My first visit to southern Italy didn’t start well. I was flying from Rome to Palermo in Sicily, and the air conditioning cut out as we ascended. I fell asleep, or passed out, and woke up drenched in sweat.

The airport was undergoing renovations and as I waited in the makeshift baggage-reclaim hall, my eye was caught by some activity.

Some locals had peeled back the flimsy metal of the improvised building to create a direct exit to the real world. They were crouching down and disappearing through it to stand outside, smoking in the hot air as they waited for their cases.

I was in a strange land – one that I didn’t understand and still don’t.

Palermo alone would be too much to grasp, a city where people spend more on their sunglasses than their scooters, where every bar is full at 2am on a Tuesday morning, where old women gather to drink Campari and soda in the afternoon in a way that’s inconceivable in England.

The problem of comparison

Wine is one way into southern Italy – a major success story, but a messy one.

The region makes everything you can think of, from oaked Chardonnay to orange wine, from Sardinia’s Vernaccia di Oristano, aged under a layer of flor yeasts in the barrel, to the lithe, sinewy reds of Nerello Mascalese from Etna.

To some, this looks like chaos; to others, it’s creativity.

Etna is the closest thing the south has to an ambassador, but even these wines tend to be positioned in relation to the north, the reds being frequently compared to Nebbiolo or called ‘the Barolo of the south’ – an epithet applied to various red wines from Italy’s islands and regions south of Rome (sometimes described as the Mezzogiorno) that prove they can play by northern rules.

The Roman writer Ovid tells us that Zeus imprisoned the titan Typhon under the island of Sicily because he couldn’t kill him. Etna is his mighty head, his splayed limbs reaching out to Messina and Noto, his legs pinned down under present-day Marsala.

The island’s earthquakes and eruptions are Typhon’s attempt to break free of his overlord. Etna, then and now, is chaos managed, destruction contained, catastrophe postponed.

Endlessly fertile despite the barren flows of lava, the ground is a rich, composty brown.

Visiting Ciro and Stef Biondi’s eponymous winery, it’s no surprise to see ancient phalluses unearthed and re-erected in their vineyards, which sit in the fertile tongues between the lava flows.

The misty ground here steams with what seems like Jurassic plenitude. Sicily doesn’t need Etna to justify it, but it has helped, even if the volcano is just one facet of wine here.

Across the island, increasingly brilliant wines are being produced from varieties such as Catarratto, Nero d’Avola and Frappato.

A reputation for greatness

Over the water, Campania (the ‘shin’ of mainland Italy) has been restoring its ancient reputation for greatness.

Falernian, a famed wine of the Roman era, was made here – the 121 BCE vintage was so famous it was still being talked about by Romans 200 years later.

And the vineyards of Pompeii, a town just south of Naples that had more wine bars than modern Hackney, are producing wine once again.

Away from the glittering Amalfi coast, Campania conceals one of Italian wine’s greatest surprises. Irpinia, the land of Taurasi, Greco di Tufo and Fiano di Avellino, is almost comically verdant.

It can get twice as much rain as London, and its fertile soils, rich in volcanic ash, sulphur and much else besides, produce world-class wines.

It’s the long-lived whites that command critical attention, but it’s with the Aglianico grape that southern Italy puts forth its most heroic red wine.

The death or glory grape

On the volcanic soils of Campania and Basilicata, Aglianico (in the form of Taurasi DOCG for the former and Aglianico del Vulture DOCG for the latter) delivers wines of Homeric scale: ambitious, grand and elemental.

A visit to Salvatore Molettieri in Taurasi isn’t for the faint-hearted.

He runs his estate with his four sons, who appear to have sprung from his thigh in his image. Aglianico isn’t a crop here, it’s a point of honour.

The purple pasta we eat over lunch is laced with it, and the wines seem to operate on some other timescale of evolution.

They are ferociously dark-fruited and muscular, pungent with coal dust and black carbon ink, spiked with resinous rosemary and medicinal juniper, encased in tannins, energised by acidity.

A great Taurasi or Vulture wine is often too far beyond wine’s polite points of reference, so there’s been an effort to make them more friendly.

I taste these wines and understand them, but they leave me conflicted, like hearing about a dilapidated old building with enormous renovation costs that’s now being torn down to make way for modern flats.

I don’t want to feel sympathy for Aglianico. At its best, it’s blood and glory, more like Islay whisky in sensibility than anything else.

Peated malts such as Lagavulin, once deemed too coarse to drink undiluted, are now one of Scotland’s most distinctive and valuable assets. Perhaps Aglianico will have a similar story.

Cirò reconsidered

If Aglianico is Achilles in a glass, Calabria’s Gaglioppo offers a radically different flavour.

The red grape of Cirò is everything Aglianico isn’t: early maturing, easily dominated by oak, pale in colour, with scents of dried flowers and grated nutmeg.

It has tannins, of course – we’re still in Italy – but it’s a variety that seems to draw on the dried spices of the bazaar and the aromatic woods of the sacristy.

Thanks to a small group of growers who have shown inspiring loyalty to Gaglioppo, Cirò is finding its way forward with remarkable conviction and authenticity, its small Classico zone promoted to DOCG as recently as July 2025.

Here you can find some of Italy’s most palate-expanding whites, reds and rosés: wines that stand on their own terms.

The grammar of granite

Over on the island of Sardinia, Cannonau has begun to shed the soft-focus cosiness that’s often expected of the variety (elsewhere known as Garnacha or Grenache).

The Mamoiada region in central-east Sardinia, a world away from the glamour of Porto Cervo on the northeastern coast, is craggy, wind-scoured and granite-bound, and the wines carry some of that gravitas with them.

The reds of Barbagia are still finding their voice, but they show that even when the grape is familiar, Italy’s south doesn’t want elocution lessons – its local accent is what makes it distinctive.

A blue-collar grape

And what of Puglia, on Italy’s heel, and its primitive Primitivo?

If you were to ask a wine professional what their favourite grape is, they would probably say Riesling, even if it’s not, but I’m certain that no one has ever said Primitivo.

Much like the Carignan shipped from Tangiers to beef up Burgundy in the 20th century, Primitivo travelled north to darken other regions’ wines.

There was no first-class ticket for this immigrant from Croatia (where it goes by the names Crljenak Kaštelanski or Tribidrag); Primitivo is a worker, somehow uncomfortable and pulling at its collar when served in a Zalto glass.

It doesn’t move easily in the aspirational wine world. At Fatalone in Gioia del Colle, Pasquale Petrera’s immaculately tended vineyard is idyllic.

The wine he makes from it is a real Primitivo: rugged, sturdy, heady, full of baked plums and fig jam.

Primitivo isn’t a perfectionist. Its bunches arrive with berries that are raisined, berries that are perfectly ripe, and berries that are green.

Far from being fruity filler for fattening up the deficient wines of the north, Primitivo is a scrappy, difficult variety, one that’s all too easy to stigmatise and ignore.

It’s a variety that’s had a hard life. It has travelled all over the globe on a third-class ticket, but it has seen things in the world that Pinot Noir can’t even imagine.

Changing perspectives

For those who want to tidy up, straighten out or pin down southern Italy, it will always be a frustration.

It has always resisted mastery – and it still does. But where there can’t be mastery, there can be something far better: discovery.

Every native grape variety, every twisted old vine and every family coming back to the land has something to tell us.

There’s no El Dorado here, no piles of gold for vinous Columbuses to quickly plunder and take home, but there are committed winemakers, passionate local cultures and much that’s waiting to be understood, rather than domineered.

You can’t start to rethink southern Italy if your frame of reference is northern Italy or France, or your goal is to bring the wines and places into step with more familiar names.

But if you love the thrill of great Vosne-Romanée, then you have it in you to love the great wines of southern Italy.

If you’ve found your way inside the soul of a great Brunello, you can do it again with Taurasi.

That’s what counts – and it’s all anyone needs in order to understand southern Italy and its wines.

Soul of the south: Southern Italy in a glass

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Across Campania and Basilicata, the Aglianico grape dominates all serious wine discussion. Thick-skinned and capable of long ageing, it’s southern Italy’s leading red variety and deserves its place on the country’s fine wine scene.

For years it was lazily compared to Nebbiolo, its wines bearing misleading labels such as ‘the Barolo of the south’. Nevertheless, the association has gradually encouraged interest, and over the last decade growing trade support has led to more consumer exposure and a deeper understanding of the grape’s stylistic breadth.

Although a number of denominations permit its use, three have elevated Aglianico to DOCG status and celebrate its viticultural authority: Aglianico del Vulture Superiore, produced on the slopes of Monte Vulture in Basilicata; Taurasi in the province of Avellino in Campania; and Aglianico del Taburno, a small area in the province of Benevento, Campania, named after the nearby Taburno mountain.

Although other areas are improving fast, these three territories have traditionally provided the most important expressions of the grape’s potential.

Scroll down to see notes and scores for six sublime Aglianico wines

Distinctive character

Late-ripening and full of tannin and acidity, Aglianico gives structured, dense wines that can be very powerful when young. While it isn’t easy to cultivate, producers believe it outperforms other regional red varieties in concentration and longevity.

It’s one of the last varieties to be harvested in Italy and the long growing season, aided by significant diurnal temperature swings, helps Aglianico achieve phenolic ripeness and aromatic complexity.

Of course, the extra autumnal hang time means there’s potential for more to go wrong climatically, but when things go well, and with low intervention in the cellar, its wines evolve with distinctive characters of black cherry, prune, liquorice, violet, anise and balsam, before taking on more herbal characteristics.

The idiosyncrasies of terroir undoubtedly lend a fascinating aspect to this variety and the resulting styles that emerge from these very different regions show Aglianico to be a wonderful interpreter of its environment.

Aglianico del Vulture

Nowhere is this more evident than in the north of Basilicata, where the presence of an extinct volcano and resultant mineral-rich soil have a defining influence on the wines. Here, grape-growing elevations reach 800m, and in the surrounding foothills, vines grow on well-ventilated slopes that provide welcome relief from extreme summer heat and autumnal rains.

In Barile, where historic wine cellars have been hollowed out of the hillsides, Aglianico del Vulture finds its heart.

Neighbouring villages differ subtly in microclimates and soil composition, but throughout the denomination, volcanic terrain imparts the most meaningful sensory characteristics into the wine.

Elena Fucci (pictured below), who has emerged as the leading name in the Vulture, notes that while the area’s vineyards are rooted entirely in black earth, the variation is endless: ‘We have soils that boast different stratifications of lava, ash, lapilli, all interspersed with clay and each giving different nuances to the wine.’

The Vulture’s long geological history is critical to Aglianico’s personality here. Entirely different to those in Taurasi and Taburno, the region’s wines are typically fresh and vibrant, with lifted floral aromas.

Fabio Mecca, the Vulture’s most accomplished oenologist, offers a wealth of technical knowledge when it comes to Aglianico. He learned his trade at the iconic Paternoster winery and, despite its sale to Amarone producer Tommasi, in 2016, Mecca continues to oversee the estate and its consistently excellent Don Anselmo release.

He reflects: ‘On Vulture, the volcanic composition of the soil is the determining factor, particularly when it comes to the aromatic qualities of the wines, and especially when detecting notes of ash.’

Taurasi

Heading west to Taurasi, the village that lends its name to a wider appellation encompassing a further 16 villages, we enter the verdant hills of Irpinia. The area has a long viticultural tradition and during the 1990s and early 2000s was the driving force behind southern Italy’s premium red wine production.

It offers an altogether different proposition to that of Vulture. Aglianico grown here is typically more powerful, more muscular, and requires greater maturation to soften its formidable tannins and astringency. Mastroberardino’s 1968 vintage of Taurasi Riserva has achieved legendary status among collectors of Italian wine and remains a key reference as to what can be achieved.

Harsh winters, cool summers and a long viticultural cycle that extends into November are common vintage traits. Some 15% of vineyards are cultivated below 300m, and almost 20% are above 500m, from which the wines are likely to be more austere and requiring a longer ripening period.

That leaves the bulk of Aglianico grown in between, where calcareous clay and limestone soils sit with sand and volcanic ash. These conditions inevitably play a key role here, but according to Federico Basso, owner of Villa Raiano, nobody has actually carried out a serious study of Taurasi’s micro-terroirs.

‘The villages of Castelfranci, Montemarano and Paternopoli are rich in clay and marl, and ostensibly yield leaner, rustic wines,’ he explains. ‘These need longer to mellow, whereas in Taurasi itself, the wines are more elegant, sweeter and more approachable in youth.’

He illustrates his point with the inescapable Barolo comparison. ‘Taurasi feels more like [the Barolo commune of] Verduno, while the aforementioned villages resemble Serralunga d’Alba commune.’

It’s worth noting that the destructive vine pest phylloxera didn’t reach some of Taurasi’s more elevated sites. Consequently, the concentration of old-vine parcels, some of which were planted more than 100 years ago, adds unique heritage to the story.

This diversity is exciting and the wines can be excellent, but compared with the Vulture, they are undoubtedly more robust and require greater patience in the cellar.

Taurasi’s rules stipulate a minimum of three years of ageing before release, of which at least one must be in wood. Given the power of the average wine, the Riserva category becomes more relevant here, necessitating four years of ageing, of which 18 months must be in barrel.

Ilaria Petitto (pictured below) of the Donnachiara winery in Montefalcione has a reputation for producing lighter, more fruit-forward wines. She believes Taurasi is the great red of the south, but perhaps sums it up best when conceding: ‘Taurasi is capable of the good, the bad and the ugly.’

Aglianico del Taburno

Just west of Benevento is the Taburno massif, a key landmark in the cultivation of Aglianico del Taburno wines.

In the chalk and tufa-rich hills that descend towards the plains, sheltered by the Matese mountains to the northwest, Aglianico takes on a different expression. The calcareous soil and lower elevations result in wines typically fuller and rounder, with earthy black fruit, leather and menthol aromas.

Structurally, these wines have less grip than those of Taurasi, but are far more muscular than those from the Vulture.

Aglianico del Taburno DOC was created in 1986 and was elevated to DOCG status in 2011 – a reflection of both distinctive terroir and a growing catalogue of quality wines. With only 127ha registered for the appellation, it is the smallest region in the Aglianico triangle.

Located inside the bigger Sannio DOC, this is a region in which a tradition of growing fruit for sale in the bulk market still looms large. Many vineyard owners prefer cooperative membership than the financial commitment of independent fine wine production.

The winemaking rules stipulate two years of ageing before release, and three for Riserva.

As in Taurasi, Taburno is sometimes a victim of stylistic pursuits that no longer align with consumer tastes. Big, robust reds with high alcohol levels and excessive extraction, often cynically masked by barrique ageing, remain prevalent.

Smoothing the variety’s rough edges is important though and there are plenty of good wines that benefit from a lower oak ratio. Alessandro Russo, CEO at Elena Catalano, is emphatic that, ‘Aglianico absolutely requires refinement, with a long passage in wood, to enhance its potential and complexity’.

An excellent introduction

Located in Torrecuso, the most important village in the appellation, Fontanavecchia is known for producing some of the best expressions of Aglianico del Taburno, including the excellent single-vineyard wines Vigna Cataratte (US$42 AOC Selections) and Grave Mora.

Owner Libero Rillo (pictured above) states: ‘Here, we make grands vins, alongside almost 30 other producers that take advantage of the village’s breezy exposure and modest altitudes.’

Fattoria La Rivolta, another of Torrecuso’s key names, tends more towards an international style; bold and loaded with inky-black fruit, its wines are well made and reassuringly consistent.

The wines of Taburno are generally approachable from around five years after vintage and can provide a sensible introduction to the Aglianico grape. They have a shorter lifespan than Taurasi, but the best wines are still fresh after 20 years.

With fewer than a million bottles produced annually, however – compared with a little above two million from the Vulture, according to producer estimates – Taburno’s limited supply marks it as the least accessible production zone of the three.

That being said, these wines generally command lower prices, meaning a well-chosen Aglianico del Taburno can represent exceptional value for money.

Origin matters

Despite the immense potential of all three areas, organisational constraints are part of the story. The decision to keep the original Aglianico del Vulture DOC and create an additional DOCG for a Superiore version can be seen as an attempt to placate the commercial interests of both large and small producers, but has mostly diluted the territorial brand and confused international consumers.

In Taurasi, the range of terroir, winemaking approaches and past vintages still languishing in the market have created huge variation on the shelves, and those without the time or expertise can find buying Taurasi a stylistic lottery.

In Taburno, meanwhile, reconciling the cost of producing premium wines with the consumer’s perception of its quality can become a vicious circle.

Despite these issues, the best Aglianico wines can be sublime, and looking at the grape variety through the lens of these three principal locations can help wine lovers to understand its varied personality and origins.

It is only a matter of time before the Aglianicos of these different subregions are unequivocally recognised as being among Italy’s finest and, more importantly, most enjoyable wines.

Caputo’s pick: Aglianico reds from the three top locations

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When the producer pulled out of his pocket a wrought iron key to an ancient door, it was easy to imagine that we would soon be transported to an old cellar, but I never would have imagined walking into a Roman cave. This is Campania, filled with hidden gems, stratified with tradition, and teeming with profound viticulture.

Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores for 30 wines from Campania to try in 2023

I was visiting La Sibilla, a winery named after the homonymous oracle who was believed to reside just a few miles away. Sibilla was Zeus’s lover; human but immortal, left only with her voice. The estate lies in the Procida promontory where the Campi Flegrei appellation shines for its personality due to old, ungrafted vines on volcanic soils facing the sea. Even the faint Falanghina (to call a spade a spade, in comparison with Fiano and Greco), emerges here with quality thanks to tart citrus fruit, vibrancy and chalky minerality.

White or red?

Campania is in a constant state of limbo between calling itself a white wine region or a red one. If we look at the numbers for hectares planted, it is apparent that white grapes represent 46% of the production while red grapes comprise 54%. These numbers were released during a ‘special edition’ tenth-anniversary event, held in Pozzuoli, close to Naples, in autumn 2022.

The location and the numbers give way to another hidden aspect: the region is studded with indigenous white grapes: obviously Fiano and Greco, but also Falanghina, Biancolella, Ripoli, Fenile, Ginestra and so on.

The coast shines for its bone-dry whites full of spicy minerality. Their appeal is fed by idyllic pairings with pizza, pasta and the Mediterranean diet of the region, but also by the seasonal tourism from charming islands such as Capri, Ischia and Procida plus the Sorrentina and Amalfitana coastal zones. Just thinking about these picturesque places is enough to make your mouth water!

Technically speaking, the old vines and the influence of sea breezes contribute to keeping yields moderate, giving the wines greater concentration and length. This is one of the best indicators for Campania, where tradition tends to allow the vines to produce higher yields.

Coastal Campania

If Campania is tiny, representing just 2-4% of total Italian production (source: Agea-Sian), the appellations along the coast don’t even account for 30% of the whole region – the Salerno province including the Amalfi Coast, Naples with Procida, and partially the Caserta province represent around 26% of Campania’s production. However, in terms of quality, this coastal area helps to raise the bar for Campania’s wine reputation.

That said, those who have the patience for ageing can enjoy Aglianico on a par with the deepest and most ageworthy red wines of Italy. Taurasi, for example, commands attention from wine lovers due to its structure – although the trend for less extracted, crunchy and more vinous examples of both Aglianico and Piedirosso is not slowing down. Keep an eye out for great recent vintages such as 2017, but also 2019 or 2015.

30 wines from Campania to try in 2023

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What’s in a name? The region of Campania lives up to its billing as a scenic landscape of verdant rolling hills dotted with picture-postcard hilltop villages and medieval castles. Within an hour’s drive from Naples airport, Irpinia in the Campanian province of Avellino is readily accessible. Winding and weaving your way up hill and down dale, there’s a perpetual view of wooded hills on the opposite side of the valley.

The lack of any tourist infrastructure here might be off-putting to some, but the region’s rural charm is a magnet for the independent-minded traveller in search of wines that embody the local aromas and flavours of the region: the two white DOCGs of Greco di Tufo and Fiano di Avellino, and the red DOCG of Taurasi.

Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores for 10 top Aglianico wines

Taurasi itself is a patchwork of vineyards lying on slopes at altitudes between 300m and 700m, facing all four corners of the compass in 17 communes.

These communes are split by the Calore river, which divides the DOCG into eastern and western parts, while the terrain of clay, limestone and sandy soils with occasional underlying volcanic rock is another key factor in bringing body and minerality to the wines. Average annual production is – according to Taurasi, A Cura di Lorenzo Matteo (Rogiosi Editore, July 2021) – some half a million hectolitres, or roughly 67 million bottles.

Taurasi: key elements

Created in 1993, the Taurasi DOCG area covers about 1,000ha over 17 municipalities with more than 150 wine producers and 104 bottlers. It is an enclave within the greater Irpinia Aglianico DOC, which covers 2,000ha with 123 producers (including some who also declare the DOCG wine). The areas do overlap in places, and sometimes both Taurasi DOCG and Irpinia DOC are produced in the same vineyard.

According to the Consorzio Vini d’Irpinia, the Taurasi DOCG planted vineyard area stands at 472ha, and Irpinia DOC at 519ha in total (including other varieties red and white).

