Born in 1881, Gervasio Pagni was a cheerful man who loved music, art and excellent wine. With only five or six houses, his native village of Altopascio in Tuscany was too small for him. In the early 1900s, he moved to Sarzana in Liguria, where he had some cousins. The ancient winemaking history of the Arrigoni company starts here, as Gervasio began importing wine from his Tuscan hometown.
Founded in 1913, his company was initially called Pagni and changed name to Arrigoni in the 1950s, when Gervasio’s son, Bruno, took over. Today, it is a fourth-generation family business, as Bruno’s son, Riccardo Arrigoni, manages it with his wife Milena and their offspring.
Riccardo grew up in the wine cellar, learning the value of hard work, patience and craftsmanship from his father – values that he has handed down to the next generation. Year after year, the family carries out each stage of the winemaking process in keeping with Bruno’s teachings, from natural farming to harvesting to bottling.
Today, Arrigoni has two wine estates in Liguria, one in the Colli Di Luni area (right on the border with Tuscany) and the other in the Cinque Terre area, and a third estate in the village of San Gimignano in Tuscany. What brings these different lands together is that each represents a unique, centuries-old agricultural tradition.
The company produces DOC (Controlled Designation of Origin) labels such as Vermentino Colli di Luni, Cinqueterre Sciacchetrà, Brunello di Montalcino, Chianti dei Colli Senesi, Morellino di Scansano, as well as top-quality wines such as brut sparkling wine, sweet and rosé.
Blanche is one of the exciting creations that tells the company’s story of curiosity, hard work and innovation. Back in 1989, the Arrigoni Family had the idea of making a classic method (champenoise). They tried producing a thousand bottles in a very artisanal way, half with Cinque Terre wine from Liguria and half with the Vernaccia di San Gimignano wine from Tuscany. Today, they have decided to produce a classic method from Vermentino grapes harvested from the Colli Di Luni. Blanche is named after a French Countess of ancient lineage who was Milena’s great-grandmother and lived in Paris between the 1800s and 1900s. Just like her, the wine is cheerful, pleasant, austere and interesting.
Discover ancient winemaking between Liguria and Tuscany from Portovenere
When staying in Portovenere, you can plan a winery visit with tasting at one of Arrigoni’s locations. Portovenere is less than a 45-minute drive from the hills of Colli di Luni and a short panoramic boat ride away from the Cinque Terre.
