Hazelnuts and wine
HAZELNUTS AND WINE: THE LANGHE EXCELLENCE
The Le Arcate holiday farm is located in Sinio in the neighbourhood of Gabutto. It is on the top of a hill where most of the Manzone family’s hazelnut groves and vineyards can be found.
Hazelnuts and wine are two examples of Langhe excellence thanks to the unique characteristics conferred on them by the territory. Everything can be explained with the concept of “terroir”, the territory in fact: the height of the hills, the gentle slopes where the vineyards grow, the exposure to the sun and wind and the type of clay-rich soil. Together these factors make the wines and hazelnuts very special and are the jewels in the crown of the Langhe.
The ‘Great Beauty’ can also be quantified: there are 16 hectares of hazelnut groves that produce the precious “tonda gentile delle Langhe” a variety of PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) Piedmont hazelnut; while there are 6 hectares of vineyards that offer 7 qualities of wines, namely Langhe DOC (Designation of Controlled Origin) Chardonnay, Rosé wine from Nebbiolo grapes, Dolcetto d’Alba DOC, Barbera d’Alba DOC Superiore, Nebbiolo d’Alba DOC, Alba DOC and Spumante Metodo Classico Rosè.
HAZELNUTS
The nature of the territory
Given its history and calling, the Langhe is the perfect place for cultivating hazelnuts. The characteristics of the terrain, the formation of the hills (with altitudes from 450 to 500 metres) and the climate combine to produce a top quality product from its flavour to its particularly delicate aroma.
The PGI Piedmont Hazelnut
From the territory to the product, the PGI Piedmont Hazelnut is harvested from "tonda gentile delle Langhe" variety hazelnut groves. This very precious variety is characterised by the roundness of the fruit that, amongst other things, allows for fast mechanical shelling retaining the seed intact.
Hazelnut properties
The PGI Piedmont Hazelnut gives us a healthier life! Recent studies have highlighted how eating hazelnuts on a regular basis lowers the level of ‘bad cholesterol’ in the blood and increases the level of ‘good cholesterol’.
From the hazelnut grove to the table
With its thin shell, high product yield and good shelf life the PGI Piedmont hazelnut is a product of excellence. This is exactly because the processing of the product is much simpler resulting in the very high quality that we find on the table such as in the hazelnut cream, the hazelnut cakes or when simply eating only the hazelnut.
THE WINE
The Langhe and its characteristics
The unmistakable clay-rich soil of the Langhe means that the wine ages well and is highly refined. The Manzone family decided to cultivate its vineyards on the area of the hill with the greatest exposure to sunlight in order to obtain unique wines that express to the maximum the territory from which they originate.
Wine processing and production
Five grape varieties are grown in total: Dolcetto, Barbera, Nebbiolo, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Silvana and Marco's sons, Enrico and Alberto, take care of the vineyards and the wine production. They represent the new generation who are successfully carrying on the family tradition.
The great red wines of Langhe
These are represented by the simplicity of the Dolcetto, the femininity of the Nebbiolo and the refinement of the Barbera and the innovative ‘Alba’ Blend a mix of Nebbiolo and Barbera. The red wines produced at the “Le Arcate” are traditional Langhe wines and rate amongst the most well known in Italy and the world.
White, rosé and sparkling wines
The Chardonnay produced in Sinio is pleasing, fresh and, as they say, ‘ready to drink’. It’s the perfect drink in the summer especially when sitting by the pool. Even rosé and spumante (sparkling) wine grapes are produced by the vineyards in Sinio: their characteristics are different yet they are similar in terms of their simplicity and genuineness.