Taurasi DOCG Requires at least 85% Aglianico with up to 15% of other permitted grapes, namely Piedirosso, Sciascinoso and Greco Nero. Taurasi must undergo a minimum of 36 months of ageing, at least 12 of which should be in wood.

Taurasi DOCG Riserva Requires at least 48 months of ageing, at least 18 of which should be in wood.

Irpinia Campi Taurasini DOC A sub-zone within Irpinia DOC covering 24 small municipalities. Requires at least 85% of Aglianico and at least 10 months of ageing.

Irpinia Aglianico DOC Requires at least 85% Aglianico with no minimum ageing.

The pioneers

In his 1985 book, Life Beyond Lambrusco (Sidgwick & Jackson), the late Nicolas Belfrage MW wrote: ‘The most important, indeed the only significant version of Taurasi is that of Mastroberardino.’ Founded in 1878, Mastroberardino became known for its work in identifying, preserving and championing local grape varieties. Belfrage observed that: ‘…one aspect of it concerns grapes. Rather than bring in volume varieties from elsewhere in Italy, as so many producers in the south have done, or experiment with fashionable French varieties, Mastroberardino has stuck with the ancient varieties of its homeland.’

It was this authenticity that struck a chord with producer Antonio Caggiano, whose focus in the early 1990s was on a change in the local viticulture. Traditionally, cultivation had been based on mixed crops of potatoes, cereals and vegetables. In the time-honoured Raggiera system, there were fewer vines, each producing large quantities of wine. The tall vines – up to 3.5m in height – also tended on occasion to produce varying levels of ripeness, depending on the height of the shoots.

The development of the cordon system led to an increase in planting density, with vines trained [on horizontal wires] closer to the ground. Better clones and substantially reduced yields helped to achieve more consistent ripening. These changes went hand in hand with more modern cellar practices such as rigorous grape selection, gentle extraction of tannins and barrel ageing aimed at reducing harshness and austerity. The changes have seen producers move away from the burly, macho wines of yesteryear towards much- improved wines. New practices being adopted in the vineyard include green harvesting to obtain a riper crop, and picking berries at physiological/ phenolic (rather than sugar) ripeness.

The result is that while some older wines suffer from ailments such as harshness, over-oaking and oxidation, more recent vintages are based on a better understanding of the vineyards and how best to manage the Aglianico grape itself, not to mention the introduction of experienced consultants such as Luca d’Attoma.

Add to your cellar: Taurasi to keep

While Aglianico Irpinia DOC and its sub-zone Campi Taurasini Irpinia DOC focus on fresh, juicy fruit characters for early drinking without necessarily seeing any oak, Taurasi DOCG satisfies demand for wines that can still be enjoyed relatively young but can also age well thanks to more weight and concentration. Taurasi DOCG Riserva’s concentration and structure of tannins and acidity demands evolution in the bottle for finesse and complexity. Ultimately, the ageability of Taurasi depends on the approach of the producer.

Rose’s top three for the cellar:

Quintodecimo, Taurasi Riserva 2017

Bocella Vini, Sant’Eustachio, Taurasi 2017

Mastroberardino, Radici Taurasi Riserva 2015

Building on tradition

Aglianico is the principal grape of the Taurasi DOCG – the jury is out as to the derivation of the name. Wine writers Burton Anderson and Belfrage both link Aglianico’s origins to the ‘Hellenic’ connection of Greece, but according to Wine Grapes (Robinson, Harding & Vouillamoz; Allen Lane), it more likely stems from the Spanish ‘llano’, meaning a plain. Either way, the allowance of 15% in the blend of other local red varieties – principally Piedirosso, Greco Nero and the ancient Sciascinoso – is the legacy of a heritage of old vines, the most venerable of which can reach an astonishing 200 years of age. This is not a stretching of the regulations to incorporate so-called ‘improving’ grape varieties, but rather a reflection of tradition.

Thanks to Aglianico’s thick skins and high acidity, which make the wines excellent candidates for long ageing, producers can hold out for full ripeness, with harvest usually not until late October and in some cases into November. According to Margherita Bozzacco, family member at producer Boccella Rosa: ‘One vintage involved picking the grapes after the snow had fallen at the beginning of November.’ Aglianico in Taurasi is one of the last harvests in all of Italy, and picking late in the year means that the grape can ripen slowly, reaching its unique quality of savoury maturity during a long, warm growing season. Its thick skins help to resist botrytis, which can threaten grapes following the rains that often come in September.

Impressions of Aglianico as a tannic or alcoholic grape variety are not necessarily entirely borne out. According to Milena Pepe of Cavalier Pepe, ‘producers used to add tannins in the past’. Certainly, Aglianico from Taurasi does produce aromatic, deep-coloured, richly flavoured wines – particularly when using the popular VCR 2 clone – in the spectrum of red and dark cherry, plum fruit and spicy, tarry, even chocolatey notes, sometimes not a million miles from Syrah.

When the fruit extraction is carried out well, its structure is based on ripe grapes with supple tannins underpinned by refreshing, saline acidity and supported by subtle oak maturation, often using a variety of sizes, origins and producers of cask to avoid overt oak flavours getting in the way of a wine’s typicity and site-specific character.

During my visit in the summer of 2022, the daytime temperature soared to 34°C, followed by cool evenings. This perfectly illustrates how swings in day and nighttime temperatures in these hills are a key part of the freshness of Taurasi, enabling the grapes to hold on to precious acidity and aromatic compounds.

Names to know: new talents

Balance, freshness, elegance and, above all, drinkability are the watchwords of the new generation of winemakers taking Taurasi to greater heights. Indeed, in the view of Dutch wine writer Paul Balke, who lives locally and hosted a Taurasi masterclass during my visit, the richness of its aromas and flavours as well as its intensity make Aglianico – along with Nebbiolo – Italy’s most prominent red grape variety.

Here are 12 young and cutting-edge producers to know: Barbot, Boccella Rosa, Boccella Vini, Giovanni Molettieri, Marianna Venuti, Michele Perillo, Salvatore Molettieri, Tenuta Cavalier Pepe, Tenuta del Meriggio, Tenuta Scuotto, Terredora and Urciuolo Vini.

Know your vintages: Taurasi

2018 Spring was mild and rainy, and the fruit set took place in good conditions, resulting in regular ripening and reds for short- to medium-term cellaring.

2017 Summer was the hottest and driest of the past 15 years. With higher than average day and night temperatures in July and August, the grapes were harvested in healthy condition, resulting in wines of excellent concentration.

2016 A mild winter and spring with a good fruit-set, then a hot summer and heavy rainfall followed by a sunny autumn. This allowed good ripening at harvest, producing concentrated, fragrant reds.

2015 A good year after a cool start, with a hot, dry summer followed by rain at harvest – but the grapes retained their sugar levels, so concentration and balance were good.

2014 A challenging vintage with a cool August and abundant rains, but a dry autumn at harvest with low yields saved the day for the reds.

2013 A very good year following rapid vegetative growth in spring, then lower temperatures and a delay in flowering, with cooler than average temperatures and a late harvest.

2012 A warm, dry summer and wide temperature range between day and night at harvest led to a good vintage of expressive reds with balance, softness and varietal expression.

A taste of Taurasi: Rose’s top 10 Aglianico buys

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It’s late October and Elena Fucci is about to begin the 2022 harvest. Her vines are planted at 600 metres above sea level in the volcanic soils of Monte Vulture in the Basilicata region and, despite being very far south – between Italy’s toe and heel – the nights are already chilly here.

‘I’m always the last to start picking my grapes,’ she says. ‘But for me, that’s an advantage: my six hectares of vineyards are planted to Aglianico, which is a late-ripening red variety, and that’s a big help in our increasingly hot summers.’

In July and August, instead of suffering too much heat stress, Aglianico shuts down its photosynthesis and the vines subsist on minimum energy until September, when the berries turn from green to red and resume ripening. ‘That stops the fruit from overcooking,’ Fucci explains. ‘The climate crisis is bringing an appreciation for late-ripening varieties – including Piedmont’s Nebbiolo and Umbria’s Sagrantino – for their ability to cope with changing growing conditions.’

A new push

Fucci, who was born in 1981, is at the epicentre of the ‘renaissance’ of the Aglianico grape in Basilicata. The region is one of Italy’s smallest, with just 580,000 inhabitants. The Aglianico del Vulture regional consorzio has 60 members, but only about 20 of these sell their wines abroad. Fucci is a member of Generazione Vulture, a group of eight of those wineries. They’re all run by young winemakers located around the extinct volcano, dedicated to revitalising the wines and image of this ancient indigenous variety.

While some of her co-members are children of winemakers or grew up around wine, Fucci is different. ‘I started from zero,’ she says. ‘I was a Coke-drinking student with little to no wine culture, though my grandfather did grow grapes to sell to the local cooperative.’

Her decision to run the estate was made in 2000 when her parents, both teachers, were debating whether to sell the land and the 16th-century casa colonica (‘farmhouse’) in Barile, in the heart of the DOC region, where she grew up. ‘I had just finished high school and had been considering a career in genetic engineering, but I felt I couldn’t let that sale happen. So I obtained a degree in oenology and agronomy in Pisa before coming back down here in 2005. My bond with this area was too strong to break.’

Fucci’s great-grandfather, Nicola Salvatore, had worked these vineyards as a labourer when they were part of a latifondo, the system of very large agricultural estates, usually owned by landlords living in the north, that was prevalent in the south of Italy until the 1950s. ‘Under the mid-century land reforms, my grandfather was able to buy these vineyards and 1.5 hectares of olive groves from the Tuscan landowner.’

Her parents were delighted with Fucci’s decision. ‘We cleared out the old cellar and got started,’ she recalls. ‘My first harvest produced just 1,200 bottles and I sold the rest of the grapes. Now, 17 years later, I’m producing 35,000 bottles per year.’ She also makes an extra-virgin olive oil.

Simple concept

‘The volcano is 1,300 metres at its highest point and my land is in a single large piece about as far up as vines will grow,’ she explains. ‘It’s rare to have such a big vineyard on a mountainside, so my idea was very simple: I’d make one wine from one grape in one place – that is an easy concept to communicate.’

The vineyards are located in Contrada Solagna del Titolo, so she named her wine Titolo (‘title’). ‘Solagna means sun-facing, and the vineyard is like a big amphitheatre on lavic soils with a slight incline,’ she says.

Three hectares accommodate 60- to 70-year-old vines, while 1.5ha were replanted by her grandfather Generoso in 1998, and the remaining 1.5ha were planted in 2002. In 2020, Fucci bought an additional 1.5ha of vineyards nearby.

Fucci’s Titolo wines – Classico, Riserva, By Amphora and Pink – all stem from that one large vineyard, with Pink using its youngest grapes.

‘I’m a young woman and my wine has to be modern, not modernist,’ Fucci says. ‘I respect this grape and the unique terroir it comes from. That was not always the case here.’ As in Sicily, Puglia and other southern Italian regions, grapes in Basilicata were often sold to cooperatives or exported as bulk wine to secretly bolster the colour and alcohol levels of northern Italian and European wines.

‘Basilicata was no exception to this trade, and our approach to Aglianico suffered as a result,’ she continues. ‘We now realise that was a mistake. Aglianico is a very worthy grape to drink on its own when it’s handled properly.’ She says that, for her, the key is ‘to focus on obtaining perfect phenolic maturity in the vineyard’.

‘Science can help us to make better wines, and we do a lot of grape testing in the lab before the harvest. I’ve seen how things are done in France and northern Italy and have brought some of the solutions they favour down here, such as using a de-stemmer that leaves the berries whole, and an optical eye that can spot and reject unripe berries on the selection tables.’

Fresh interpretation

Fucci’s modern approach includes short macerations of about 15 days – unlike the months that Aglianico was left to macerate by previous generations. This keeps the fruit in her wines lively and fresh, and reduces the reductive and excessively tannic notes that are a characteristic of ‘traditional’ Aglianico. Grapes are pressed delicately after maceration, and she favours selected yeasts over spontaneous.

‘I’m more interested in maintaining traditions in the vineyard than in the cellar,’ she says. ‘We continue to harvest by hand, and I think there’s a truth behind the idea of planting vines close together to force their roots to go deeper.’ Fucci’s vines are planted at a density of 8,000-10,000 vines/ha. ‘We train our vines using the Guyot system, as is common here now, but we also have a group of old vines that use a much older system called a capanno,’ she explains. ‘It can be very time-consuming, as each freestanding vine requires three canes that need repositioning several times each season in relation to the sun and wind. But we want to keep this tradition alive, if only for didactic reasons.’

Fucci is also fully committed to the organic movement, and both her vineyards and cellar are certified. ‘It’s much harder to create a cellar that conforms to organic rules [compared with the vineyards],’ she says. ‘When I was planning my new cellar I didn’t set out to build what we call a bioarchitettura, but I encountered some architects who work this way. So the cellar was built primarily of recycled materials, like steel and wood from Vitalegno, and is cooled by rainwater and a system of wind-driven air pipes sandwiched within cavity walls that work like a Thermos. We use solar panels for energy, too. In Italy we are too tied to bricks; we should use more wood, which is also much better in seismic areas such as this.’ Her cellar is one of the first of its kind in southern Italy and she sees it as a long-term investment.

Scientific sense

Fucci favours French barrels: either 500-litre tonneaux or 200-litre barrels which are smaller than the usual barriques. ‘Three French coopers produce barrels to my specifications. I want to get the faster micro-oxygenation that is afforded by smaller barrels but with thicker staves to help slow that process down,’ she describes. ‘This allows the polyphenols to get a better and longer polymerisation, which results in more stable colour and tannins.’

Fucci’s scientific bent is clearly stimulated by the technical aspects of winemaking; she’s keen on experimenting, too. ‘I like to keep control of the wine production,’ she says. ‘When I saw wines being made in egg-shaped amphorae – produced in Impruneta, near Florence – I wanted to try Aglianico that way. I now use four of them and am pleased with the results. The wines are a little more concentrated and I’m fascinated by how the amphorae accentuate the minerality and saltiness of our volcanic soils.’

Fucci’s wines, which regularly score highly in tastings and win awards such as Gambero Rosso’s Tre Bicchieri, are distinctive both for their clarity and for their emphasis on the elegant fruit and freshness of this grape. The wine made in the neutral amphorae displays the natural spiciness and complexity of Aglianico when it’s not influenced by wood, and her rosé, too, explores yet another facet of this great Italian red grape.

What about the future for the region? ‘I’m optimistic,’ she says. ‘Basilicata’s wine movement is in full swing, and if we can support that with more high-level hotels to complement our great food, the area will become much better known. I often visit Tuscany with my husband. It’s such a “wow!” region and I always think: if they did it, why can’t we?’

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In 1935, Carlo Levi was exiled by Mussolini to Aliano in Basilicata for opposing the Fascist government. His memoirs of his time there, published a decade later in 1945, were enigmatically titled Christ stopped at Eboli in reference to the local saying that Basilicata (then Lucania) had been ‘bypassed by Christianity, forsaken by morality, excluded from history, abandoned by civilisation itself,’ as Levi put it in his book.

The town of Eboli over the border in Campania was therefore as close as Christ would venture.

Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores for 12 top Basilicata wines

Basilicata is a rural, arid region of wild beauty with lunar landscapes of canyon-like calanchi rock formations, arid dunes, lava caverns, ghost villages and sun-splashed golden beaches. The ‘arch’ of Italy’s boot, it has a short coastline on the Tyrrhenian Sea in the southwest and a longer coastline on the Ionian Sea in the southeast.

The majority of the province’s vines are focused around Vulture at the northern end of the region, although closer to the sea good wines can also be produced in the lower altitude vineyards which experience a maritime climate. Production in Basilicata is tiny, however, compared to its neighbours, Puglia, Campania and Calabria.

Basilicata at a Glance

• With an estimated 5,000 – 10,000 hectares under vine and a population of around half a million, Basilicata is one of Italy’s smallest wine regions
• A rugged landscape of rolling hills and mountains; only 8% of its surface is flat.
• One of its three peaks, the 1,326-metre high Monte Vulture, an extinct volcano north of Potenza, is home to the Aglianico del Vulture DOC
• Aglianico del Vulture was certified as a DOC in 1971 and in 2011 became Basilicata’s only DOCG, as Superiore and Riserva, which need two and four years of ageing respectively.
• Basilicata’s three DOCs are Matera, Terre dell’Alta Val d’Agri, and Grottino di Roccanova (Malvasia Bianca di Basilicata).
• Cool vintages: 2002, 2004, 2007, 2010, 2014, 2016.
• Balanced vintages: 2000, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2017, 2018, 2020.
• Warm to hot vintages: 2001, 2003, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2019.
• The communes within Vulture: Rionero, Barile, Rapolla, Ripacandida, Ginestra, Maschito, Forenza, Acerenza, Melfi, Forenza, Venosa, Lavello, Palazzo San Gervasio, Banzi, and Genzano di Lucania.

A mere 8% of Basilicata’s surface is flat, the rest of it hilly and even mountainous, with three main peaks dotted across the region, Monte Pollino (2,238m), Monte Sirino (2,005m) and Monte Vulture, an extinct volcano (somewhat fancifully so-called because of its supposed resemblance to the raptor) dating from the Pleistocene era (800,000 to 130,000 years ago), rising to 1,326m.

‘When you see Basilicata, you see fields, vineyards, beautiful landscapes, you see the land as it should be’, said Francis Ford Coppola, whose elegantly renovated palatial villa, Palazzo Margherita, sits discreetly behind a café in Bernalda, where his grandfather was born.

This relatively well-to-do resort town with its luxurious boutique hotel stands in stark contrast to the many less affluent, albeit dramatic, hilltop villages whose stone walls bear silent witness to centuries of intrigue, passion and superstition so vividly portrayed by Carlo Levi; not to mention the colourful streaks of paint left behind by all the cars (one of them mine) that have failed to navigate their sharp corners.

But there’s more to the region even than stunning landscapes – ascend the narrow streets of a village like Tursi and you’ll find inhabitants bent crooked and muttering in an alien dialect. Drably-clad women sit doing their knitting on wicker chairs outside the stone steps of dilapidated houses. Wizened men sit on the church steps and benches, play cards in stone alcoves or amble aimlessly around leaning on their walking sticks. Cats lurk in packs and the sound of dogs barking, donkeys braying and cocks crowing echoes across the valley.

Matera

If it all sounds like a scene from Monty Python’s Life of Brian, it does sometimes feel like it. The most characterful of the region’s cities is its former capital, Matera, whose astonishing limestone cave dwellings have made it a mise-en-scène location for films such as Mel Gibson’s Passion of the Christ (2004).

With its two dramatic Sassi districts of troglodyte cave dwellings, the Sasso Caveoso and Sassi Barisano, vividly described by Carlo Levi’s sister Luisa as ‘like a schoolboy’s idea of Dante’s Inferno,’ Matera was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site and voted European Capital of Culture for 2019.

Matera is one of the few places in Basilicata that could be described as ‘touristy’, yet despite the skilful transformation of the Sassi’s troglodyte hovels into restaurants, bars, and hotels, Matera doesn’t detract from Basilicata’s reputation as a destination for independent travellers in search of sea, sun, gastronomy and adventure.

Vulture

Vulture’s unique terroir is based on a combination of volcanic soils, altitudes varying from 200-600 metres, cold autumn nights and the breezes that gently blow across the vineyard slopes, helping to shrug off the dangers of botrytis and downy mildew. Vulture itself covers less than 1,000 hectares of vineyards, 80% of which are planted to the local Aglianico grape. Other local varieties include Moscato, Malvasia, Primitivo, Sangiovese, Montepulciano, and Bombino Nero.

Vulture’s sponge-like volcanic tufo helps the roots of the vine to penetrate deep into the earth below, nourishing the vine with the moisture retained by the rock in the warm, dry summers that characterise this arid region. While soils are volcanic, they vary considerably in composition, with three main types. On the lower slopes at 200-300 metres, there are red and blue ferrous soils. At 400-500 metres, the ancient sulphurous soils become yellow. At the highest altitudes, around Barile, for instance, at 600 metres, there are grey/black soils interspersed with water retentive clays running through them.

According to Vito Paternoster, whose winery is in Barile, much Aglianico was transported to Barolo in the early part of the 20th century to bring colour, richness and body to the Nebbiolo-based wines. Hence the time-honoured local expression ‘there’s no Barolo without Barile’. Aglianico, described by Ian d’Agata as ‘one of the world’s great grapes’, is believed to be derived from the Greek, ‘Hellenica’, but its origins, first mentioned in the 16th century, are in fact unclear.

The backbone of many of southern Italy’s best reds, it reaches its apogee in Taurasi and Taburno in Campania and in Basilicata’s Vulture; all volcanic sites. Of the nine clones of Aglianico, Vulture is host to two – VR 11 and VR 12 – which tend to express plenty of fruit and flavour, good acidity and tannin, and, at Vulture, minerality.

