Arneis
Also known as Bianchetta, Nebbiolo Bianco
Piedmont, Italy
Piedmont's fragrant dry white, best known from Roero: pear, almond and white flowers in a rounded, fairly full-bodied wine, and a grape that was nearly lost.
Sensory profile
Characteristics
Flavor & aroma
At a glance
Production facts
Prevalence
Niche
Climate
Moderate climate
Ripening
Mid season
Wine styles
Still
Where it's grown
Geography
Shaded areas are the state, province or département(s) containing each region, so they run wider than the appellations themselves.
Background
Origin & History
Arneis has long been grown in the hills of Roero and the Langhe, in the province of Cuneo. Its name is Piedmontese for a difficult, unpredictable character, usually glossed as 'little rascal', a reference to a vine that is fussy to grow. Growers traditionally used it to soften Nebbiolo, which is where its old synonym Nebbiolo Bianco comes from, but DNA shows no genetic relationship between the two.
By the 1970s it had almost disappeared, and only a couple of producers, notably Vietti and Bruno Giacosa, were making it as a wine in its own right. Renewed interest in Piedmont's whites from the 1980s brought plantings back, and Roero Arneis now has DOCG status, with Langhe Arneis as a DOC. The wine is dry, with pear, apricot and almond; unoaked versions are the most aromatic, and oak ageing gives more body.
Lineage
Family tree
Parentage not recorded — Arneis is an old variety of unknown origin.
No crossings involving Arneis are documented in the collection yet.