The Erbaluce Grape

(Synonyms: Alba Lucenti, Albaluce, Albe Lucenti, Ambra, Bianc Rousti, Bianchera, Bianco Rusti, Erba Luce, Erbaluce Bianca, Erbalucente, Erbalucente Bianca, Erbalus, Erbcalon, Greco Novarese, Repcalon, Trebbiano Gentile, Trebbiano Perugino, Trebbiano Verde dell'Umbria, Uva Rustia, Uva Rustica, Vernazza di Gattinara.)

Background

Erbaluce is a white-wine grape originating in the Piedmont region of Italy, probably as far back as ancient Roman times. Today, it is produced only in the small Caluso area, and is very widely referred to as “Erbaluce di Caluso”. (It is said that there are only 15 producers of this varietal.) Besides dry table wines, the grape is also much used for notable sweet and speakling wines (which are outside our ambit).

Erbaluce is very much a high-acid grape, and when vinified as table wine thus wants a lot of fruit or it will come out thin and astringent. When the fruit is ample, the wines have a distinctly apple-y quality in node and flavor; but high acidity is the variety’s calling card. Like many high-acid whites, it ages well in the bottle.

Factoid: Erbaluce wines are moving up in quality as the region tries to compete with some of Italy’s better-established quality whites.

Some Descriptions of Erbaluce Wines

Wikipedia
“Wines made from Erbaluce tend to be dry with noticeable acidity. While the grape’s acidity makes it ideally suitable for sweet wine production, the dry wines need to have considerable amount of fruit in order to balance that acidity. Both the dry and sweet styles of Erbaluce tend to exhibit characteristic apple aromas and flavors.”
Walter Speller
“Good Erbaluce possesses an unmistakable mountain coolness combined with lemony fruit, and the best examples can be endlessly long, fresh and focused. No wonder I kept on thinking of Riesling during the tasting. In several other aspects it is not unlike this great, similarly versatile, grape variety. In addition to the elevated acidity, another notable parallel is the mineral core of the wines, while its aromas, with notes of green apple, peach and cut lemon, are not unlike those of Riesling. The difference is the fact that the dry version needs near-perfect balance: too high a yield and you will end up with a fragrant wine but with eye-watering acidity, while lacking extract on the mid palate; too low and it becomes too rich and too dense on the finish, while lacking freshness. Two main styles of Erbaluce can be distinguished, the differences, in my opinion, owing more to yield and winemaking than to terroir. On the one hand, there is the fragrant, fresh, minerally style spiked through with acidity; on the other hand, there is the more voluptuous, denser style which is the result of prolonged ripening and restricted yields. It is often this second style that gets full-blown barrel treatment, including partial oak ageing and sometimes also fermentation. [But] different styles can be based on terroir specifics, too. For example, vineyards on sandy as opposed to more rocky soils tend to produce very perfumed wines which may lack structure. [One winemaker] therefore gives his wine a little bit of skin maceration to compensate for that. I would certainly not see this as a shortcoming of the variety, more a way of getting the best out of it. ”
Fringe Wine
“The selling point and the criticism of wines made from the grape is their high acidity. High acid is a great thing for the sweet and sparkling wines made in the region, but opinions seem to be divided on whether it’s such a good thing for the dry table wines.”
Learn Italian Wines
“Amidst these hills, the grape delivers its finest wines, dispaying aromas of fruit (pear, golden apples, lemon) and herbs (rosemary, sage). Indeed the name of the grape comes from two Italian words: erba, meaning ‘herb’ and luce, meaning ‘light’, an obvious reference to the wine’s brilliant color when it is young. As the Erbaluce grape has such naturally high acidity, it can be produced as a sparkling wine as well as a dry white; it is even made into a gorgeous dessert wine in a passito version…The dry white is often aged only in stainless steel, but there are some excellent versions that receive small oak barrel treatment.”
Tar and Roses
“Wines made from Erbaluce tend to be dry with noticeable acidity. While the grapes acidity makes it ideally suitable for sweet wine production, the dry wines need to have considerable amount of fruit in order to balance that acidity. Both the dry and sweet styles of Erbaluce tend to exhibit characteristic apple aromas and flavors.”
Casa Forcellini
“The Erbaluce di Caluso is a crisp, dry white with a fruitiness that satisfyingly balances out its naturally high levels of acidity. It has a clean palate with predominant flavours of apple and lemon. These are underscored by a flinty minerality and a sharp, citrusy finish. Floral aromas, especially jasmine, feature on the nose. It is delicious with fish, particularly freshwater tench and marinated trout, and light hors d’oeuvres. Erbaluces that have been aged in oak complement more robust dishes, like risotto, pork or veal.”
Fred Nijhuis
“Typical for the Erbaluce is its fresh character, partially based on a vivid, natural acidity…Quality on average is good to extremely good…The wines age well. The wines are in general very affordable. About 20% of all Erbaluce is used for sparkling wines, all made on the classical way. The core however is used to make dry still white wines, pleasant, invigorating facilitators to numerous lighter but also more pronounced dishes.
Wine Searcher
“Erbaluce di Caluso is the bianco secco (dry white) version, with aromas reminiscent of meadow flowers. It is characteristically dry with a distinguishable acidity but has a well-rounded structure, making it an excellent partner to hors d’oeuvres and fish.”
Exalted Rations
“The name ‘erbaluce’ translates roughly as ‘shining herb’, and what an apt handle it is: this is a variety with all kinds of piercing ‘green’ aromas, a chewy, slightly corpulent texture, but which is balanced by a tangy, sunny personality that makes it a truly great, and exceptionally versatile partner for all kinds of foods, both animal and vegetable. Though soups and dry white wines are matched only somewhat rarely, Erbaluce’s many talents allow for it.”

Some Erbaluces to Try

As is commonly remarked, Erbaluce is not—not yet, anyway—well known outside its small home region, and so in the U.S. specimens are not easy to come by; moreover, of those available, several are either above our self-imposed $20 limit or only available at a very few outlets (or both). In the end, we found only a very that fit our requirements (barely).

For a Splurge

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This page was last modified on Saturday, 30 October 2021, at 11:26 pm Pacific Time.

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