Blessed with thick yet delicate skins, it’s a late-ripening variety maintaining its acidity as it ripens late into October and even early November. Once irredeemably tannic, Aglianico today has benefited from a modern approach to viticulture and winemaking since the beginning of the millennium, when, coincidentally, Elena Fucci, one of Vulture’s new leading lights, founded her winery, soon to be joined by the young guns of ‘Generazione Vulture’.

While not rejecting tradition out of hand, the first job, according to Elena, was to understand and eradicate the mistakes of the past: bad pruning, failing to get the grapes properly ripe, over-extracting the tannins with extended macerations, and aggravating the already bitter tannins with big chestnut barrels. The next step was to invest in know-how and equipment.

‘Tradition is important,’ says Elena, ‘but equally, we have to study and be open-minded enough to learn from it to see exactly what the right processes are.’ It starts with ‘the art of gardening,’ as Elena describes their viticulture, soft pruning (‘potatura dolce’) respecting the Aglianico grape, with winemaking aimed at expressing the best of the mountain terroir: ‘less interference, more Vulture,’ according to Basilisco’s Viviana Malafarina.

Some wineries only use wild yeasts, while Elena is working on her own selection. Instead of a month or even two-month maceration, Elena and others are working today with shorter macerations, two weeks in Elena’s case, while more attention is paid to the quality of the oak used for maturing the wines. The result today is a transformation of Aglianico del Vulture’s wines into something far more approachable, perfumed, elegantly savoury and mineral, but that have not lost their capacity to age well.

Basilicata: 10 names to know

Elena Fucci

A leading light in Vulture, Elena Fucci is a winemaking graduate of Pisa. She founded the winery at Barile in 2000 after taking control of the southeast-facing vineyards at 650 metres, bought by her grandfather Generoso in Contrada Solagna of Titolo at the foot of Mount Vulture. In her Il Titolo range, Fucci creates one of the finest volcanic expressions of the Aglianico grape from the six hectares of vines she has in production.

Paternoster

Founded in 1898 by Anselmo Paternoster – and making wine since 1925 – it was Anselmo’s son Pino who took the winery to greater heights, and in turn Pino’s son Vito Paternoster who adapted the Aglianico grape to create some of Vulture’s most approachable wines. Notable are its mineral Don Anselmo, its six-vineyard blend Synthesi, and a polished Rotondo. In 2016, Valpolicella’s quality-conscious Tommasi family took a controlling stake in Paternoster.

Cantine del Notaio

This winery at Rionero is well worth a visit both for its wines and for its six subterranean cellars, hand-excavated by Franciscan monks in the 15th century. Since Gerardo Giuratrabocchetti and his wife Marcella took over its 50 hectares in 1998, the winery – together with consultant Luigo Moio from Naples University – produces an impressive array of wines including the stylish Il Repertorio, Il Sigillo and La Firma, as well as an attractive sparkling Muscat, Il Preliminario.

Cantina Il Passo

Cantina del Passo was founded by Francesco Grimolizzi in 2012, when he bought the ninth century farm with its four-hectare vineyard and tufa cellar with the aim of transforming the Aglianico grape into something very special. Entrusted from the start with creating a unique expression of the Aglianico grape, Barile-born winemaker Fabio Mecca has had much success with Alberi I Piano.

Cantine Crocco

At 300 metres in the hills at Montalbano in the province of Matera, within range of the maritime breezes that blow in off the Ionian Sea, Maurizio, Silvia and their son Angelo produce a range of good value reds, whites, rosés and sweet wines from their 20 hectares of vines. Sulco, their Aglianico, and Ventomare, a Chardonnay, both do well here, and the full range is available at the ‘Lucianian Kitchen’ of the Ristorante Masseria Crocco.

Musto Carmelitano

At 600 metres at Maschito, the artisanal Musto Carmelitano has been run since 2006 by third-generation sister and brother team, Elisabetta and Luigi. Assisted by consultant winemaker Sebastiano Fortunato, they make two 100% Aglianico reds from their four hectares of old vines, using wild yeasts only. Pian del Moro spends 12 months in oak while Serra del Prete is aged only in bottle.

Tentua I Gelsi

Founded in 2003 in Rionero at some 450 metres, Tenuta I Gelsi is a family-run winery headed by Roggerio Potito. The estate has 10 hectares of vines planted at between 400 and 600 metres in three plots in Rionero and Melfi, including two hectares of Malvasia. The two main reds are its Calaturi Superiore Riserva, a pure Aglianico from a 50-year-old vineyard of a single hectare, and Casello 105, a selection of Aglianico from its Vigneto Ferrovia.

Casa Vinicola Martino

Armando Martino’s daughter Carolin runs the family business, Martino Vini, bringing this family winery to greater levels of quality and finesse. With a meticulous and environmentally friendly approach to her winemaking, Carolin intuitively takes tradition on board while interpreting it in a modern style. There’s a substantial range of premium and classic reds, whites and fizz; her best wine is the Martino Superiore Riserva.

Basilisco

Located in Barile on the eastern slope of Vulture at 620 metres, organically certified Basilisco is run by winemaker Vivian Malafarina. Since 2011 it has been owned by the Capaldi family of Feudi di San Gregorio. With 30 hectares, the range of wines – fermented with wild yeasts – comprises two red blends and a 100% Fiano. Since 2013, the estate has released single-vineyard cru bottlings focused on Barile, Fontanelle, Cruà, Fiordimarna and the ancient 80+ year-old Storico, with vines trained in the traditional capanno style.

Cantina Madonna delle Grazie

While the Latorraca family has been growing grapes in the village of Venosa since the early 1900s, it was in 2003 that the first bottling was carried out under the Cantine Madonna delle Grazie label, made by Giuseppe Latorraca. Ranging from 15 to 50 years old, its 18 hectares of vines – certified organic – are located at between 400 and 550 metres. The 8.5ha of Aglianico, are on a mix of volcanic tufa-based dark/black clay, coarse sand and sedimentary limestone.

Basilicata wines: 12 to try

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There is a variety of red fig from the Irpinian village of San Mango sul Calore, one that is an autumnal delicacy. It is late ripening compared to other figs, which tend to be consumed across the Mediterranean in July and August.

But Irpinia – a sub-region of Campania in southern Italy located 400m-700m above sea level, with 1,300mm of rainfall per year – has a climate that can be defined as ‘mountain Mediterranean’. It explains just how much the altitude influences agriculture and viticulture: grapes as well as figs are late ripening.

Scroll down to see Aldo Fiordelli’s tasting notes and scores for 30 top wines from Campania

Here, in the warm 2020 vintage, the Aglianico grape started veraison (the beginning of the ripening process) around 2 September – more than one month later than most red varieties planted across Italy. The harvest typically lasts through to the middle of November, and at times even longer.

Aglianico has one of the longest growing seasons, stretching far beyond the 100-day norm. It is just one of the 35-40 indigenous grapes planted throughout the region – a single but significant example of the originality of Campania – alongside Falanghina, Fiano and Greco, and lesser-known Casavecchia, Ginestra, Pallagrello, Piedirosso, Ripoli and more.

The region harbours a fascinating identity which encapsulates a variety of climates, grapes and styles produced in small volumes, offering wine consumers an unmatched opportunity.

According to Italian agricultural agency AGEA’s SIAN database, in 2018 Campania produced just 2.53% of Italian wine.

It is ‘a thumbnail of Italian viticulture’, as journalist Luciano Pignataro suggested while speaking at Campania Stories, held in September 2020 at the archaeological site of Paestum in Salerno.

This relatively new annual event brings together industry professionals and producers to explore trends, exchange thoughts, visit different appellations and taste new releases – all to get a closer look at the ‘thumbnail’ of Italy that Campania provides.

Vintages: delving deeper

The 2019 vintage began with a moderate winter, as has become common in the last few years, and a cool, rainy spring that curbed vegetative growth.

Flowering started 10-15 days later, and the fruit-set was irregular, with a lot of millerandage. The summer was more archetypal, with windows of hot sub-Saharan temperatures intertwined with Azores anticyclones. It was completely dry with the exception of some beneficial rainfall in the final days of July.

The autumn was warm, above average, with cool nights favouring the phenolic ripeness of red grapes. The harvest started more or less on time, just one week later than usual.

All in all, it was a very good vintage, yet with yields 20% lower than 2018. The 2018 vintage produced fresh, enjoyable wines, less concentrated than in 2019. White Falanghina was penalised by this lighter vintage, as was Greco, which made firm wines in more than one case. Fiano performed well in both vintages, developing more richness in 2019. Falanghina recovered a bit of concentration in warmer areas such as Sannio, Cilento and the inland of Salerno, whereas Fiano tended to get a bit soft and exotic.

In Irpinia, 2019’s warmth was definitely more beneficial for the aggressive acidity of Greco, giving it more balance sooner, whereas the region’s cooler conditions in 2018 resulted in more tension and greater balance, allowing for superior quality on the overall spectrum. In my opinion, Greco and Fiano are too often slightly phenolic, which can be helpful for ageing but not as promising for elegance.

Ageing gracefully

All of the whites tasted at this year’s Campania Stories had benefited from longer bottle ageing, considering the event was held in September instead of April due to the lockdown. This suggests that these wines are worth holding on to, with the aim of refining their structure and increasing their aromatic complexity.

In terms of red wines built for the long haul, such as Taurasi, the latest vintages presented were the warm and fat 2015 and the 2016, characterised by drastically lower yields due to spring frost. Feudi di San Gregorio steadily remains the area’s leading producer.

Estate chairman Antonio Capaldo and winemaker Pierpaolo Sirch are working on a detailed map of their crus within Irpinia, bottling single vineyards under the Feudi Studi label.

Castelfranci and Montemarano are two of the top areas producing wines for the long haul, demonstrated by Feudi, Cantine Delite, Canonico & Santoli and Villa Raiano. In comparison, Aglianico from the village of Taurasi to the northwest tends to be more approachable. Villages such as Paternopoli and Luogosano produce Taurasi wines that sit in the middle of these two extremes.

Grape progress

Aglianico is at the centre of an intriguing style revitalisation, a winemaking revolution of sorts. A few years ago it was nearly impossible to drink young Aglianico, whereas at the September event I enjoyed some delicious 2018s, thanks to the combination of lighter extraction and a more approachable vintage.

In the past few years, the crunchy style of noted producers such as Giovanni Ascione (Nanni Copè) has established a different way to tame the mechanical bull ride that is the Aglianico grape, as have producers such as Barbot in Irpinia and Galardi in Alto Casertano. A lighter and more fruit-forward style is exemplified by the fresh 2014 vintage, now ready to drink. Top examples here are Perillo and Cavalier Pepe.

However, with respect to Aglianico, there are other red grapes deserving of a closer look too, among them Piedirosso. Often considered an easy-drinking wine for mass marketing, Piedirosso is a gem for lovers of lighter-bodied, Pinot Noir-esque wines, its old vines capable of producing great results and varying styles. There is a huge difference between the coloured, concentrated Piedirosso from Taburno and that of Campi Flegrei’s flat sandy soils.

In Campi Flegrei, for example, Cantine del Mare produces a stunning Piedirosso full of smoky minerality and a distinct iodine character. Such discoveries summarise the charm of Campania: a region that’s not easy to understand, often varied in terms of styles and, fortunately, far from conventional, where a pioneering spirit is alive and well.

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In the 1920s, the Irpinia region in Campania was the third-biggest wine producer in Italy by volume. Today, it barely registers on the chart in 40th position.

The decline in production over the course of the 20th century can largely be put down to three factors: the late arrival of Phylloxera, post-war poverty, and major earthquakes in 1930 and 1980. As many left the countryside or sought other forms of income following the devastation of their vines, production drastically decreased.

Happily, Irpinia is in a much better place today, yet it still produces just a fraction of what it used to. The establishment in the 1970s of the region’s three DOCs, later to become DOCGs, of Taurasi, Greco di Tufo and Fiano di Avellino had coincided with the first large-scale surveys of Irpinia’s terroir.

Feudi di San Gregorio Taurasi vertical

Feudi San Gregorio quietly initiated the ‘FeudiStudi’ project 20 years ago, believing it was time to re-evaluate these initial findings and research in more depth individual site characteristics.

With the help of growers across Irpinia, Feudi San Gregorio has surveyed thousands of plots across 700 vineyard sites. The results are to be released in a new two-volume book, ‘FeudiStudi: Irpinia’s Wines and Vineyards’.

Best read with a glass of Taurasi in your hand over a few evenings, the first volume gives an overview of the region. The much longer second volume takes the reader through the Taurasi and Irpinia Campi Taurasini areas, sector by sector, commune by commune, identifying the most characterful sites and recording important details including soil, exposure, altitude and size. A useful reference, for sure.

The aim is to demonstrate the sites producing above-average fruit as well as the wines most expressive of their terroir throughout the appellation, not just at Feudi San Gregorio. In this respect, it’s reminiscent of the groundbreaking work by Alessandro Masnaghetti in Barolo and Barbaresco.

During a recent virtual tasting with director Antonio Capaldo and head of production, Pierpaulo Sirch, Capaldo pointed out that traditionally the estate has blended its various parcels, which he put down to ‘simplification for commercial reasons’. He cited other producers’ ‘great crus’ and ‘consumers’ increasing awareness of terroir as drivers behind the FeudiStudi project. The project, led by Capaldo, Sirch, and journalist Paolo De Cristofaro, has resulted in the annual release since 2011 of a small number of plot-specific Aglianico wines from the Taurasi DOCG – the subjects of the tasting – as well as Greco di Tufo and Fiano di Avellino.

Irpinia

Situated inland from Naples, on a plateau surrounded by mountains, Irpinia doesn’t experience a typical Mediterranean climate.

It rains for an average of 150 days of the year, with levels of rainfall more in line with the northern regions of Italy. The accumulation of water running down from the mountains has formed rivers and lakes that create a humid environment. Aglianico forms compact bunches of medium to small berries. Combined with not especially thick skins and the high humidity environment, the grapes are susceptible to diseases such as oidium and botrytis. Traditional pergola training lifts the vines away from moisture on the ground and exposes the tight bunches to airflow. Aglianico is a vigorous variety and it requires a lot of work during the growing season to ensure the health of the grapes and keep excessive growth under control.

Temperatures rarely exceed 30C, with the average summertime temperature hovering in the mid- to high-20s. By September, diurnal temperature variations can reach a significant 20C difference between day and night, which helps the grapes to retain aromatic compounds and acidity.

An increase in average temperatures in recent years has helped the Aglianico grapes reach full ripeness earlier than in the past. This has been aided by the gradual replacement in vineyards of pergola-trained vines for densely planted, espalier-trained, earlier ripening clones. Despite this, the Aglianico harvest in Irpinia takes place from mid-October through to early- or mid-November, making it one of the last grape harvests in Europe to be completed every year.

The FeudiStudi wines

The two best Aglianico sites identified from the Feudi vineyards have been bottled annually since 2011 in small numbers: Rosamilia and Candriano. Both sites are in the commune of Castelfranci in the southeastern zone of the DOCG, covering around 89ha. Close to the Picentini mountains, it is cooler, wetter and windier here than in any other part of the DOCG. Altitudes range from 374 to 725 metres above sea level. The main hillside the vines are planted on faces west towards the Calore Valley, which forms the western border of the commune. It is possible to find an abundance of ancient vines in this part of the Taurasi DOCG, a clone known as ‘horse’s tail’ which features looser bunches of small berries extremely rich in anthocyanins and tannins

Rosamilia (0.46ha)

• In the vineyard of Vallicelli (100ha) towards the north of the commune of Castelfranci
• 645-658 metres above sea level on a gentle slope
• The highest of all Feudi San Gregorio’s sites
• Clay-chalk
• 60-year-old vines, radial trained
• Western exposure
• Typified by high acidity and less obviously rich, more feminine in character

Candriano (0.61ha)

• In the vineyard of Baiano (225ha) towards the south of the commune of Castelfranci. Baiano is divided into Baiano Alto and Baiano Basso. Candriano is located in Baiano Alto
• The last area to be harvested
• 598-633 metres above sea level
• Clay mixed with marine sand and limestone fragments
• 18-23-year-old vines, mainly espalier trained – typified by its minerality and saline elements and dense tannins
• Southwest exposure
• Typified by a darker, denser style

In the winery, both wines are treated the same in order to highlight the differences in terroir; they mature for 12-18 months in 20hL French oak barrels and small Slavonian oak barriques, then spend a further 24 to 36 months in bottle before release.

Tasting the FeudiStudi Taurasis:

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The Campania region, encompassing the Amalfi Coast, the Bay of Naples and the volcano of Mount Vesuvius, has an extraordinary history of winemaking. Ancient Greek settlers bought vines to Italy when they began populating the south of the country in the 8th century BC. The Romans later embraced this vinous culture, and it was Falernian – from Campania’s modern-day Falerno del Massico DOC – that was their most prized wine.

Today, Campania is a hotbed of indigenous varieties under various DOC guises, but the region’s three DOCGs are all clustered together in inland Irpinia, close to the Apennine Mountains.

The Taurasi DOCG produces some excellent reds made from Aglianico, while the Greco di Tufo and Fiano di Avellino DOCGs just west and southwest of Taurasi respectively produce some of Italy’s standout white wines.

Irpinia

Irpinia sits on a plateau rising up to 700 metres above sea level in the foothills of the Apennine Mountains, providing a drastically contrasting climate to the warmer coastal zones of Campania. Temperature differences between day and night are wide, ensuring a long, even ripening and the retention of acids in the grapes.

Spring frosts are a constant threat, and autumn rain can disrupt harvest, which is typically not undertaken until October or November.

The soils are a mix of limestone, clay and volcanic, and some areas also have large deposits of sulphur.

Taurasi

The Taurasi DOCG covers 450ha under vine. Established as a DOC in 1970 and promoted to DOCG in 1993, the area varies in height from 300 to 650 metres above sea level.

The wines produced here must be at least 85% Aglianico, with up to 15% other local red varieties. They must be aged for a minimum of 36 months (48 months for Riservas), of which 12 months (18 months for Riservas) must be spent in barrel.

Taurasi wines are traditionally renowned for their longevity, although many producers produce earlier-drinking wines by utlilising pumping-over and racking to minimise the naturally reductive nature of the variety.

Greco di Tufo

Around 640ha are under vine in the Greco di Tufo DOCG. As the name suggests, the wine made here is the Greco variety grown on tufo (volcanic soil). It was designated a DOC in 1970 and promoted to DOCG in 2003.

Greco thrives in this elevated DOCG ranging from 300 to 600m above seal level, far away from the humidity of the coast where its tight clusters of grapes are prone to rot and downy mildew – although the presence of the Sabato River which divides the Greco di Tufo area means there is still some risk to grapes grown here.

As well as the still white wines it is famous for (min. 85% Greco & up to 15% Coda di Volpe), the DOCG also produces traditional-method sparkling wine with the same varietal requirements and aged for a minimum of 36 months on the lees.

Fiano di Avellino

The Fiano di Avellino DOCG has 411ha under vine. A DOC since 1978, it was promoted to DOCG in 2003. The area ranges in height from 400 to 700m above sea level.

Its wines must be a minimum of 85% Fiano, with the remainder made up of Coda di Volpe, Greco or Trebbiano.

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The future for Aglianico looks promising. This ancient grape is the signature red variety in the rugged, beautiful regions of Campania and Basilicata, and wine quality is on a steep upward trajectory. It should be on every wine lover’s radar.

Aglianico is sometimes called the ‘Nebbiolo of the south’, but this really doesn’t do the grape justice. Like Nebbiolo, wines made from Aglianico have inherent quality and a remarkable ability to age, with many examples showing alluring floral aromatics when young, and developing spice and herbal nuances with time in bottle. The wines will almost certainly differ in colour (Nebbiolo has thin skins, whereas Aglianico is thick-skinned), while both share high acidity and plentiful tannins – the latter characteristic sometimes makes Aglianico a difficult choice for consumers.

However, times are changing, and exciting wines are being produced across Campania and Basilicata as winemakers get to grips with the challenges the grape variety brings, producing distinctive, fragrant, terroir-specific wines, and often giving amazing value.

Many leading commentators are strong advocates for Aglianico. Jancis Robinson MW notes: ‘There are some grape varieties that, like Cary Grant and Catherine Deneuve, exude class. Aglianico is one of these.’ Renowned Italian wine expert Ian D’Agata goes further, stating: ‘Aglianico is one of the world’s dozen or so great grape varieties.’

What is undeniable is Aglianico’s ability to age – leading producer Mastroberardino holds stocks dating back to the 1950s, which have the freshness of a wine produced in the past two or three years. But allied to this, producers are now finding ways to express the finesse of the Aglianico grape while enhancing its ability to emphasise individual terroir characteristics. Highly respected consultant Riccardo Cotarella observes: ‘Aglianico is an outstanding marker of the territory. It’s able to express where it comes from like few other vines.’

Ancient soils

Aglianico can be found across southern Italy in Molise, Puglia, Calabria and Sicily, but it is within Campania and Basilicata that it reaches its finest expression.

Campania is the home of two DOCGs, Aglianico del Taburno and Taurasi. The latter was southern Italy’s first red DOCG classification in 1993; Taburno achieved the same status in 2011. Basilicata, an even more remote but beautiful region to Campania’s south and east, is renowned for Aglianico del Vulture, and a DOCG for Aglianico del Vulture Superiore was created in 2010.

