Langhe DOC

Name for the hilly landscape north and south of the city of Alba (province of Cuneo) in the Piedmont region, which is also romantically referred to as the "heart of Piedmont". It lies between the upper Po Valley near Turin and the Ligurian Alps and extends across the provinces of Cuneo and Asti. The area is bordered by the two rivers Tanaro and Bormida. The Langhe is divided into the three areas of Bassa Langa (lower Langa) with mainly viticulture, Alta Langa (upper Langa) with hazelnut cultivation and the Langa Astigiana area, famous for its truffle cultivation. The gentle hill ranges rise up to 600 metres above sea level and consist mainly of clay and marl soils. The DOC/DOCG areas here include Alta Langa, Barbaresco, Barbera d'Alba, Barolo, Dolcetto d'Al ba, Dolcetto di Diano d'Alba, Dogliani, Nebbiolo d'Al ba and Roero. Some of these wines can also be marketed under the lower-quality Langhe DOC designation. The Langhe DOC area for red wines, rosé wines and white wines covers almost 1,400 hectares of vineyards in 94 municipalities in the province of Cuneo; for the wine type Arneis, however, only in 31 municipalities.

The white wine Bianco is blended from approved, non-aromatic varieties in any mixture. The sweet Bianco Passito is made from Arneis or Chardonnay or Nascetta or Riesling (to 60%). The red wine Rosso is produced from authorised, non-aromatic varieties in any blend. The sweet red wine Rosso Passito is produced from Barbera or Dolcetto or Nebbiolo (85%). Rosato is produced from Barbera or Dolcetto or Nebbiolo (60% each). The single-varietal wines must contain at least 85% of the respective variety and a maximum of 15% of other permitted varieties. These are Arneis - also as Passito, Barbera, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Dolcetto, Favorita (Vermentino), Freisa as Novello, Nascetta, Nebbiolo, Riesling, Rossese Bianco and Sauvignon (Sauvignon Blanc). A sparkling Frizzante is made from Merlot, Nebbiolo and Pinot Nero (Pinot Noir).

Image: By Helge Høifødt - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link