Oh my gosh! I love Arnot Roberts Falanghina wine! Full disclosure: Falanghina is one of my favorite wines. If I see this grape on a wine list, you can bet I’m ordering it, and probably convincing whomever I’m sipping with to order it too.
Arnot Roberts made their first vintage of Falanghina in 2016, and have produced limited quantities of this dazzling wine ever since. How limited? Only 2 barrels of wine were made for the 2021 vintage – that’s only 50 cases of wine, or about 600 bottles.
For me, this is the glou glou, chillable red wine version of a white wine; it is so effortlessly easy-drinking. I wish they made more.
What is Falanghina?
Falanghina is an Italian white wine grape that is native to Campania. The grapes have green-yellow skins with hints of gray, and grow in a distinct cone-shaped cluster, almost like a beehive hairdo from the 1960s. This distinct shape makes it easy to spot this variety in a vineyard, if you happen to be traipsing around Campania.
Not surprisingly, Falanghina thrives in Mediterranean climates like those found in pockets of Sonoma County and Napa Valley’s Oakville district.
It’s also worth noting that there are at least two types of Falanghina: Falanghina Beneventana and Falanghina Flegrea. Italian wine expert Ian D’Agata believes there are other expressions of the grape floating around Italy, but genetic testing hasn’t confirmed this yet.
What does Falanghina wine taste like?
Imagine bottling the sunny Italian coast with its dry, but refreshing salt water tinged air, that’s what Falanghina tastes like. Many sippers taste green apples, floral notes, light melon, tropical fruit, and moderate minerality. The wine is light to medium-bodied and naturally acidic, so producers like Arnot-Roberts pick the grapes early to preserve that tongue-tingling quality.
Who are Arnot-Roberts?
Arnot Roberts is a low-intervention wine brand founded by Duncan Arnot Meyers and Nathan Roberts. The duo is based in Sonoma County, in charming Healdsburg, to be exact, and has been producing what they refer to as “site-driven” wines from obscure vineyards throughout Northern California.
What does this mean in non-wine copywriter language? Essentially, Duncan and Nathan have a thing for family-owned vineyards in hidden pockets of Sonoma County and Napa Valley. This could be a vineyard that is home to a rare grape variety, like the Falanghina profiled here, or Ribolla Gialla, Trousseau, Poulsard, well, you get the idea.
Having said that, while the pair have a soft spot for unique grape varieties grown in California, their claim to fame is actually their ultra cool climate Chardonnay, Syrah, and Cabernet Sauvignon.
A fun fact about Nathan Roberts: his grandmother was Margrit Mondavi, wife of Robert Mondavi. She also designed the art on their label.
Falanghina in Dry Creek Valley
Only a few vineyards grow Falanghina in California and Duncan and Nathan have access to the best. The grapes in the 2021 vintage were sourced from the Handal-Denier vineyard in Dry Creek Valley. The vineyard is organic and has been dry-farmed for nearly 40 years.
Interestingly, the Handal-Denier vineyard, which was owned by Dick Handal for decades, was recently acquired by Juice Beauty, a cosmetics brand. If you’re scratching your head, you’re not alone. More on that to come…
These wines are affordable
I’ve seen bottles of Arnot Roberts’ Falanghina priced between $30 to $38, which isn’t unreasonable, considering the quality of a producer like this. If you’re looking for a bottle that’s more budget-friendly, look to Italy. You can find wines imported from the mother country, where the grape is more abundant, for between $20 and $35.
Where to find this wine?
Only 2 barrels of this white Italian grape variety were produced in 2021, so quantities were pretty limited. While a few bottle shops like Verve Wine, K&L Wine Merchants, and Backroom Wines did manage to snag for their customers, most of this wine was released to wine club members.
If you like trying hyper-rare grapes, your best bet to gaining access to releases like this is to sign up for the Arnot-Roberts’ wine club or mailing list, which gives first access to its members. What I love about the mailing list option, is you don’t have to commit to purchasing any bottles, you can pick which ones you like in any given release.
Matthiasson and Ridge only release their Falanghina to wine club members in a wine club subscription.
Other low-intervention California wine producers working with this grape
Frequently Asked Questions
What foods pair with Falanghina?
Lightly fried dishes like fritto misto, calamari, olive oil-based pasta dishes, as well as any and every type of seafood and shellfish pair great with this Campanian wine. If you can picture yourself eating a specific type of dish by the ocean, it will likely pair well with this wine.
Is Falanghina a dry wine?
Falanghina is a dry, acidic white wine that is light to medium-bodied, and has notes of green apples, tropical fruits, and floral qualities.
How do you pronounce Falanghina?
Oh those tricky Italian words. Falanghina is prononued: “fah-lahn-geeh-nah” with an emphasis placed on the “G” or “gee” sound.