Volcanic influences can be seen in many, but not all, of the key Aglianico areas. However, the type (and timing) of volcanic activity is markedly different across Campania and Basilicata. Taurasi lies in Irpinia, 50km northeast of Naples, with vineyards in the Apennine hills of Avellino.

Taurasi is influenced by its proximity to mount Vesuvius, with deep wind-blown ash from relatively recent eruptions having a marked impact on soils, in turn accentuating smoky, mineral characters. Taburno, in the province of Benevento, is a mountain rather than a volcano, although the eruptions of the super-volcano Campi Flegrei, some 15,000-39,000 years ago, left a marked influence here.

White Falanghina grapes are most commonly grown on volcanic earth, with Aglianico vineyards situated high on Taburno’s steep slopes, on ancient clay-limestone soils.

In contrast, on the coast south of Salerno, the newly emerging areas of Cilento and Paestum have no volcanic influence, but are dominated by proximity to the sea.

In neighbouring Basilicata, the finest vineyards are located on the steep eastern flanks of the ancient Mount Vulture, a volcano extinct since the Pleistocene era.

Taurasi DOCG must contain 85% Aglianico, but is occasionally blended with Piedirosso, Barbera and Primitivo. Taurasi wines tend to be full-bodied with high tannins and acidity; they have black- and red-berry fruit flavours, and black-olive and herbal notes when young; and they develop spice and smoke characters when aged. The best examples can be astonishingly long-lived.

Aglianico del Taburno DOCG must also be 85% Aglianico and is often a touch lighter than Taurasi, with red-fruit notes and slightly less prominent tannins, all balanced with higher acidity. Wines from coastal Cilento and Paestum, without the influence of volcanic soil, display an alluring floral, fragrant and refined edge with the cooling influence of sea breezes evident.

Basilicata

The Basilicata region’s only DOCG, Aglianico del Vulture Superiore requires 100% Aglianico, and in the past it gained an unwarranted reputation for firm, tannic and intense wines. The reality is very different. Ian D’Agata believes that Vulture wines display ‘the most intense fruit aromas and flavours’ with rich plum and mineral notes dominating. Fertile soils with high mineral content are found here, lying over ancient layers of lava and lapilli (small volcanic stones), which cover impervious clay soils beneath. As a result, soils drain well while retaining water – an important characteristic in an area where high summer temperatures are common.

Basilicata is a rugged, sparsely populated countryside which seems to belong to previous centuries. On my recent visit I was held up several times by shepherds driving flocks of hundreds of sheep across the country roads. However, winemakers here have definitely moved with the times. Elena Fucci is a renowned producer in Barile, and has focused all her efforts on a single wine (Titolo) at her winery since 2000. With 6ha of vines, at 600m above sea level, Fucci is driven purely by quality and regularly produces at 50% of the permitted yield. Refinement is her primary objective, with a subtle influence of oak and restrained tannins. As with most modern producers of Aglianico, a delicate approach in the winery is key. Fucci de-stems but avoids crushing grapes on arrival at the winery to minimise bitter flavours. She notes that ‘with Aglianico, it is very important to press very softly’. Fucci has experimented with amphorae but has some concerns over the higher porosity, so now uses smaller barriques with extra thickness to reduce gas transmission.

At the other end of the production scale in Basilicata, one finds the cooperative of Cantina di Venosa, the largest producer of Aglianico in the region. Founded in 1957, the co-op has 400 members and more than 800ha of vineyard land, producing a wide range of Aglianico wines, from sparkling to rosé, to light- and full-bodied reds. Commercial

director Antonio Teora explains the balance between power and freshness which is achieved in Vulture as being down to a combination of altitude and very high potassium levels in the soils. Although very different to the Fucci wines, the Cantina’s wines share similar fruit profiles, subtle oak ageing and finesse, all at competitive prices.

Campania

Close to the Campanian coast, Cilento and Paestum have emerged as sources of refined, elegant, ‘new-wave’ Aglianico. Jack Lewens, ex-sommelier and co-owner of Leroy in London’s Shoreditch, has set up the Vigneti Tardis co-venture with Bruno De Conciliis of Viticoltori De Conciliis, making delicate Aglianico wines (and Aglianicone, a distinct and ancient variety which shares similar acidity and tannins to Aglianico, though perhaps with a touch more fruit and a little less spice) from low-yielding vines with a hands-off, minimal intervention, low-sulphur approach. Lewens says: ‘We’re trying to emphasise the freshness in the wine, and the high levels of potassium in the area give a lovely saline freshness to the palate.’

Luigi Maffini is another Cilento producer who has strong views about the tough, tannic and robust Aglianicos of the past. Maffini emphasises the importance of balancing yields to get the most out of the grape: ‘Higher yields equate to less ripe tannins. Aglianico is richer than Nebbiolo and needs lots of work. It’s very important to take care in the vineyards.’

In the winery, Maffini restricts the amount of time his wines spend in oak for ageing, and minimises the use of new barrels. He sees a big difference between the coastal wines and those from Taurasi and Vulture, stating: ‘The style of wines coming out of Cilento is much more delicate, with fine tannins – this allows the fruit to shine.’

Since the 1980s, Taburno has established itself as another key area for Aglianico. Elevation is a significant factor here, with the region seeing very different climatic conditions to nearby Taurasi. The La Guardiense cooperative, founded in 1960, has close to 1,000 members and is the biggest producer of (white) Falanghina in the world. Marco

Giulioli is winemaker at La Guardiense, where he has worked for many years with consultant Riccardo Cotarella. Giulioli has seen vinification techniques improve in the past decade, in particular learning to adapt to the requirements of the specific Taburno biotype Aglianico Amaro (‘bitter Aglianico’). Giulioli expresses a personal preference for cooler vintages where he sees a very different tannic profile, but warns: ‘You need to talk about hours, not days, for skin contact. Gentle extraction is the key.’

Modern outlook

Mastroberardino is almost certainly the most famous name and influential producer of Aglianico in Campania. The family-run estate was created in the 1750s, and Piero Mastroberardino represents the 10^th generation to run the business.

Mastroberardino is a huge advocate for Taurasi Aglianico, believing that the area shares many similarities to Burgundy, with a patchwork of different sites, soils and mesoclimates. Taurasi is cooler than the coast, largely down to the significant altitude (which ranges from 200m-900m above sea level), and the presence of volcanic ash over colder clay, or clay-limestone/sand soils.

Mastroberardino demonstrates how Aglianico ages, proudly showing off vintages dating back to the 19th century in its newly created museum. Of Mastroberardino’s range, the Radici (and Radici Riserva) wines are perhaps the most impressive and classical in style. These are wines that merit at least one, if not two or three decades of ageing in

bottle to reach maximum potential. The Radici, Taurasi 2015 is elegant and has great fruit purity, with fine tannins suggesting a drinking window of 2025-2060. However, Piero is also developing new, more modern styles such as Stilèma Taurasi, a wine with short, low-temperature maceration accentuating leafy, lifted red-cherry characters. Mastroberardino is also pushing the boundaries of Aglianico further with its floral IGP white Neroametà; the vibrant

Lacrimarosa Rosato (fresh, strawberry fruit and a salty finish); and Anthères – a rare sweet red made from botrytised grapes.

Another top producer in Irpinia is Feudi di San Gregorio, run by the irrepressible Antonio Capaldo. The current winery was built in 1986 after the devastating earthquake of 1980, and the stylish buildings and tourism facilities are a long way removed from many of the region’s more traditional producers. Capaldo notes that Aglianico was planted in the area 200 years ago, and that this is one of the keys to the variety: ‘The grapes are very able to balance themselves. We don’t green harvest and it’s important not to force them.’ The wines of Feudi di San Gregorio run the whole gamut from intense metodo classico sparkling Aglianico Brut, through to fresh, crisp and briary reds such as Dal Re, to intense Taurasi and single-vineyard bottlings.

Within its upper range, Aglianico imparts power, longevity and purity of fruit, but with remarkable finesse. Oak and tannins are always in the background, with balance being the key word. Feudi’s top wines are Serpico (10,000 bottles, very old vines, 12 months in new barrel followed by five years in bottle) and a range of single-vineyard wines (Contrada Rosamilia and Contrada Candriano), which emphasise their individual sense of place.

Stock your cellar

Modern-day Aglianico from Campania and Basilicata is a variety that surprises as well as excites. For many consumers, previous experience suggests that Aglianico will be sturdy, tannic and need many years of ageing before becoming approachable.

However, winemakers across both regions have adapted their methods and are now allowing Aglianico’s inherent quality to shine. Greater focus on the vineyard and a gentler approach in the winery are yielding floral, fine wines that have great terroir character, yet manage to retain Aglianico’s remarkable ageing ability.

When one considers the quality available for the price, these are wines that should be on every wine lover’s shopping list.

Howard’s pick: 12 top Aglianicos

I first visited southern Italy 30 years ago, on a road trip with Italian wine expert and author Nicolas Belfrage MW, Simon Loftus (former chairman of merchant Adnams) and Andrew Caslin (then of merchant Lay & Wheeler).

Motoring through Campania, Basilicata and Puglia, we paused at designated wineries, and when we reached Reggio in Calabria to board the ferry to Sicily we were told to tip the windscreen washer if we wanted to preserve ours intact.

Arriving in a small village on Sicily’s east coast, two young men in sharp suits, bristling with mobile phones, entered the restaurant as it emptied at dusk. They were followed by a dozen Armani-clad men and women, the white-haired elder commanding attention at the head of the table.

When we later asked our guide who they were, he replied quietly: ‘All I can tell you is that they’re in the life-insurance business.’

For scenes such as these, the local food, the beauty of the landscapes and the wonder of cities such as Lecce, the trip was memorable. For the wines, less so.

As Belfrage wrote in his 1985 book, Life Beyond Lambrusco, ‘There is a great profusion of different vine varieties throughout the Mezzogiorno, and therefore a great profusion of different wines, many of which are of little or no commercial interest.’

Later I was to visit Sardinia, experiencing the fresh fish market in Cagliari and the extraordinary Ardia – the far more hazardous, rural version of Siena’s Palio horse race. The local Vernaccia kept you refreshed but that was about it.

How times have changed since those early days of wine and Puglian rosés.

Quality, consultants and native grapes

As production of southern Italian plonk dropped dramatically in the 1980s and early 1990s, producers had no alternative if they were to survive but to start focusing on quality.

From those oceans of rotgut rosso, oases such as Mastroberardino, Librandi, Feudi di San Gregorio, Regaleali, Donnafugata and Planeta sprung up.

Producers stopped ripping up their vineyard heritage of native grape varieties as it dawned on them that certain varieties (albeit not all) were capable of producing quality wine if they were reinterpreted.

How? By planting in the right location, restricting yields, picking at the right time, better handling in the cellar and taking on consultants.

On that latter score, Giacomo Tachis and Franco Bernabei in Sardinia, Riccardo Cottarella in Campania and Salvo Foti, Alberto Antonini and Carlo Ferrini in Sicily have all contributed to the south’s quality drive.

From big, ripe and tannic iterations, reds made from Nero d’Avola in Sicily, Primitivo and Negroamaro in Puglia and Cannonau and Carignano in Sardinia are being given a modern, brighter makeover. Aglianico above all is changing out of sight in Campania and on volcanic Monte Vulture in Basilicata.

The red grape that Sicily hangs its world-class hat on is Nerello Mascalese, pioneered by Benanti and Girolamo Russo at Etna in Sicily and latterly the likes of Alberto Graci, Marc de Grazia’s Terre Nere, Frank Cornelissen, Silvia Maestrelli, Andrea Franchetti, Pietradolce and Carlo Ferrini – not forgetting Simply Red singer-songwriter Mick Hucknall.

Today’s demand for fresher white wines is also bringing out the best in Sicily’s Grillo, Inzolia and Catarratto, Campania’s Greco, Fiano and Falanghina, while Verdeca in Puglia, Vermentino and Vernaccia di Oristano in Sardinia are taking on a new lease of life.

As the benefits of the Mediterranean diet have been brought home to us, washing it down with its vinous counterpart has never been more enjoyable.

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The Antinori family is indelibly associated with Tuscany, but for decades it has also owned properties elsewhere, such as Piedmont and Napa Valley. In 1989 they ventured into Puglia by purchasing two estates: Bocca di Lupo in Castel del Monte and Masseria Maime, south of Brindisi and close to the Adriatic.

Bocca di Lupo had been owned by the Gancia family, and most of the vines planted were white varieties destined for sparkling wine. The white wine is still produced in the form of the lightly oaked and relatively inexpensive Pietrabianca, a Chardonnay with a dash of Fiano. But there were also some Aglianico vines that had been planted in the mid-1980s, which Antinori’s head winemaker Renzo Cotarella decided to vinify. He liked what he tasted and planted more Aglianico, which was the source for the wine called Bocca di Lupo. In 2001 Cotarella blended in a little Cabernet Sauvignon, but found it dominant and distracting, so dropped it from subsequent vintages.Cotarella explained: ‘There are three main areas where Aglianico flourishes: Campania, especially in its flagship appellation Taurasi; Vulture in Basilicata; and Castel del Monte. They are all different. Vulture is on volcanic soils, but here in Puglia it’s grown on calcareous tufo soils that give considerable finesse.’

Nonetheless, Aglianico remains a tannic variety. ‘If the bunches aren’t fully ripe, the skins and especially the seeds will give you ferocious tannins. What wasn’t always realised is that phenolic ripeness occurs some seven to ten days after sugar ripeness. There were vintages when we over-extracted, especially by fermenting at temperatures higher than we would employ today.’

Winemaking decisions here vary according to the vintage character. There is no formula, but in general Bocca di Lupo is picked late, not overripe, fermented at up to 28C with a maceration of 15 to 18 days, and then aged in small barrels for around 15 months. In recent vintages Cotarella has been moving from barriques to French barrels of larger capacity such as 300 or 500 litres. He is vague about such matters as the proportion of new oak or toast levels. ‘We often don’t transfer the wine to barrels until January after the harvest, so we have plenty of time to assess the character of the wine before we need to order the barrels. So there’s flexibility when it comes to deciding on the kind of barrels we want for this wine.’

‘By 2010,’ he continues, ‘I knew the style of Aglianico I wanted from this site. I want intensity but not excessive muscularity. I can accept some austerity – that comes with the variety – but not rusticity.’

In 2012, Cotarella changed the vinification method, installing small conical steel tanks that allow him to ferment at lower temperatures. During fermentation, the seeds can drop to the bottom of the tanks, and about half of them are removed. This minimises the extraction of harsh tannins from those seeds. ‘This technique gives us earlier drinkability – I want our wines to be accessible once they’re released – but we can also retain a firm structure that gives an ageing potential of up to 20 years.’

This is in line with the Antinori house style, which never delivers blockbuster wines. Bocca di Lupo is more polished than many wines from neighbouring Vulture, but there is no lack of richness or power.

Tormaresca Bocca di Lupo: Tasting seven vintages

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Did the Aussies get it wrong? Perhaps Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay aren’t the right grapes for Down Under. Surely this is an irreverent, preposterous suggestion. These grapes have enjoyed raging success.

Scroll down for Morris’ best Australian wines made with Italian grapes

Yet it is impossible to ignore the increasing number of labels touting grapes such as Montepulciano, Arneis or Sagrantino. While they aren’t threatening the hegemony of French varieties, Italian grapes are unequivocally on the rise in Australia.

Rather than approaching this new frontier with an overly confident swagger, producers are adopting Italy’s native grapes with guileless enchantment. Acclaimed Riesling producer Stephanie Toole at Mount Horrocks in South Australia’s Clare Valley went to the dark side after tasting Nero d’Avola in a wine bar in Rome. ‘I’d never tried it, nor even heard of it before,’ she admits. She is now crafting one of Australia’s finest examples.

Beyond the grape varieties themselves, the style of wine they produce has appealed to winemakers’ sensibilities. ‘I want savoury, medium-bodied, textural wines that have some tannin and grip,’ says Sam Scott. His La Prova label drinks like a love letter to Italy.Stephen Pannell, who makes wine in the maritime region of McLaren Vale in South Australia, sees them as a better fit with the local lifestyle and food. ‘I’m aware of living next to the ocean, yet we are renowned for making big red wines. Those two things don’t sit well with each other,’ he argues. Indeed, the region’s delicate King George whiting and Kangaroo Island squid beg for restrained, refreshing whites. Enter Fiano and Vermentino.

Geographic spread

Soul-searching in Australia is not new, and the rise of Italian grape varieties has been simmering for the last 40 years. Boasting the country’s first commercial plantings of Italian varieties, the Montrose winery in Mudgee, New South Wales, released a Sangiovese in the late 1970s, though it was discontinued after a few vintages. The mantle was then taken up by Coriole’s Mark Lloyd, who established a vineyard in McLaren Vale in 1985.

‘My inspiration for planting Sangiovese was questioning why we didn’t have anything from Italy, and why there weren’t more characters or differences,’ Lloyd explains.

Australia has been strongly dominated by just a handful of French varieties for some time. ‘It’s like vinous racism,’ declares Pannell.

The stampede for Italian grape varieties is particularly palpable in McLaren Vale. Gill Gordon-Smith, who makes tiny quantities under her Fall From Grace label, asserts: ‘They have given the region a point of difference from Shiraz, especially for small producers.’

The landscape here even bears some resemblance to Italy. The hills conjure up Tuscany while, looking out to the ocean, it evokes Sardinia or Sicily. After World War II, numerous southern Italians migrated to McLaren Vale. Many worked as market gardeners and established vineyards. Though Italian varieties weren’t readily available at the time, now growers like the Maglieri family at Serafino, the Grilli family of Primo Estate and the Zerella family are proudly embracing the grapes of their homeland.

Well adapted

Beyond the Vale, Italian grape varieties have taken hold throughout South Australia. From Langhorne Creek to Adelaide Hills, through Barossa and Riverland and all the way to Clare Valley, plantings of Aglianico, Barbera, Lagrein, Mammolo and Zibibbo are popping up. ‘They grow brilliantly and are made for our Mediterranean climate,’ says Scott.

A key selling point is the ability these grapes have to retain acidity even at full flavour ripeness. Adjusting wine for acidity is common in Australia and usually necessary for balance. However, for her Clare Valley Nero d’Avola, Toole doesn’t need to do any manipulation. ‘The acid is just perfect,’ she states. At the nearby Koerner winery, brothers Damon and Jonathan Koerner work with varieties such as Sangiovese and Vermentino for this very reason. ‘We choose grapes we think are suited to this area and climate,’ says Damon. ‘Chardonnay isn’t, and personally I don’t think Shiraz is either because here in Clare you have to add so much acid.’

Italian grapes in Australia

Top five white grapes (by estimated tonnes harvested, 2018)

Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains (aka Moscato Bianco) 22,322t

Prosecco (officially known as Glera in Italy) 7,082t

Moscato Giallo 2,785t Fiano 2,075t

Vermentino 1,959t

Others Arneis, Bianco d’Alessano, Biancone, Falanghina, Friulano, Garganega, Grechetto, Greco, Grillo, Inzolia (officially Ansonica), Malvasia Istriana, Pecorino, Ribolla Gialla, Trebbiano group, Verdicchio, Verduzzo, Zibibbo

Top five red Italian grapes (by estimated tonnes harvested, 2018)

Sangiovese 3,996t

Lambrusco family 1,884t

Dolcetto 973t

Nero d’Avola 898t

Montepulciano 760t

Others Aglianico, Aleatico, Barbera, Brachetto, Colorino, Lagrein, Mammolo, Marzemino, Nebbiolo, Negroamaro, Piedirosso, Sagrantino, Schioppettino, Teroldego, Uva di Troia

Heat and drought tolerance are an equal draw, especially as climate change has exacerbated weather extremes. In the particularly dry, hot conditions of 2018, ‘the French grape varieties struggled, but not the Italians – they just soldiered through it’, says Scott. Since the late 1990s, the Australian Wine Research Institute has been educating the industry about climate change and the solution of alternative Mediterranean grapes. Brad Hickey and Nicole Thorpe of Brash Higgins took heed after a trio of hot vintages from 2007 to 2009. ‘We were the first in McLaren Vale to plant Nero d’Avola and removed a block of Shiraz,’ recalls Hickey. While this was considered foolhardy from a commercial standpoint, Hickey estimates that there are now 30 people growing it.

Healthy concern

Unshackled by the kind of appellation regulations in place in Europe, winemakers have greater freedom to play with these grapes. Nevertheless, Australia has its own constraints. Strict regulations on plant material entering the country mean producers can’t simply arrive home with Nebbiolo cuttings from their favourite Barolo cru and stick them in the ground. Incoming vines are quarantined, cultivated, then tested for virus. If, and only if, a plant is clean is it released. The vine then needs to be propagated. It is a lengthy process. Toole put herself on the waiting list for Nero d’Avola in 2003 and wasn’t able to produce a wine until 2012.

