer of wine. 

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