Vine nurseries are therefore fundamental in the growth of alternative varieties in Australia. Yalumba’s Barossa nursery is a notable source, while Chalmers’ Victoriabased operation specialises exclusively in Italian cultivars. It has partnered with the Vivai Cooperativi Rauscedo of Fruili, which is the world’s largest vine nursery. To date, Chalmers has made almost 40 native Italian grape varieties available to Aussie growers. ‘We’ve sold over two million vines of these varieties to between 300 and 400 different producers,’ estimates owner Kim Chalmers.

As impressive as this is, not every desired grape has made it through. ‘I would like to have planted Nerello Mascalese five years ago but it’s still not available,’ says Chester Osborn of d’Arenberg, who is already working with Sagrantino and Aglianico.

On the flip-side, Chalmers’ latest imports include popular grapes such as Falanghina, Pecorino and Ribolla Gialla. However, Chalmers insists that, rather than fashion, her first consideration is viticulture. She focuses on grapes that are suited to warm climates and resilient to the effects of climate change.

‘Our hit list of attributes are thick skins, loose bunches, very early or very late ripening (so that we are picking before the majority of heat or well after), heat and drought tolerance, and high natural acidity,’ she explains. She then looks at what tastes good.

Front runners

Italian grape varieties span Australia from as far west as Margaret River all the way east to New South Wales. Though still far from mainstream, they are no longer outliers as they were when Mark Lloyd and his cohorts Garry Crittenden and Mark Walpole in Victoria started championing them. The tipping point will be when big companies such as Casella or Treasury Wine Estates get behind them.

For the time being, producers are still trying to determine which grapes do best where. Jeffrey Grosset struggled with Aglianico in the Clare Valley for seven years and it didn’t ripen. ‘It was too lean. Most of it went down the drain,’ he confesses. With time, patterns might emerge, such as Nero d’Avola and Fiano in McLaren Vale.

It is also too soon to talk about a definitive Australian style, though current releases are impressive. What is most stunning is the brilliant, mouthwatering natural acidity and reasonable alcohol levels.

Whites are being made without oak or with neutral oak and everyone is talking texture. Fiano is truly a standout, with a range of expressions. Some are made exclusively in stainless steel, others go through partial barrel fermentation, and lees contact varies. La Prova, Grosset and Bondar are just a few to look out for.

As for Vermentino, a number of producers are trying too hard to mimic Sauvignon Blanc, but Oliver’s Taranga makes a lovely version comparable in quality to the winery’s excellent Fiano. Meanwhile, for something completely different, Koerner offers two very distinct Clare Valley Vermentinos.

Aiming high

For the reds, there are scores of mid-weight examples loaded with intriguing flavours. Oak, gloriously, is rarely overdone. The fruit tends to have a glossier sheen and tannins are typically less assertive than in the Italian counterparts. Sagrantino may be the exception to this, though it generally has plush fruit to support. Aphelion in McLaren Vale is aiming for refinement and the embryonic 2018 shows promise. Montepulciano (or Monte as the Aussies affectionately call it) is fruity yet polite, and lacking its rustic edge. Fall From Grace has just released a dry, dark rosato version along the lines of a Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo. Above all, Nero d’Avola is a winner.

Considered Italy’s most noble varieties, Sangiovese and Nebbiolo will likely come under the most scrutiny. For Sangiovese, Coriole is still a reference. Zerella is going for a long-aged, Brunello-esque version whereas Koerner and McLaren Vale’s Juxtaposed are making a juicy-fruit style.

In terms of Nebbiolo, it takes a certain fanatic to tangle with this finicky grape. Stephen Pannell, as well as Luke Lambert in Yarra Valley and Pizzini in King Valley, are among the most gorgeous successes.

As difficult as it is not to make comparisons with Italy, Australia’s producers are adamant that they are not trying to make wines that look like something else. ‘We need to create our own industry, not copy,’ says Pannell. ‘That requires creativity, ingenuity and bravery.’

Australia has a solid track record of this. Surely it won’t be long before wines made from Italian grapes are sitting next to Australian benchmarks of French varieties.

Morris’ top Australian wines made with Italian grapes

The first 15 wines were included in the original feature in the June 2019 issue of Decanter magazine. The following wines are an additional selection exclusively for Decanter Premium members. 

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From new-wave Aglianico to pale rosé and the re-emergence of indigenous grape varieties, there's a lot happening in Campania, says Aldo Fiordelli. Read his report below, including wines to look for...

Campania wines have a charm that belies the relatively small size of this southern Italian vineyard region.

According to Italy’s national statistics agency, Istat, Campania makes up just 3.3% of Italy’s vineyards, with roughly 29,000ha planted.

Scroll down to see Aldo’s top wines from Campania

Aglianico is the most widely planted grape variety here, known for producing powerful yet charismatic red wines. It is followed by Falanghina, a grape known for yielding delicious and refreshing white wines, as well as the better known Greco and Fiano varieties, whose wines are able to age.

However, the true wonders of Campania are found in a crowd of indigenous grapes from Roman times:

• Pallagrello from Volturno
• Piedirosso and Caprettone around Vesuvio
• Biancolella on the island of Ischia
• Ripoli, Fenile and Ginestra along the Amalfi Coast

Regional variation: From mountains to coast

Campania may lie at the heart of the Mediterranean, but there are few places with as much variety in terms of landscape and climate.

Irpinia

The most misleading region is arguably Irpinia. One expecting the classic components of Mediterranean terroir will instead find a plateau sitting at, on average, 600 metres above sea level, with mountains soaring up to 1,800 metres.

A mix of limestone, clay and volcanic soils expand over two valleys:

• Calore, which is more suitable for red wines
• Sabato, which is better known for white wines

The average temperature in August, the warmest month of the year, is around 22°C. As this figure would suggest for somewhere so far south in Europe, there is tremendous variation in night and day temperatures. This extends the growing season and is essential for taming the austere, phenolic nature of Aglianico, which in good years is harvested at the beginning of November.

Coastal

Towards the coastline, Campanian vineyards also benefit from the cooling influence of the sea, a favourable factor when compared to other regions of the same latitude.

Naples sits at close to 41 degrees north, and this area’s reputation has been rising – as recently proven by the Gambero Rosso publication presenting a Tre Bicchieri [‘three glasses’] award to a wine from Ischia Island in the Gulf of Naples.

Improved winemaking skills

A profound increase in winemaking skill has been one of the most vital changes in Campania over the last decade.

Pioneers include Luigi Moio, professor of oenology at Federico II University of Naples, who works as a consultant for several wineries, teaching and preaching the necessity for clean and precise wines. He is also the producer of an outstanding Taurasi.

Larger-scale winery, Feudi San Gregorio, has made its viticulture more efficient, largely thanks to Pierpaolo Sirch, the well-known pruning consultant turned technical director of the winery.

Trends: from ‘garagiste’ Aglianico to pale rosé

Meanwhile, Marco Tinessa, the ‘garagiste’ of Aglianico and a talented wine producer with a degree from the Bocconi University in Milan, is competing with Giovanni Ascione, of the small Nanni Copè estate, to become the leader of post-modern winemaking in Campania.

Then there are the famed ‘bianchisti’, the white wine producers like Marisa Cuomo with her beloved Amalfi Coast ‘Furore’, and Sabino Loffredo of Pietracupa.

Last but not least we must not forget the emerging rosé trend among Lacryma Christi producers near to Vesuvio. These vibrant, pale pink wines of extraordinary saltiness and minerality have low alcohol and are becoming must-have wines on Amalfi Coast holidays.

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A violent earthquake in Campania 38 years ago led to the birth of one of the area’s leading wine estates. Susan Hulme MW tastes Feudi's Taurasi from 1997 to 2008, and Carla Capalbo explores the history of this estate...

Susan Hulme MW tastes 12 vintages of Feudi di San Gregorio Taurasi:

Aglianico produces some of Italy’s best and most long-lived wines, with the capacity to age, in the best cases, for more than 50 years. It also has the capacity to reflect climatic variations and terroir. Some of the best examples are produced in the Avellino hills in Italy, labelled as Taurasi DOCG.

This tasting, at Feudi di San Gregorio’s headquarters in Campania in June 2017, illustrated not only vintage variations, but the work of two hugely influential winemaking consultants: Luigi Moio worked here between 1997 and 2001, and Renato Cotarella, his successor, until 2008.

Moio had a more traditional approach, aiming for elegance by concentrating on freshness and managing the alcohol. Cotarella’s wines, meanwhile, express more concentration, smoothness and beautifully-managed tannins.

Stylistically different, yes, but relatively fine points in this line up of 12 impressive wines covering the span of bot of their tenures at Feudi di San Gregorio.

It’s clear that both have made stunningly beautiful wines, but it is still the personality of Aglianico in its Taurasi heartland which asserts itself overall.

Scroll down to read Carla Capalbo’s account of the estate and its history, originally published by Decanter.com in 2015

Feudi di San Gregorio Taurasi 1997-2008:

Feudi at a glance

Location Sorbo Serpico, Avellino, Campania

Area under vine 300 hectares

Total production 3 million bottles

Altitude of vineyards 400m-700m

Main varieties Aglianico 35%, Greco 25%, Fiano 25%, Falanghina 15%

Single vineyards Vigneto dal Re – 4ha (Aglianico for Serpico), Piano di Montevergine – 4ha (Aglianico for Taurasi Riserva), Cutizzi – 8ha (Greco di Tufo), Pietracalda – 8ha (Fiano di Avellino), Serrocielo – 8ha (Falanghina)

Carla Capalbo reports:

In November 1980, the mountainous interior of the Campania region, east of Naples, was struck by one of Italy’s worst earthquakes of modern times, leaving almost 3,000 dead and 300,000 people homeless.

Villages and farms were destroyed around its epicentre in the province of Avellino known as Irpinia. For many Irpinians, this was the signal to abandon the poor, rural countryside and head for cities in the north. For others, it became a call to arms to rebuild and maintain the culture of this little-known but unique area.

Enzo Ercolino, a native of Avellino who had moved to Rome some years earlier, was one of them. ‘I spent my teenage years impatient to flee this backwater, but seeing it in ruins made me want to help rescue it,’ he said.

He moved back and in 1986 he and his brothers, Mario and Luciano, Enzo’s Irpinian wife, Mirella Capaldo, and one of her brothers, Mario, opened a wine estate – Feudi di San Gregorio – in the hills just above Atripalda. Their first slogan was Spirituale Vinum.

These were the post-earthquake reconstruction years and money was flooding into Irpinia from Rome and the European Union. A fund created for those aged under 40 with strong business plans helped raise some of the €4 million the group needed to get going. It soon had 30 hectares of vineyards and was launching its first wines, native whites as well as reds.

‘Looking back, it’s amazing how adventurous my aunt and uncles were for their time,’ says Antonio Capaldo, who now runs the estate today. ‘When Feudi started, it was one of only about 10 estates to bottle wines in Irpinia, a land that has a 2,000 year old tradition of producing red wines from our native Aglianico grape. So even its decision to produce modern-style whites was radical.’

The group was ahead of the curve. In 2003, Avellino became one of the first Italian provinces to attain three DOCG appellations, for the whites of Fiano di Avellino and Greco di Tufo, and the red Taurasi whose DOCG dates to 1993.

Rural backdrop

Irpinia is an undiscovered, untouristy part of the southern Italian Apennines, with a rural economy that still depends on chestnut harvests, timber, small farms, family businesses and scarce industry.

Like much of the south, it’s been hard hit by the recent economic crisis. Most families grow their own vegetables and make wine for home consumption from small plots. Wine is often still considered a food here.

The most important Irpinian winery before Feudi began its expansion was Mastroberardino, whose reputation was made in the post-war period. It set the standard for Avellino’s classic-style Taurasis.

Feudi’s ambitious vision differed from Mastroberardino’s and its other contemporaries’. Ercolino’s goal was to create a modern buzz around Campania’s wines and to become a standard-bearer for southern Italian wines, and he used the models of Tuscany, France and the New World to achieve it.

‘Feudi was stylish in everything it did, from its minimalist labels, designed by Massimo Vignelli, to its sleek marketing campaigns and barrique-aged wines made by Luigi Moio and then by Riccardo Cotarella,’ says local sommelier Jenny Auriemma.

By the end of the 1990s, iconic wines like the full-bodied Aglianico called Serpico, the pure Merlot Patrimo, and the late-harvest Greco called Privilegio were winning awards and featuring on wine lists in chic restaurants throughout Italy. ‘Feudi got people excited about Campanian wines and inspired many smaller estates,’ Auriemma says.

Feudi’s expansion seemed unstoppable. In 2004 the beautiful modern cellar opened, with its panoramic top-floor restaurant, Marennà, under the tutelage of Michelin-starred chef, Heinz Beck. (It now has a star of its own, with chef Paolo Barrale). There were plans for a concert hall made from barriques, for rare-breed animals and a cultural centre.

The dynamic, larger-than-life Ercolino was the estate’s public face, but behind the scenes tensions were growing within the family. The winery was gobbling money: it now owned more than 250 hectares and investments had increased to €40 million.

By 2001, another of Mirella’s brothers, Pellegrino Capaldo, a professor of economics and financial consultant, had stepped in as a silent, majority partner. In 2003 Mario and Luciano Ercolino left, followed in 2006 by Enzo and Mirella. Capaldo has been the principal owner, with 93% of the company, since 2010.

Feudi’s current chapter began when Pellegrino’s son, Antonio, decided to run the company. ‘I’d done my PhD at the London School of Economics in Bangladeshi micro-finance and was working at McKinsey in Europe while these changes were happening at Feudi,’ the 37-year-old says. ‘I never imagined I’d head a winery, but I loved Irpinia and wine, and had become a sommelier.’ In 2009, a day after making partner at McKinsey, he quit and turned his attention to Feudi.

‘My uncle Enzo had initiated several exciting projects that he wasn’t able to finish and we’re continuing them,’ he says. The ‘we’ includes his CEO, Pierpaolo Sirch. Trained as an agronomist in his native Friuli, Sirch began working at Feudi in 2003 as a consultant under Ercolino. ‘Enzo’s strategy was always to bring in top talent, and he wanted Pierpaolo to oversee the viticulture here,’ says Capaldo

Embracing native grapes

Sirch’s back-to-the-land approach heralded a new direction for the estate’s catalogue of more than 20 wines. ‘Fashions were changing too, but I felt we’d lost the pleasure element in many wines by overusing barriques and over-extracting them,’ he says. ‘Some wines were criticised as too international. I also felt Aglianico could be different from the rustic, tannic and impenetrable wine it’s often described as. To me, it’s an elegant, sensual red.’

The estate’s 300ha of vineyards are made up of over 700 plots, with 200 more belonging to local families who sell their grapes to Feudi. Sirch has mapped each parcel and communicates with the farmers via texts and emails.

He gives the growers free pruning courses (he also runs a pruning consultancy with Marco Simonit) and has brought in several well-known oenologists to share their experiences with his team. These include Hans Terzer from Alto Adige and Georges Pauli of Château Gruaud-Larose in Bordeaux (Riccardo Cotarella left the estate in 2007). More recently, Bordeaux’s Denis Dubourdieu has been working with Sirch on the estate’s wines in Campania and beyond.

‘Our Magna Graecia project is in full swing,’ Capaldo explains. ‘We always intended to go beyond Campania to become the leading estate in southern Italy, and to represent the native grapes of its varied regions. The first estates in Basilicata and Puglia were bought by Enzo, and we’ve recently added a Sicilian winery to our portfolio.’

The estates make and bottle their own wines under Sirch’s guidance, and are distributed by Feudi’s network. They include Cefalicchio, a biodynamic estate in Puglia, Valenti on Mount Etna in Sicily, and Basilisco in Basilicata.

The other innovative project initiated by Ercolino was to make sparkling wines from native Irpinian grapes using the traditional method. Champagne producer Anselme Selosse was the first consultant for what has become the Dubl line, although he left in 2010.

‘We’re now producing 100,000 bottles of three types: Falanghina, an Aglianico rosato and the top-of-the-line Dubl+ of Greco that spends 24 months on the lees,’ Capaldo explains.

Dubl has its own distribution line and brand. ‘We’ve opened our first Dubl Bar inside Naples airport where international travellers can have a glass of bubbly and local speciality foods or gourmet panini designed by our chef. Our future is outside of Italy, and this is a fun way to get people excited about Campania’s great native grapes.’

Carla Capalbo is a food, wine and travel writer, and photographer, based in Italy

Feudi di San Gregorio: a timeline

1986 Feudi di San Gregorio is founded by the three Ercolino brothers and Mirella Capaldo; Luigi Moio was the first winemaker

1991 The estate’s first wine, Nobellum, is released

1997 First Tre Bicchieri award given to the Taurasi 1994

1998 First release of Serpico (1996 vintage)

1999 First vintage of Patrimo (released 2001)

2000 50ha of vineyards bought in at Manduria in Puglia, and 15ha in Vulture in Basilicata

2001 Pellegrino Capaldo acquires a majority share of the estate. Architect Massimo Vignelli designs iconic labels

2003 Riccardo Cotarella becomes consultant winemaker; Pierpaolo Sirch is consultant agronomist; Mario and Luciano Ercolino leave

2004 The new cellar and headquarters are finished; Marennà restaurant opens

2006 Enzo Ercolino and Mirella Capaldo leave the company; the sparkling wine, Dubl, is launched

2007 Cotarella leaves

2009 Antonio Capaldo takes over; Sirch becomes CEO

2010 Pellegrino Capaldo becomes sole proprietor; Basilisco estate in Basilicata bought

2013 Cellar built in Puglia for Ognissole estate; Cefalicchio estate acquired in Puglia

2014 Valenti estate on Sicily’s Etna signed up as part of Magna Graecia project. Denis Dubourdieu becomes consultant winemaker. Dubl Bar opens

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From Riverland Fiano to McLaren Vale Aglianico, growing numbers of Australian winemakers are experimenting with Italian grape varieties and our expert team has picked out 15 favourites - mostly from the recent Australia Day tastings in London.

Those in-the-know will be aware of Australian winemakers’ experiments with Italian grape varieties over the last several years.

More recently, growing numbers of wines are becoming available – some only at the ‘cellar door’, but others are finding their way overseas – as shown by the tasting lists at the Australia Day tasting organised by Wine Australia in London in January.

Some of the trials started with climate change in mind, but several winemakers have also long held the view that certain Australian climates – Riverland, for example – were already a good natural fit for the sun-loving varieties of southern Italy, in particular.

Some winemakers also have ancestral links to Italian regions.

Below, you’ll see examples of how McLaren Vale and Riverland have been explored as a base for varieties from the south of Italy’s ‘boot’, such as Fiano, Aglianico and Nero d’Avola.

Adelaide Hills and Clare and King valleys have emerged as front-runners for varieties found in central and northern Italy, such as Sangiovese, Montepulciano and Nebbiolo, although it is still early days and so difficult to generalise.

Below, Decanter’s tasting team pick out 15 Italian-inspired highlights that are worth tracking down in 2018. Due to the small quantities, availability may be patchy, so if you come across any of these, snap them up.

Copy and editing by Chris Mercer and Jim Button. Tasting notes below by Tina Gellie, Amy Wislocki and Jim Button. 

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Susan Hulme MW profiles the best areas and producers of one Italy's oldest grapes. Plus see her top 12 Campania Aglianico wines, available exclusively to Decanter Premium members...

Aglianico in Campania

• Scroll down to see the ratings and tasting notes, available exclusively for Premium members

Aglianico is one of the world’s great grape varieties. It is certainly one of Italy’s three top-quality red grapes, along with Nebbiolo and Sangiovese. If Barolo and Barbaresco, Brunello and Chianti are northern and central Italy’s vinous odes to greatness, then the Aglianico of Taurasi is certainly Italy’s southern counterpart. A great grape must have several features.

These include an historical pedigree; the intrinsic qualities of the variety itself; the ability to produce wines that can age; and the ability to express differences of location or to transmit terroir. Mastroberardino is historically the most important Taurasi producer, with a family history going back to the mid-1800s – for many years it was the lone defender and champion of Aglianico.

‘Its origins are very ancient,’ explains Piero Mastroberardino, who believes that the introduction of Aglianico to Campania can be traced back to ancient Greek settlements in the south of Italy, in around the 6th or 7th century BC. Even the name is said to have Greek origins, being a corruption of Vitis Hellenica (Greek vine). Whatever its origins, Aglianico is undoubtedly one of Italy’s oldest grape varieties.

Continue reading below

Susan’s top Aglianicos:

Place and personality

Mastroberardino gives a description of the variety’s special qualities. ‘The particular values of this ancient variety are the great polyphenolic and aromatic qualities, as well as the acidity level, which is generally higher than in other red grape varieties,’ he says, adding that this gives ‘increased longevity’.

I recently tasted a selection of several 20-year-old Taurasi wines from the mid-1990s which, unbelievably, still seemed a little too youthful. Indeed, Mastroberardino still shows wines going back as far as the 1950s and 1960s which have the freshness and tenacity of much younger wines. These are truly some of the longest-lived wines in Italy.

Aglianico can be found in Molise, Puglia, Calabria, Sicily and Basilicata (home of Aglianico del Vulture Superiore DOCG), but it is in Campania where it finds many of its best expressions. There are two DOCGs here: Taurasi DOCG (established 1993) and Aglianico del Taburno DOCG (since 2011), and there are also a multitude of smaller DOCs in which it features, usually as a single variety but also blended with other local varieties such as Piedirosso.The grape has three different biotypes – Aglianico del Vulture in Basilicata, Aglianico del Taburno in Benevento and Aglianico di Taurasi. To add to this complexity, there are a multitude of clones. Antonio Capaldo of Feudi di San Gregorio remarks that all three DOCG areas have many historic vineyards, whereas in the 1980s and 1990s in many other parts of Italy, vines were replanted with a limited number of clones leading to a much-reduced genetic biodiversity in the planting material.A University of Milan analysis of Feudi di San Gregorio’s old Dal Re vineyard, from which its Serpico wine is sourced, was found to contain more than 40 Aglianico clones among vines aged between 120 and 180 years old. Few grape varieties in Italy have the viticultural richness and heritage to be found in these old Aglianico vineyards.

Sub-regional expressions

Even within Campania, Aglianico expresses itself very differently, with strong variations between Salerno and Paestum on the coast and the inland areas of Avellino (roughly equivalent to the ancient region of Irpinia) and Benevento.

Taurasi is perhaps the most well-known Aglianico denomination and was the first DOCG to be awarded in the whole of southern Italy. It encompasses the area surrounding the Avellino hills, about an hour’s drive inland from Naples – Italy’s deep south. Here, Aglianico produces deeply coloured wines with bracing acidity, firm tannins and high alcohol which have the ability to age for 50 years or more in the right location and the right hands. When tasting, the wines are characterised by black and red berried fruit aromas, with black olive and green herb notes and flavours in youth, developing spicier, tobacco notes with age.

Many of the more traditional-style Taurasi need time to mature. However, as with Barolo there are producers who adopt a more modernist approach, using barrique and micro-oxygenation techniques to make wines that are more drinkable when young. Riccardo Cotarella, one of Italy’s leading consultant oenologists, comments: ‘Aglianico is an outstanding marker of the territory. It is able to express where it comes from like few other vines.’

Taurasi, in the province of Avellino, is much cooler than the coast, and within the 17 villages that make up the Taurasi DOCG there are significant differences between soil (largely volcanic but with significant quantities of clay, limestone and sand) and altitude (ranging from 200m to over 900m above sea level). Aglianico is the last grape variety in Italy to ripen, but to achieve full phenolic ripeness it needs a long, slow maturation, so colder clay or clay-limestone soils are ideal. It also, as Pierpaolo Sirch, CEO of Feudi di San Gregorio comments, ‘needs a dry, well-ventilated site especially in the final phase of ripening’ to avoid problems of rot.

North of Avellino and further inland at Benevento, historically associated with legends of witchcraft and home of the liqueur Strega (the Italian word for ‘witch’), soils are fertile and deep, but because of the higher sand content they retain the heat more efficiently. This in general produces wines with less power and acidity and with alcohol levels usually ranging between 12.5% and 14.5%. The wines are often medium-bodied, with medium acidity and with red berry aromas and flavours; there is a contrasting and attractively bitter note to the tannins.

North of Naples in Caserta, where the Falerno del Massico DOC wines can be made with Primitivo or Aglianico, the volcanic soils are very high in potassium so have a high pH that generally produces wines with a little less acidity, better suited to early drinking rather than long ageing. The Aglianico produced here is slim but elegant with spicy tobacco notes.

In the Cilento region, some exciting earlier-drinking Aglianico is being produced just inland from Paestum. The climate is moderated by its proximity to the coast, although there are some higher elevation points which result in a different mesoclimate, such as the site for San Salvatore’s vineyards.

Their winemaker Alessandro Leoni describes Aglianico from Cilento as showing ‘the same behaviour as Merlot in Bolgheri’, becoming ‘smooth and round and ready within one year of the harvest’. These wines have an appealing luminosity, and intensity of aromas (bright blackberry, liquorice and spice) and a clarity of flavours which make them very easy to love, almost as if Aglianico grown near the coast takes on a sunnier personality.

Built to last

So why isn’t Aglianico more popular? Well, it is naturally a very tannic grape and traditionalstyle wines tend to need at least 10 to 15 years to come around – not something which suits the modern drinker – and this may have coloured its reputation somewhat. But now there is a much better general understanding of how to get the best out of Aglianico in both the vineyard and the winery, particularly by having a gentler pressing, extracting the tannins from just the skins and avoiding the stalks and seeds.

Campania also offers a variety of styles, some of which allow early drinking without losing the essential character of the grape. It is a grape variety which rewards patience, as aromas and flavours evolve in the glass over time, revealing the hidden depths and complexity that only the great grape varieties can consistently deliver. Claudio Panetta of Il Cancelliere sums it up perfectly, describing Aglianico as ‘a gastronomic wine, but also a meditation wine that can be drunk young for its exuberance and can be preserved and enjoyed in its maturity’.

Perhaps another ingredient for greatness should be mentioned: the producers. There is a real feeling of excitement about Aglianico’s future among the growing community of producers, some of whom have converted from being simple grape-growers into producers themselves, but who all have a passion for the grape.

Historic names such as Mastroberardino, Antonio Caggiano and Salvatore Molettieri have been joined by Feudi di San Gregorio, Il Cancelliere, Luigi Moio, Roberto di Meo, Luigi Tecce, Perillo, Colli di Lapio, Pietracupa, Ciro Picariello and many more. These producers believe in Aglianico’s potential and are researching, experimenting and exchanging ideas about how to coax the most out of this venerable variety. This makes one feel that although Aglianico has had an incredibly long history, the best is yet to come.

Susan Hulme MW is a wine consultant, educator and judge who specialises in Italy.

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Stefano Ferrante

Stefano Ferrante was just 38 in 2011 when he was promoted by Gianni Zonin, president of Italy’s largest private wine group, to technical director of the company, overseeing an annual output of nearly 60 million bottles.

A remarkable achievement for one so young, yet Ferrante still considers himself an ‘accidental’ winemaker. ‘I’m from Milan – a city boy with no links to wine or the countryside,’ he says. ‘The only person in my family who even drank was my grandfather.’ He studied classics and went to agricultural college with an idea of getting into fruit production. ‘In those days agronomy was considered an ‘alternative’ subject and attracted kids with hippy tendencies. We’d eat rustic salami with Lambrusco. That’s how I fell in love with wine.’

A chance encounter brought him into a circle of wine tasters and he was hooked. For his university thesis he spent three years in Tuscany with Professor Attilio Scienza, conducting zoning research at Bolgheri. Then he lucked into helping to harvest at Ornellaia.

‘The Maremma was jumping in those years, and I stayed on at Ornellaia as winemaker Andrea Giovannini’s assistant. I was beginning to be drawn to the oenological side of wine.’ He befriended Daniel Schuster, the then consultant at Ornellaia, and followed him to New Zealand for six months.

Back in Italy, Ferrante worked in Basilicata with Aglianico and in Chianti Classico for American Kendall Jackson with French winemaker, Pierre Seillan. ‘Seillan is very creative and taught me a lot about paying careful attention to detail in the vineyards and cellar,’ he says.

But Ferrante wanted something rooted more in Italian culture. When Gianni Zonin proposed he become the director of a start-up estate in the Maremma in 2003, Ferrante didn’t hesitate. ‘There was nothing there, no cellar, and 30 hectares of just-planted vines without trellises.’ Over eight years, Ferrante oversaw the creation of Tenuta Rocca di Montemassi, one of 10 independent estates in the Zonin portfolio.

Does Zonin always pick young people for high-level jobs? ‘The Zonin family love the energy and exuberance the young bring to a project, but it’s a highly structured group and I was supported by their technical team,’ Ferrante says.

Now at the helm of that team, Ferrante has a lot on his plate. The Zonin group is run by the family (Domenico Zonin recently replaced his father as CEO) and divided into two distinct parts: Casa Vinicola Zonin, at Gambellara in the Veneto, which makes around 45 million bottles; and the nine farm estates, from Friuli to Sicily, with one in the US.

‘At Gambellara we act primarily like négociants, selecting and buying wines throughout Italy before blending and bottling them under Zonin’s labels – including 16 million bottles of Prosecco. Ten years ago we sold 80% in Italy; now it’s 80% abroad. The single estates use only home-grown grapes to express the diversities of their areas.’ These include Piedmont’s Asti, Chianti Classico and Puglia.

‘Currently we work with 58 varieties on 2,000 Zonin-owned hectares throughout Italy,’ he says. ‘We follow company guidelines but each estate’s resident oenologist also has some freedom. Zonin’s external consultant is Denis Dubourdieu from Bordeaux. It’s an honour to collaborate with him. He’s helped Zonin find its style and raised the bar.’

‘For the high-volume wines, we’re after a drinkable, affordable, reliable style to accompany our daily lives, whereas the individual estates sit at the pyramid’s pinnacle, producing more personal wines that reflect their origins. We’re interested in showcasing their grape varieties and terroir, not in making overly forceful or opulent wines.’

Looking south

Which region does Ferrante feel is the most up-and-coming? ‘Puglia has the most potential at the moment. Several big wine companies like ours have been investing heavily in its unique varieties – Negroamaro, Primitivo and Malvasia – and giving them the attention that had been lacking before,’ he says. ‘They’re perfect for today’s consumers: wines that are fruit-driven, richly coloured and naturally somewhat sweet, but without heavy tannins. That’s what the northern markets are after because they’re perfect to drink outside of meal times.

‘Beyond Puglia, I think Sicily has much more to give through its native grapes. It’s moving away from being Italy’s Australia, where it was being used to produce heavy wines from international varieties, to reclaiming its nobility. After all, this was one of the mythical areas of ancient Rome and Magna Grecia. Now, with a modern take on Grillo, Inzolia, Nero d’Avola and the other local varieties, we’re seeing wines being made with elegance and finesse, which is a new way of looking at them.

‘The other grape variety I think still has a lot to give is Sangiovese, in Tuscany and beyond. Sangiovese is a symbol of Italianità (Italianness), but I feel that we’ve not yet seen its best.

‘I believe in constantly experimenting with new techniques, and so each year we dedicate 10% of our production to different vinification methods,’ Ferrante explains. ‘It keeps things interesting and stops us getting stuck. For a wine tourist like me, to make so many diverse wines in so many parts of Italy is a unique and exciting opportunity – even if it does mean spending my life in my car.’

Written by Carla Capalbo

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No one has a better grasp of Italy’s current wine scene than the professional winemakers who work the length and breadth of the country. For an insider’s view, Carla Capalbo spoke to three of the best...

Three wise men: Emiliano Falsini

Since 2000 Emiliano Falsini has belonged to one of Italy’s most influential oenology groups, Gruppo Matura, which was founded in 1997 by fellow Tuscans, Attilio Pagli and Alberto Antonini.

‘In Matura, we all work independently with our own clients but share information and sales opportunities. We’re committed to making wine from lesser-known grape varieties whenever possible to help maintain Italy’s extraordinary wealth of viticultural biodiversity,’ he says. Falsini studied oenology in Florence and did a stint in California before setting up on his own. ‘I worked for La Famiglia di Robert Mondavi at Oakville, where they grow several Italian varieties including Sangiovese, Barbera and Nebbiolo,’ he says.

Now 41, he’s made his name among Italian wine appassionati (wine lovers) for championing what the Italians call vignaioli (vignerons in French): independent producers whose wines reflect the personalities of their grapes and terroirs.

Whether from the slopes of Mount Etna in Sicily, the hills of Montefalco in Umbria, or Barolo in Piedmont, Falsini’s wines express the depth and character of unique grapes made in unique places.

‘I’m crazy about Italy: it’s never boring,’ he says enthusiastically. ‘It’s a mosaic of situations and has still got so much to say and give, especially from its indigenous varieties which have been grown on landscapes that range from plateaus to volcanoes, seasides to high mountains.

Relishing the challenge

‘I work with over 20 different grape types and, if I had to explain the link between them, it would be that these native varieties are much trickier to grow than Cabernet, Merlot and Syrah,’ Falsini says. ‘Why do you think people gave up on them 20 years ago?

‘You can’t get away with planting Sangiovese in the bottom of a valley – it will never ripen. These grapes have a symbiotic relationship with their traditional growing areas. That may be due to selections made over time, but it means they remain place-specific.’

How does he see the international market for Italian wines? ‘I think the world wants Italy, in every way. It’s a country with so much food, culture and beauty – and we haven’t managed to ruin it all, yet,’ he laughs. ‘In the international market, our native varieties are appreciated by critics and specialised consumers, but we need to educate the wider market about them. The British, Americans and Chinese know mainly about Merlot, Cabernet and perhaps Malbec, so if you talk to them about Sangiovese it’s already a stretch, not to mention other, less well-known varieties, like Sagrantino, Zibbibo, or Nocera.’

Falsini is fascinated by the different ways in which the same grape can be interpreted in an area. ‘If one producer wants opulence and concentration in a wine that will need time to achieve its elegance, and his neighbour looks instead for something that will be ready to drink sooner, I’ll help them both to make clean, drinkable wines. But I defy anyone to recognise my “handwriting” in either wine. I don’t impose a style; I’m merely a tool to help them reach their goals.’

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No one has a better grasp of Italy’s current wine scene than the professional winemakers who work the length and breadth of the country. For an insider’s view, Carla Capalbo spoke to three of the best...

Three wise men: Lorenzo Landi

Having worked for some of the country’s most enterprising estates, Lorenzo Landi is a well-known figure in the Italian wine world.

‘Studying agronomy came naturally in my family: it was the subject of choice for both my father and brother,’ says Landi with his soft, Tuscan lilt. ‘Wine came naturally for us too. There weren’t many job opportunities for agronomists so I also studied viticulture and oenology.’

Landi, 50, grew up in Pescia, in northern Tuscany. After his masters he worked in a cellar in Burgundy. ‘I learned how they vinify but also to respect – and protect – the grapes. In the end, there’s not so much complication behind great wine.’

His first job was in Vinci, at the Cantine Leonardo da Vinci cooperative. After five years he moved to Saiagricola, the group of farms belonging to one of Italy’s largest insurance companies. (Under Italian law, these companies must invest in property assets.) There he met Denis Dubourdieu, its consultant since 1995, and with whom he later also collaborated at Lungarotti in Umbria. ‘Working with Denis has been a rare, formative experience that’s covered every aspect of winemaking, from managing the vines and tasting, to handling climate change,’ he says.

‘For me, the direction an estate takes should come from its owners. I’m there to help them achieve the kind of wine they want to produce. But, at the same time, you can’t go against the uniqueness of a place. So you could say that mine is an absence of style: each area has its own wine, which will come out naturally if we let it and don’t impose a personal style that’s the same wherever the wine is made.’

Nurturing potential

Landi consults for estates across Italy. ‘I’m particularly interested in varieties that produce original, long-living wines, and that’s true of many – but not all – of the indigenous types. I think Aglianico at Taurasi or in Basilicata, Etna’s Nerello Mascalese, and even Puglia’s Nero di Troia all have huge potential. As does Sardinian Cannonau. When I began to work with that, I thought its sweet, rosy tones were due to over-ripeness, but I now see that they’re an integral, attractive, part of its character.’

Landi makes mineral whites from Pinot Bianco and Sauvignon Blanc in Friuli. ‘I’m particularly excited by Verdicchio in Le Marche, and Pecorino inAbruzzo,’ he says. He works with Sangiovese all over Tuscany but also near Rimini, in Romagna, in an area that’s just as hot.

How does he feel about the future of Italian wine? ‘We’re in full growth now. After all, most quality Italian wines have only been made for 20 years. So we’re like children, still developing. I worry that we’ve tended to follow market fashions, which is not great in wine: first with huge, overconcentrated wines, and now with subtler, more fruit-driven wines that also risk being too similar. In the top areas we need to focus more on wines that are pure and long-living, more territorial and distinctive. We should slow down and give them the time to develop. We’ve got amazing raw materials and soils, we just need to grow up a bit more.

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No one has a better grasp of Italy’s current wine scene than the professional winemakers who work the length and breadth of the country. For an insider’s view, Carla Capalbo spoke to three of the best...

Three wise men: Winemakers’ choice wines

Ferrante’s choice

Il Solatio, Chianti Classico Gran Selezione, from Castello d’Albola, Tuscany 2010

‘Made from a single vineyard of Sangiovese at 600m in one of Chianti Classico’s coolest areas, on a steeply sloped, rocky terrain surrounded by woods. It shows the grape’s elegant side with lively acidity and depth, and will come of age after years of cellaring.’

Price: £38-£40 Zonin UK

Falsini’s choice

San Lorenzo, Passopisciaro, Etna Rosso, Sicily, produced by Girolamo Russo

‘This, for me, is the essence of a wine: it expresses the depth, balance and minerality of 90-year-old Nerello Mascalese vines growing at 700m, on the northern side of Mt Etna. I’ve worked with its producer, Giuseppe Russo, from the start. This was his first single-vineyard wine. Naturally grown, the grapes are picked very late, when they’re perfectly mature. It has helped Passopisciaro become known internationally as the foremost Etna production area.’

Price: N/A UK girolamorusso.it

Landi’s choice

Pecorino, Abruzzo, produced by Cataldi Madonna

‘This white grape is an ancient variety from areas between Abruzzo and Le Marche; it almost died out. It grows high in cool slopes of limestone in the Apennine Mountains where sheep also graze (pecorino means ‘of sheep’), and balances power, richness and aromatic intensity. Luigi Cataldi Madonna was the first to believe in it again. This ages well, with notes of flowers, passion fruit and grapefruit, plus good acidity and minerality.’

Price: £28.50 Astrum Wine Cellars

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Hear from our Southern Italy Regional Chair Jane Hunt MW on which wines to buy, which wines to leave on the shelf and what to keep an eye on from this year's Decanter World Wine Awards....

Not so many years ago, the south of Italy, Sicily and Sardinia were generally an inconsistent and unreliable backwater in terms of quality wines. But a decade of fast-moving modernisation, investment, and enthusiastic and often well-travelled wine producers has completely revolutionised a large part of the offer. Wine production in these parts of Italy is huge – Sicily and Puglia’s combined vineyard area alone covers more than 240,000ha – 100,000ha more than the whole of Australia’s area under vine! The most enjoyable feature of these southern wines is their difference, provided by a whole host of indigenous grapes.

What should we buy from here?

Sardinia’s white Vermentino, with its fresh, crisp style and light creaminess, is best made without any oak. The unusual fortified Vernaccia di Oristano, also from Sardinia, is a revelation, and our 1990 Trophy winner is superb. Puglia’s Primitivo di Manduria is a cut above basic Primitivo due to the iron-rich soils giving a wonderful intensity of flavour; again a worthy Trophy winner. Fiano and Aglianico from Campania, grown on volcanic soils, make for rich, mineral wines but it was the Taurasis that really shone at this year’s DWWA. On Sicily, the best reds from either Nero d’Avola or Nerello Mascalese are to be found in the Etna region – and one of the former took our third Trophy for 2014.

What should we leave on the shelf?

What’s the point in growing international varieties in regions so rich with amazing indigenous grapes? The results prove that, in general, Syrahs, Chardonnay and Cabernet do not achieve any notable quality, and there’s enough dull Pinot Grigio made around the world without Italy’s south adding to it. Moreover, I fear that buying in low-cost southern Italian wine to fill the bottom shelves at supermarkets has done no favours to consumers or producers.

What should we keep an eye on?

Sardinia still has some way to go to come near to its full potential, but the signs are hopeful. There are some truly superb reds from a handful of producers that prove that as a region there are huge opportunities; at present many reds still have a rusticity that needs smoothing out. Climate change has granted Sicily more rainfall where drought used to be prevalent; Etna, in particular, will be the vineyard area to watch. Calabria is the slowest starter in the move to improve, but there are good signs, especially from blends including the intriguingly named Magliocco Dolce.

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Escape Campania's tourist hotspots and explore the unspoilt hilltop towns and fishing villages of this exciting wine region. Carla Capalbo shares her Cilento travel guide.

FACT FILE

Planted area 2,000ha

Main grapes White: Fiano, Falanghina, Greco, Trebbiano, Malvasia, Santa Sofia Red: Aglianico, Piedirosso, Barbera, Primitivo, Aglianico

Appellations Cilento DOC, Paestum IGT

Main soil types Flisch, a post-volcanic clay and limestone combination

Quick links:

• My perfect day in Cilento
• Cilento: Where to stay, eat, shop and relax

The bounties of the Campania region go well beyond Naples and the stunning (but often touristy) Amalfi Coast. While the wines of the province of Avellino – including its three DOCGs, Fiano di Avellino, Greco di Tufo and Taurasi – are gaining global recognition, and wines from Vesuvio, Caserta and Benevento are becoming better known too, the province of Salerno has less well-known treasures to explore.

• See more Decanter travel guides to Italy

In Cilento, the most beautiful yet relatively undiscovered southern part of the region, a handful of fine producers are raising the bar for wines of local grapes Fiano, Aglianico and Piedirosso. The grey-green Cilento hills begin south of Salerno and stretch down from Paestum to Sapri, where they meet the region of Basilicata near Maratea. They’re a central part of the Parco Nazionale del Cilento e Vallo di Diano, Italy’s second-largest park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The park was established to protect this spectacular landscape from mass tourism and speculative building.

To many the Cilento landscape is reminiscent of Tuscany or Umbria before they were gentrified: all sloping olive groves and vineyards interspersed with small fields of chickpeas, tomatoes or fig trees. The native and noble pale Podolica cow is comfortable with the area’s dry summers, and grazes in the macchia mediterranea – the natural scrub that grows wild here as throughout southern Italy. It’s rich with wildflowers and aromatic plants: wild fennel, thyme, rock-roses and the ‘strawberry tree’, whose perfumed flowers are the source of the bees’ bitterest honey, here called corbezzolo. It goes surprisingly well with mature cheese, though not perhaps with the delicate ricottas of cow or buffalo milk that are produced in this area. Look for the Cilento’s unique mozzarella nella mortella: hand-stretched cow’s milk cheese wrapped in scented myrtle branches.

Head for the sea

The coast is some of Italy’s least spoiled, with rocky shores interrupted by small fishing villages such as Marina di Pisciotta or Sapri. Seafood is plentiful: family boats still set off at night to attract octopus and baby squid. At Pisciotta, fresh anchovies are caught using a type of net – la menaica – that dates back to ancient Greece. This area was part of Magna Grecia, as the majestic temples standing ­at Paestum attest. They’re as good as anything in Greece or Sicily and, if you go off season or early in the day, you’ll have them practically to yourself. In 1944, when the Allies landed on Paestum’s beaches, all they found in the flat marshes surrounding the temples were buffaloes: this is one of only two areas in Italy in which mozzarella di bufala DOP is made.

As for wine, it was long grown as one of many crops on family farms, but in the last 20 years a small number of visionary estates have dedicated themselves to making premium wines, with fine results. People like Bruno De Conciliis and Luigi Maffini have inspired a new batch of young producers with wines of character that reflect this land and complement its delicious food. Their wineries are visitable by appointment: the people you’ll meet also make the wines, so book ahead to get time with them. The best way to visit is by car.

Culture of innovation

The De Conciliis family are pioneers. ‘It’s exciting to be making wine in an area with little oenological tradition,’ says Bruno De Conciliis, who, with his brother and sister run the family estate at Prignano Cilento (www.viticoltorideconciliis.it). A natural experimenter, De Conciliis’ range of exciting wines has loyal followers; it includes red and white Donnaluna, and Selim, the country’s first sparkling Aglianico, dedicated to jazz musician Miles Davis.

Just south of Agropoli, Mario Corrado and Ida Budetta have chosen an isolated, breathtaking position for their vineyards, with high views over the sea at Punta Tresino. Their estate, San Giovanni, has four hectares of vineyards and is making its name for Fiano and a Piedirosso that maintains its fresh, natural character in what are often very hot summers here (www.agricolasangiovanni.it).

Luigi Maffini also works by the coast, at Cenito, near Castellabate (www.luigimaffini.it). He ages his mineral Fianos, Kratos and Pietraincatenata in wood. Maffini’s 11ha of vineyards are certified organic, and his new cellar will be a fitting home for them.

Nearby at Giungano, hotelier Giuseppe Pagano of San Salvatore estate has launched an ambitious farm project of buffaloes, extra virgin olive oil and vines (www.sansalvatore1988.it). With 16ha, the land is worked organically with biodynamic treatments, but there’s nothing rustic about the wines.

If you decide to drive north to the Amalfi Coast or Salerno from Cilento and want to meet one of the icons of Campanian winemaking, Silvia Imparato’s Montevetrano is located in the hills east of Salerno. Her Bordeaux blend with added Aglianico remains one of the region’s most famous and historic reds (www.montevetrano.it) and her winery is one of the region’s most beautiful, with an elegant agriturismo attached (www.lavecchiaquercia.it).

How to get there

By plane to Naples, then a rented car – about 90 minutes’ drive if you take the autostrada. Public transport (train or coach from Naples) will get you to Paestum-Capaccio, but not into the Cilento hills.

Written by Carla Capalbo

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Escape Campania's tourist hotspots and explore the unspoilt hilltop towns and fishing villages of this exciting wine region. Carla Capalbo shares her Cilento travel guide.

My perfect day in Cilento

Morning

The magnificent Doric temples of Paestum open early, so beat the crowds and delight in the grassy archaeological site of the ancient city (www.museopaestum.beniculturali.it). If you get to Vannulo – Italy’s most exceptional organic buffalo farm – before 11.30am, you can watch the mozzarella being made and visit the buffaloes. Buy the cheese to go and feast on buffalo-milk gelato before heading south. Beware: after tasting this mozzarella, you’ll never want to eat the chilled, store-bought version again! (www.vannulo.it) On your way up into the hills, visit De Conciliis winery for a first taste of the Cilento’s wine offerings.

Lunch

Armed with a detailed, old-fashioned map (the Touring Club green/yellow series is best), drive south for about 30 minutes to San Mauro Cilento, to the Cooperativa Nuovo Cilento and feast on whatever the lovely ladies there decide to cook that day, from fresh pastas to local chickpeas and vegetables: this is honest, rural food.

Afternoon

You’re now in wine country and can easily get to whichever of the nearby wineries takes your fancy: Luigi Maffini, San Giovanni or San Salvatore (shop pictured above) are recommended. Never turn up without an appointment: you may be disappointed as these are small, family farms without full-time guides – but that’s what makes them so great to visit. Make sure to sample the southern Campanian wine highlights: Fiano, Greco and Aglianico.

Evening & overnight

After all that exploring, head for the coast at Santa Maria di Castellabate (an hour’s drive or less from the wineries) in time for a swim and pre-dinner glass of chilled Fiano while you watch the sunset at Palazzo Belmonte. In summer you can eat outdoors for a romantic, alfresco dinner.

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Escape Campania's tourist hotspots and explore the unspoilt hilltop towns and fishing villages of this exciting wine region. Carla Capalbo shares her Cilento travel guide.

Cilento: Where to stay, eat, shop and relax

HOTELS

Palazzo Belmonte, Santa Maria di Castellabate

This royal summer house is more than a 17th-century palazzo. Its modern suites, private park and beach make this a desirable hideaway for holiday retreats. The beachside restaurant is also open to non-residents. www.palazzobelmonte.com

Marulivo, Pisciotta

Four apartments, a cottage and 11 rooms in a converted 14th-century convent in the centre of the medieval village, with sea views. www.marulivohotel.it

Le Chiusulelle, Ogliastro Cilento

A welcoming agriturismo with homely touches, including handmade baskets and jams. Lovely meals include preserved vegetables from the garden and local salumi. www.agriturismochiusulelle.com

Il Cannito Relais, Capaccio

Set up off the plain above Paestum, this small stone hotel features a pool, comfortable modern rooms and home-cooked meals by arrangement. www.ilcannito.com

RESTAURANTS

Nonna Sceppa, Capaccio-Paestum

Close to the temples, this lively family trattoria cooks some of the area’s best food, with abundant pastas and grilled meats complemented by a great wine list. www.nonnasceppa.com

Trattoria Villa Mare Luna, Pollica

Up a steep winding road from Acciaroli is this restaurant and hotel run by the Scarano family. The house sits in a leafy garden with sea views. The dishes feature delicious cucina rustica: soups, handmade pastas with vegetables and fish, and home-baked cakes. www.hotelvillamareluna.it

Il Rosso e il Mare, Acciaroli

A family of fishermen run this attractive restaurant in one of the Cilento’s favourite sea towns. The redheaded son (the ‘rosso’ in the restaurant name) sends the boat out daily; the female members of the family cook its catch. They also sell their own tuna and anchovies preserved in extra virgin olive oil. www.ilrossoeilmare.it

Da Angiolina, Marina di Pisciotta

On the sea-strip in this small fishing port, Angiolina’s has long been the place for fresh marinated anchovies and local vegetables or pizza if you wish. Eat outdoors in summer. www.ristoranteangiolina.it

La Chocolathera, Sapri

Enzo Crivella knows more about Cilento than anyone, and his chocolate-coffee-wine bar is always buzzing with whoever’s in town. Crivella also makes the area’s best gelati in summer, in a free-standing kiosk on the waterfront, across the street from the shop. Tel: +39 (0973) 984 8418

SHOPS

Santomiele, Prignano Cilento

The Cilento is famous for its fine-seeded, DOP-status white figs; they’re more elegant than their Turkish or Calabrian counterparts. Antonio Longo dries and stuffs them with nuts or chocolate for some very upscale sweetmeats. They’re the best presents to take home. www.santomiele.it

Cooperativa Nuovo Cilento, San Mauro Cilento

This enterprising cooperative olive mill has a shop selling fragrant Cilento DOP extra virgin olive oils and a wonderful restaurant featuring local country food. www.cilentoverde.com

Caseificio Chirico, Velia

This well-run dairy offers a range of cow and buffalo cheeses. Sample the local favourites, including delicate ricotta, aged caciocavallo and the rare mozzarella nella mortella, a Slow Food ‘Presidium’ food. www.caseificiochirico.it

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The styles, regions and vintages every wine lover should know about

Native whites

Yes, whites. Compared to their red counterparts, Italy’s most representative white varieties tend to be restrained and understated, with delicate floral aromas and nervy acidity.

They are also subject to periodical identity crises, prompted by the ambition to compete in the global arena with the Chardonnays and Sauvignons of this world.

All the native white varieties, from Ribolla in Friuli to Cortese in Gavi, Garganega in Soave, Procanico in Orvieto, Marche’s Verdicchio and the Tuscan Vernaccia have, at one time or another and to a greater or lesser degree, suffered efforts to crank them up through blending with international varieties, late harvesting, new oak treatment or arcane vinification methods.

But a major re-think is underway. The current trend is towards a much more essentialist approach to white winemaking which, rather than forcing native varieties into moulds that do not fit, seeks to bring out their intrinsic character.

The models are the classic wines of the traditional DOCs. The buzz words, from Nosiola in Trentino down to the Fianos of Campania, are ‘terroir’, ‘minerality’ and ‘vineyard’.

The results are unoaked, 100% varietals with unique, unequivocal Italian-ness.

Three to try:

Il Palazzone, Campo Guardiano, Orvieto Classico Superiore 2008

POA Justerini and Brooks

Intense, herby nose, with notes of bay and sage and a distinctive salty note. Bone-dry palate, intense and minerally with a return of fresh herbs, huge length and concentration on the finish. Drink: 2011–2018. Alc: 13%

Suavia, Monte Carbonare,

Soave Classico 2008

£13.30–£17.50 Bibendum, Everywine, Flying Corkscrew

Citrus nose with hints of sweet almond and a touch of smokiness. Fresh, agile and tasty with white currants and amazing length and purity. Drink 2011-2018. Alc: 13%

La Monacesca, Mirum,

Verdicchio di Matelica Riserva 2008

£18.50 Winetraders

Nose opens slowly with honey then mint and rosemary and a vague hint of inkiness. The palate has concentrated candied peel, apricot and nectarine and huge length. Drink: 2011–2018. Alc: 14%

Brunello di Montalcino 2006

The much-awaited 2006 vintage at Montalcino is not one for the faint-hearted. There is none of the immediate fruit of the 2005s, nor the elegance of the 2004s.

The baking hot summer gave enormously powerful Brunellos which show the austere, savoury side of Sangiovese.

Do they live up to their official 5-star rating? The answer is a qualified “yes”.

The least successful wines have cooked fruit and a Porty, alcoholic quality which takes away from their appeal, but the best are vibrant terroir wines, bursting with energy.

The 2006s are phenolic on the nose, sometimes with wild herbs, sometimes inky, sometimes with notes of iodine.

On the palate they are concentrated and very dry with an intense minerally tang. Big as they are, they have two features which save them from simple blockbuster dumbness: quality tannins and an acidity which carries the abundant alcohol.

Raw and raunchy now, they need time to come together, but they should provide some memorable bottles, worthy of Brunello’s reputation for longevity.

The single-vineyard and special-selection wines look particularly good. Estates to seek out, besides those below, include Livio Sassetti, Sesti, Siro Pacenti, Villa I Cipressi, Tenuta di Sesta, Tenuta Le Potazzine, Tenuta Oliveto, Casanuova delle Cerbaie, Corte Pavone, Lisini, Franco Pacenti, Podere Canalino, Silvio Nardi, Tiezzi, Piccolomini d’Aragona and the best-ever Prime Donne from Donatella Cinelli Colombini.

Three to try:

Castello di Romitorio, XXV Vendemmia

N/A UK www.castelloromitorio.com

Spectacular nose, with wild berries, iodine and black tea. Great energy, breadth and depth on the palate, with very fine tannins and intriguing complexity in the finish. Still very raw, but will be great. Drink: 2014–2030. Alc: 14%

Salvioni

£69.50 Bordeaux Index

Leafy, herby nose with delicate floral underlay and a lovely vein of fresh cherry fruit. Very tight and concentrated on the palate with exceptional finesse for the vintage. Deceptively understated; will be great.

Drink: 2012–2030. Alc: 14.5%

Gaja, Pieve Santa Restituta, Rennina

£51.34 Everywine

Earthy nose, with notes of moss, peat and violets in the background. Massive palate but also great freshness. Long and punchy on the finish with notes of cherry brandy and minerals. Drink: 2012–2030. Alc: 15%

Barolo 2004

There is no question about the longevity of the 2004 Barolos, but the good news is that these marvellous wines are also starting to drink beautifully now.

This might seem early – in the past, to suggest opening a Barolo from a great vintage before its 10th birthday was viewed in the Langhe as subversive in the extreme.

Today it is permissible. In the specific case of the 2004s, the justification lies in the quality of the vintage, with its near-perfect tannins, balance and aroma.

More generally, it’s the consequence of a winemaking style that brings drinking significantly forward. This is not a new development. Pioneers such as Elio Altare launched the manifesto in favour of a more accessible, earlier drinking Barolo more than 20 years ago.

What the 2004s perhaps confirm is a definitive change in the mindset in the Langhe which has made the term ‘modernist’, much bandied about in the past, redundant.

These days, it is the ‘traditionalist’ who gets flagged as the odd man out. (NB: If you are lucky enough to have 2004s from the great Bruno Giacosa, Beppe Rinaldi, Mascarello, Giovanni Conterno or Cavalotto in your cellar, then disregard everything I have just written – the 10-year rule holds for these greats).

Three to try:

Sandrone, Cannubi Boschis

£80–£100 Berry Bros & Rudd, Slurp, Winetraders

Elegant, fresh and complex nose of violets, redcurrants, bay and cinnamon. Great purity and focus on the palate, which starts dry and intense and opens broad and long with powdery tannins and infinite length. Sublime. Drink: 2011–2020. Alc: 14.5%

Elio Altare, Vigneto Arborina

£90–£146 Fine & Rare, Nichols & Perks

Intense, fresh Nebbiolo nose, with a vast spectrum of aromas from billberry, black cherry and violets through fresh mushroom to sweet fennel. Fluid palate, with super-fine tannins and a very long, vigorous finish. Drink: 2011–2020. Alc: 14.5%

Paolo Scavino, Bric del Fiasc

£55–£62 Albany Vintners, Berry Bros & Rudd, Christopher Keiler, Everywine, Fine & Rare, Nichols & Perks

Ripe, sweet, mature nose with notes of new leather, tar, liquorice and nutmeg. Big, smooth, soft palate with very fine, dense tannins and an austere, dry, savoury finish with weighty concentration. Drink: 2011–2015. Alc: 14.5%

Malvasia Istriana

As the name suggests, this particular member of the Malvasia family (left) originated in Istria, from where it spread up the coast to what is now Friuli-Venezia Giulia in the 14th century.

Friuli is the only Italian region which grows the variety today. Traditionally it has been considered a minor grape, used mainly in blends rather than alone, but it is starting to find its own voice.

Left to its own devices, Malvasia tends to make rather simple, dilute wines, but if yields are kept in check it is capable of whites with a personal, floral character, peachy fruit and great sensitivity to terroir.

On the limestone plateau above the bay of Trieste, Carso Malvasia is all tangy intensity. In the Collio and the upper Isonzo on the other hand, the wines are rich and round with impressive depth of fruit and often a distinctive spicy nuance.

‘Feminine’, says Nicòla Manferrari, who is one of the variety’s greatest supporters. ‘Mediterranean’, says Gianfranco Gallo, who has recently started bottling a special selection.

More elegant than Friulano (ex-Tocai) and more complete than Ribolla, and yet mysteriously less planted than either, Malvasia is – hopefully – heading for a revival.

Three to try:

Borgo del Tiglio, Collio 2008

£27–£42 Astrum, Bordeaux Index, Ten Acre Wine

Elegant, complex, scented with aromas of pressed flowers, honeydew melon and a hint of walnut oil. Glossy, concentrated ripe fruit palate with white pepper on the finish. Very personal. Drink: 2011–2016. Alc: 14%

Skerk, Carso 2008

£25 Bat & Bottle

Intense citrus and white blossoms on the nose, mouthwatering freshness on the palate filled out by masterfully handled lees ageing. Subtle fruit and a long, minerally finish. Drink: 2011–2015. Alc: 12.5%

Vie de Romans, Isonzo, Dis Cumieris 2008

N/A UK www.viediromans.it

Sweet, floral nose, with hints of tropical fruit and cinnamon in the background. Soft, round and full-bodied palate with suave complexity and length on the finish. Drink: 2011–2018. Alc: 14%

Pink fizz

Over the past five years, Italy has witnessed a demonstration of one of the basic laws of commerce that, if demand exceeds offer, then production must expand to meet it.

Demand in this case is for pink sparkling wine. The response has come from all quarters. The quick fix is to put bubbles into existing rosés, as in the case of the pleasantly undemanding Bardolino Chiaretto Spumante (look for the excellent Monte Saline’s Metodo Classico).

This idea is also catching on in Puglia, where noted wine consultant Riccardo Cotarella has been involved in a new Metodo Classico for the historic Five Roses producer Leone de Castris.

Other examples look slightly more improvised, such as a Frappato-based fizz from Sicily or another made from Aglianico in Basilicata.

The more serious stuff comes from the DOC or DOCG zones with a spumante tradition and their own Pinot Noir grapes.

The producers’ consorzio in the Oltrepò, which has more than 3,000ha of Pinot, has just launched a new brand of Metodo Classico Rosé called Cruasé – watch this space.

The top wines come from Trentino and in Franciacorta, where Cà del Bosco has made a big splash with the first vintage of a luxury cuvée made from 100% Pinot Noir, aged for seven years on the lees.

Three to try:

Cà del Bosco, Cuvée Anna Maria Clementi,

Extra Brut Rosé, Franciacorta 2003

£65 (2002) Christopher Keiler

Great freshness on the nose with suggestions of cherry pie, rose hip jelly and delicate floral nuances, great intensity on the palate, minuscule perlage, long,

savoury finish with underlying notes of cherry liqueur. Drink: 2011–2025. Alc: 12.5%

Cavalleri, Rosé Collezione,

Franciacorta 2005

£37.25 (2004) Everywine

Fresh, crusty nose. Palate of substance and energy, with firm acid structure and a long, salty finish with a very good return of pinot noir fruit.

Drink: 2011–2015. Alc: 12.5%

Ferrari, Perlé Rosé Metodo Classico, Trentino 2005

£22–£52 Bat & Bottle, Vinum

Delicate red fruit nose with a touch of floral-spicy nuances. Palate firm and dry with good body, fine perlage and a return of red currant fruit at the end. Drink: 2011–2015.

Alc: 12.5%

Taurasi 2007

Taurasi is a hilltop village in Campania’s Irpinia region, high in the Apennine mountains. The red wine that grows here is made from Aglianico, and belongs to that category of full-bodied, austerely tannic reds at the most serious end of the Italian wine spectrum.

Despite its ‘Barolo of the south’ tag, Taurasi is not one of the country’s better known wines. Its reputation among specialists has long been assured by Mastroberardino’s spectacularly long-lived reserves, but for decades this historic winery was a flagship without a fleet.

Wider recognition of Taurasi’s potential has only come more recently, with the increase in the number of producers and the upgrading of what used to be very uneven quality standards.

The 2007s, which are coming out this year, are evidence of the new credibility of the denomination. They have ripe but not overextracted tannins, good freshness and oak which leaves lots of space for the expression of the Aglianco grape.

The DOCG has a good co-op and an increasing nucleus of high quality grower-producers which includes, besides the three below, Colle San Domenico, Contrade di Taurasi, Di Prisco, Molettieri, Tecce, Perillo and Tenuta Cavallier Pepe.

Three to try:

Feudi di San Gregorio 2007

£28.50 Slurp

Fresh and complex with wild berries and liquorice on the nose and delicate spicy notes in the background. Very firm, dry palate with refined tannins and elegant length. Drink: 2012–2017. Alc: 13%

Mastroberardino, Radici 2007

£29.50–£32 (2005) Amordivino, Wine Circle

Nicely defined floral-herby nose with sweet ripe fruit at the back. Quite soft on the palate with classy tannic weave and good freshness on the finish. Needs time to absorb the oak. Drink: 2013–2017. Alc: 13.5%

Villa Raiano, Raiano 2007

N/A UK www.villaraiano.com

Ripe, concentrated oaky fruit on the nose with suggestions of wild herbs. Juicy berry fruit on the palate with lots of smoothed out tannin and a big, round, velvety finish. Drink: 2012–2017. Alc: 14%

Bardolino

Bardolino, from Lake Garda in the Veneto, has been one of the victims of the opinion that held sway in Italy over the past 20 years that ‘light’ and ‘red’ were contradictions in terms.

The unpopularity of its traditional character prompted attempts at restyling, which went from the Beaujolais Nouveau-model Novello through the oaked-up Bardolino Superiore, to the sparkling pink Chiaretto.

Now, after the string of mutations, which did more to cover up the real issues (chronic over-cropping and casual winemaking) than resolve them, Bardolino is returning to the pale, juicy reds with the cherry and almond aromas that it does best. Except that today, it is making them much, much better.

Lake Garda looks set to play a strategic role in the reds of the Veneto in the future. With production of the fresh style of Valpolicella rapidly declining, it is Bardolino that has picked up the standard of the dry, tangy Corvina-based wines which used to be the stock in trade of the hills of Verona.

Unoaked and not more than 12.5% alcohol, these delicious reds prove that personality depends on varietal integrity and sense of place, rather than huge concentration, and that ‘light’ and ‘red’ can after all be complementary.

Three to try:

Le Fraghe 2009

£8.95 The Wine Society

Natural grapey nose, with red cherry fruit and sweet almond aromas. Fresh, juicy palate, fine dry tannins at the back and a long finish with hints of mint and fennel. Drink: 2011–2012. Alc: 12%

Giovanna Tantini 2009

£12.50–£13.50 Bat & Bottle, Wine Library, Winetraders

Delicate, very personal nose with aromas of pressed flowers, cherry and liquorice. Ripe fruit, smooth tannins and a bone dry, savoury finish with lots of length.

Drink: 2011–2013. Alc: 12%

Raval, Classico 2010

N/A UK +39 (0)4 57 23 65 69

Lovely, fresh maraschino and almonds on the nose with floral notes at the side. Zippy palate with crisp acidity, good tannic presence and tight-packed fruit concentration in the finish. Drink: 2011–2012. Alc: 12.5%

Marsala

Until a very short time ago, Marsala had been given up for dead. Today, in the wake of the general interest created by the Sicilian wine boom, it is slowly making a comeback.

This timid revival needs to be put in perspective. Sadly, if you Google the word ‘Marsala’, you still get pages and pages of cookery sites. It will be a long time before Sicily’s historic fortified wine liberates itself from its image as a cheap ingredient for sauces.

But today it is possible to drink Marsalas of quality and character, either in the searingly intense salty-dry style or the more accommodating grapey semi-secco.

The interest starts at the Superiore Riserva level, which must be at least four years old, and increases with the age of the wine through the categories of vergine (or soleras) to vergine/soleras stravecchio and riserva.

For the ultimate experience, get your hands on one of the rare, very old vintage riservas from Florio, Rallo or Pellegrino – wines of extraordinary intensity for enthralled sipping.

But do not disdain the more readily available wines from these producers’ wide ranges. There are intentionally no drink dates here: Marsala lasts indefinitely

Three to try:

De Bartoli, Oro Vigna La Miccia, Superiore

N/A UK www.marcodebartoli.com

Sweet hazelnut and date aromas, with sultana and a hint of saltiness. Lovely round, sweet fruit palate, with great freshness and zippy mineral finish. Alc: 18%Florio, Ambra Donna Franca, Semisecco 15 Years,

Superiore Riserva

N/A UK www.cantineflorio.it

Rich nose of sultana, walnuts and figs with a distinctive salty nuance. Well-knit palate with bright acidity to contrast the spirit and an elegant sweetness to underline the fruit and green walnut finish. Alc: 19%

Pellegrino, Vergine Riserva 1981

N/A UK www.carlopellegrino.it

Mature, austere nose with great mineral intensity and subtle dried fruit and nut aromas. Bone-dry palate, with mouthwatering acidity and an intense, slightly spirity finish. Alc: 19%

Sub-14% alcohol wines

Perhaps it is the implosion of the market for hyper-concentrated show wines, perhaps a response to society’s slightly edgy awareness of the health issues associated with alcohol, or just the basic realisation that the opportunities for drinking blockbuster wines, however theoretically well-balanced, are limited in everyday life.

Whatever the reason, there is growing consensus in Italy that it is time to throttle back on the alcohol. This does not mean stripping down Barolo, Brunello or Amarone, but simply not pumping up the alcohol where it does not belong – in wines made for pleasurable, everyday drinking with a meal.

This implies a greater focus on what used to be Italy’s core business before the advent of the attention-grabbing ‘SuperTuscans’: food-friendly, medium-bodied wines from native grapes.

The country has a whole raft of varietal wines which deliver their best at under 14% and even better between 12% and 13%: Schiava from Alto Adige, Dolcetto, Lambrusco, young Chianti from theColli Fiorentini, Frappato from Sicily, Cerasuolo from Abruzzo, Lake Garda reds, Vermentino from Tuscany. All this without chasing after rarities like Blanc de Morgex from Val d’Aosta, Pigato from Liguria or Ribolla from Friuli-Venezia Giulia.

They might not all be in your supermarket yet, but keep a look out, because a lot of people believe this is where the future of wine Italian exports lie.

Three to try:

Cavicchioli, Vigna del Cristo,

Lambrusco di Sorbara 2009

N/A UK www.cavicchioli.it

Light mousse, delicate rose petal and red cherry nose. Savoury, bone-dry, mouthwatering palate with a long floral-almond finish. Drink: 2011. Alc: 11%

Glögglhof, Santa Maddalena,

Alto Adige 2009

N/A UK www.gojer.it

Irresistible cherry and spice nose. Soft, smooth, medium-weight palate with a return of red fruit and then a touch of sweet almonds on the finish. Drink: 2011. Alc: 12.5%

Malenchini, Chianti Colli Fiorentini 2009

£6.75–£9.99 The Wine Society, Valvona & Crolla

Dark berry fruit and violets on the nose. Fresh, dry and juicy palate, good firm finish with earthy fruit and a hint of almonds. Classic Chianti. Drink: 2011-2014. Alc: 13%

Recioto della Valpolicella

Sadly, this is a case of a reverse trend. As Amarone production continues to bulge (the 2010 grape harvest will yield more than 13 million bottles – an increase of about 4.5 million bottles on the average for the previous four years) its alter ego, the sweet Recioto, shrinks in proportion.

The percentage of the grape harvest which producers are allowed to use for dried grape wines is fixed by law, which means they have to decide whether to allot their quota to Amarone or Recioto.

With exports of the former up 40% on last year, there is no contest. Most producers continue to make at least token quantities of Recioto, but the commercial pressures are such that there is a serious risk of Verona’s sumptuous sweet red disappearing off the radar altogether in the future.

If you are one of those wine drinkers who associate rich, raisiny flavours with Christmas pudding rather than beef stew, and therefore with Recioto as opposed to Amarone, this would be a great shame.

It would also be a terrible irony, since the dried grape wines of Valpolicella were, from their Byzantine origins to the modern advent of Amarone, exclusively, lusciously sweet.

Three to try:

Monte dell’Ora, Sant’ Ulderico 2006

N/A UK www.montedallora.com

Rich and complex on the nose, with black cherry, plum and wisteria, newsprint and nutmeg. Pure dense fruit on the palate, with a distinctive raisiny follow through, bursting with flavour. Drink: 2011–2020. Alc: 14.5%

Tommaso, Bussola 2008

£31/500ml (2004) Ballantynes

Intense crushed berry nose with notes of hibiscus and nutmeg. Lovely pure blackberry on the palate, with

juicy acidity and fruity sugars in perfect balance.

Drink: 2011–2015. Alc: 12.5%

Allegrini, Giovanni Allegrini 2007

£22.50–£35/500ml Corks Out, Christopher Piper, Harvey Nichols, Imbibros, Liberty, Philglas & Swiggot, Secret Cellar, Slurp, Valvona & Crolla, Wine Direct, WoodWinters

Black cherry, plum and almond nose, with a hint of vanilla. Smooth, round palate with mellow fruit and lovely freshness to balance a substantial finish. Drink: 2011–2015. Alc: 14

Written by Richard Baudains

Which are Italy’s best wines, its own crus classés? Our chief Italian critic Richard Baudains apes the structure of the Médoc as he nominates his first growth dream team – five wines at the top of their game – plus 15 just a whisker behind – Italy’s super-seconds

With space for only 20 top growths, the problem with selecting the dream team is not who to put in, but who to drop. I have profiled my top five first growths, including those in the Piedmont region, and 15 second growths, none of whom could possibly be left out, and I have listed another 15 with all the credentials for inclusion at the end of the piece.

I started with a very long shortlist based on consistent quality and prestige in the Piedmont region and others, which I then whittled away by giving preference to producers of local varieties and by trying to eleminate duplication of wine types, in order to represent the amazing diversity of the country as a whole. I have tried not to be swayed by preconceptions about styles of winemaking. The list includes modernists and traditionalists and glorious one-offs who defy categorisation. The result is a group of producers of outstanding personality who have helped to shape – and continue to shape – the course of modern Italian wine.

The First Growths

Angelo Gaja, Barbaresco, Piedmont region

Angelo Gaja has that high-octane mix of flair, dynamism and self-belief that you associate with Italy’s top designer firms in the Piedmont region, and which gives his labels a lifestyle aura comparable to those of the leading Italian fashion brands. Behind the brand there is a great wine estate. The epicentre of production is Barbaresco in the Piedmont region where the Gaja family has operated for three generations. The DOCG Barbaresco has an enticing, silky elegance, but underneath the fruit there is a structure that only the very best producers of the denomination achieve. Of the three single-vineyard selections, Costa Russi, least often cited, is perhaps the most elegant. Sorì Tilding is the fleshiest and most immediate, while the legendary San Lorenzo is the most rigorous. Generally tight and closed when young, with bottle age it opens out into a wonderfully expressive wine with the fragrance and complexity of top-class Nebbiolo.

Standout wine: Sorì San Lorenzo, Nebbiolo, Langhe 2003 HHHHH

Immediate ripe fruit with touches of sweet spice and, underneath, the classic liquorice-camphor-white pepper character of Nebbiolo. Lots of power on the palate. Uncharacteristically forward, but nevertheless delivers the goods in a very difficult vintage. 2008–13.

£157.20; Arm

Bruno Giacosa, Barbaresco, Piedmont region

If there were an Oscar for careers in wine, Bruno Giacosa would be first in line for the Piedmontese nomination. Giacosa is a living archive of the terroir of the Langhe. He started out as a négociant, then through the 1990s began to acquire vineyards of his own to add estate productions to a range of impeccably high standards. In recent years his wines have become a little less uncompromisingly rugged in their youth, but the style remains very much Giacosa – big, deep and austere with prodigious ageing potential. The legendary red label riservas come from some of the greatest crus in the Langhe: Falletto di Serralunga and Le Rocche di Falletto for Barolo and Asili, Rabajà and Santo Stefano for Barbaresco. When it comes to selection, Giacosa is a perfectionist. If he has the slightest reservations about a vintage, he will not bottle a cru. If he does bottle it, you can guarantee it is great.

https://www.decanter.com/wine/wine-regions/piedmont-wine-region/barbaresco/

Barbaresco Rabajà Riserva 2001 HHHHH

Transparent ruby shade, initially closed on the nose then gradually releasing wild herbs and savoury spices followed by intriguing berry fruits. Dry, tightly packed palate with concentrated but very fine extract and extraordinary length. 2008–20/30/40. £22.17 (in bond); F&R

Romano Dal Forno, Valpolicella, Veneto

Deeply attached to his roots but also a radical innovator, Romano Dal Forno has turned the traditional winemaking of Valpolicella on its head, both in the vineyard and the cellar, to take Amarone to places no producer has ever been before. In the place of the wide-spaced Veronese pergola, Dal Forno has guyot-trained vineyards with an unheard of 10-12,000 plants per hectare. He picks late, dries the grapes naturally but for a shorter period than the local norm, and ages in 100% new oak. The resulting wines have extaordinary concentration (it takes five vines to make a single bottle of Amarone) but magnificent intensity and definition of fruit, and despite the massive scale of the wine, wonderful balance. The newly redesigned Valpolicella Superiore, now made purely from partially dried grapes, is a superb introduction to this unique producer. (For more on Dal Forno, see In Focus on Valpolicella, p38.)

Valpolicella Superiore 2002 HHHHH

Deep plummy look, fresh, intriguing complexity on the nose with the gamut of dark fruits mingling with earthy bracken and undergrowth. Deep velvety texture with soft tannins supported by excellent acidity, this is in effect Dal Forno’s second-label Amarone. Captivating now, but with a great future ahead of it. 2007–15. Agents: BBR, F&R. N/A UK; +39 045 783 4923

Tenuta dell’Ornellaia, Bolgheri, Tuscany

Created by Marchese Ludovico Antinori in 1981, Ornellaia was always groomed for stardom, with its 90ha (hectares) of Cabernet and Merlot, and spectacular, Napa-style cellars. Massive new investment by current owner Frescobaldi will ensure Ornellaia’s status as the other great Bolgheri first growth, alongside Tenuta San Guido, for the foreseeable future. Ornellaia has always had an international feel – Andre Tchelistcheff, Michel Rolland and Tibor Gal are among the winemakers who have left their mark – and the new Swiss oenologist with a Bordeaux background, Axel Heinz, maintains the tradition. Production is structured along Bordeaux lines with a top-selection estate wine (Ornellaia) and a second label (Le Serre Nuove). An isolated plot of deep clay soils, unusual for Bolgheri, is the source of the single-vineyard Masseto, arguably Italy’s greatest monovarietal Merlot.

https://www.decanter.com/learn/wine-legend-ornellaia-2001-super-tuscan-434607/

Ornellaia, Bolgheri Rosso Superiore 2004 HHHHH

Lovely shade of bright ruby. Young and fresh on the nose, but already very well defined with crushed berries on a background of cherry-brandy and hints of typically Bolgheri eucalyptus. Very fine, elegant extraction, very well balanced with freshness and length and great potential. 2008–20. £53.33 IB (2003); F&R

Tenuta San Guido, Bolgheri, Tuscany

Sassicaia’s latest auction prices tend to attract more attention these days than the wine itself. In fact, there is not a lot to report about Italy’s one true icon wine except its continuing greatness. To quote technical director Sebastiano Rosa, ‘We have made it in basically the same way for the last 40 years, and we are not planning any major changes.’ Even the arrival of the latest release is barely newsworthy, given the wine’s consistency in even the trickiest of vintages, which the 2002 amply demonstrates. The truth is that, like Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel, Sassicaia really is as good as it is cracked up to be. The all-Cabernet top wine is now flanked by an increasingly convincing second label Bordeaux blend called Guidalberto.

Sassicaia, Bolgheri 2004 HHHHH

Enticing wild berries on the nose. The palate has the midweight racy elegance that is the hallmark of Sassicaia, with fine, tight tannins, and great length and concentration. Needs time, but a classic Sassicaia. 2009–24. £60.58 IB; F&R

Azienda Agricola Altare, Barolo, Piedmont region

Elio Altare (above) is the inspirational figure of a generation of winemakers who put fruit and fragrance into Barolo in the1980s. In the Piedmont region where traditional wisdom held that the longer a wine is soaked on the skins, the better it must be, Altare launched the heretical idea that the opposite was true. The racy elegance of his Arborina is one of the benchmark definitions of the terroir of La Morra.

Barolo Arborina 2001 HHHHH

£63.83 IB; F&R

Castello di Ama, Chianti Classico, Tuscany

Director Marco Pallanti believes Chianti Classico must look inwards for its identity, rather than outwards towards international models. His refined winemaking emphasises nuance and finesse, producing wines with suave drinkability when young that acquire depth and complexity with age. Owner Lorenza Sebasti rates the 2004 Classico as the best wine ever made at Ama.

Castello di Ama, Chianti Classico 2004 HHHHH £9.33 (half)–22.85; Arm, WTr

Azienda Agricola Fratelli Bucci, Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi, Marches

In the days when Verdicchio passed as the Muscadet of Italy, Bucci was the first to demonstrate the quality of the Marches’ native white variety. Aged in traditional barrels and blended by veteran winemaker Giorgio Grai, the Villa Bucci Riserva begins life taut and intense, and hits its peak at five years onwards.

Villa Bucci, Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Riserva 2004 HHHHH £24.70; Evy

Ca’ del Bosco, Franciacorta, Lombardia

Label for label, Ca’ del Bosco makes Italy’s best range of metodo classico sparkling wines. From the stunningly fresh non-vintage, through the rapier-dry Zero Dosage and creamy Satèn, to the luxurious elegance of the Cuvée Annamaria Clementi and austerely classic Riserva Decennale, the wines are the product of impeccable fruit supply and a great winemaking approach.

Cuvée Annamaria Clementi, Franciacorta Brut 1999 HHHHH £64.74; Evy

Casanova di Neri, Montalcino, Tuscany

Casanova is the hottest property at Montalcino today, a status based on extensive vineyards in top sites and the winemaking skills of consultant Carlo Ferrini. The house style accentuates the power of Sangiovese from Montalcino, in wines with upfront aromas of fresh berries and lush, oak-influenced textures.

Tenuta Nuova, Brunello di Montalcino, 2001 HHHHH £20.42 IB; F&R

Azienda Agricola Domenico Clerico, Barolo, Piedmont region

Eccentric grower-producer Domenico Clerico makes Barolos that combine the fruit and elegance of aroma associated with modern styles with the power and depth of extract sought by traditionalists. Stylish cru Pajana drinks earliest, followed by the gutsy Ciabot Mentin Ginestra and finally the old vines selection, Per Cristina, a riserva in all but name.

Barolo Per Cristina 2001 HHHHH £56 (2000); J&B

Azienda Vitivinicola Giacomo Conterno, Barolo, Piedmont region

Young Roberto Conterno is the custodian of one of the most highly respected family winemaking traditions in the Langhe. Conterno’s Riserva Monfortino, which macerates on the skins for up to five weeks and ages for at least seven years in traditional oak barrels, keeps alive a style of Barolo that may appear archaic, but demonstrates that true quality never goes out of style.

Barolo Riserva Monfortino 1999 HHHHH £209 IB; F&R

Ferrari, Trentino

Ferrari has become an Italian leader for Champagne-method winemaking. The house style shows a little extra stucture and ripeness of fruit without losing the nervy intensity which distinguishes Trentino Chardonnay. The outstanding Riserva del Fondatore is a single-vintage, single-vineyard selection of exceptional richness, penetration and length.

Giulio Ferrari, Riserva del Fondatore Trento Brut 1997 HHHHH £61.59; Evy

Josko Gravner, Collio, Friuli-Venezia Giulia

Gravner’s quest for the ultimate natural wine led him to put his reputation as Italy’s top white wine grower on the line in the late 1990s as he espoused millennia-old Caucasian methods of vinification in buried amphorae. This might sound like folklore but make no mistake, Gravner’s wines are for real. They are challenging, controversial and uncategorisable but they are immensely satisfying to drink.

Ribolla Anfora Venezia Giulia 2002 HHHHH N/A UK; +39 048 130 882

Azienda Agricola Isola e Olena, Chianti Classico, Tuscany

Paolo de Marchi is one of the most highly regarded figures in Tuscan winemaking. His Cepparello is the creation of a grower of exceptional sensitivity, impervious to fluctuations of style since its first release in 1980, faithful to terroir and vintage. Drink 1999 or 2002 now, keep 2001 and 2003 and book the outstanding 2004.

Cepparello, Toscana 2003 HHHHH £34.95; Lib

Mastroberardino, Campania

This family firm continues to position itself at the cutting edge of the quality revolution in Campania. They work only with local varieties, especially the white Fiano, and Aglianico, the source of southern Italy’s greatest red, the multi-faceted Taurasi.

Taurasi, Radici Riserva 2000 HHHHH £24.25; GvE

Azienda Agricola Pieropan, Soave, Veneto

Leonildo Pieropan pursued the Burgundian model of the grower-producer through the 1970s and 1980s when industrialisation held sway in Soave, then remained faithful to a style of refined elegance when fashion swung towards over-ripe and oaky caricatures of Italy’s most famous white.

Calvarino, Soave Classico 2004 HHHHH £11.55–12.50; ACh, WSo

Castello della Sala, Umbria

Cervaro della Sala is a genial cuvée of Chardonnay and Grechetto from Antinori’s Castello della Sala estate in Umbria. Often oaky on release, the wood is absorbed with a little bottle age, making way for vibrant fruit. The 2004 is possibly the best of an impeccable series of recent vintages.

Cervaro della Sala, Umbria 2004 HHHHH £22.34; GvE

Cantina Produttori Terlano, Terlano, Alto Adige

The young winemaking team at this coop creates a range of whites that combine ripeness of fruit with minerally intensity and unrivalled ageing capacity. It also has a treasure trove of vatted reserves from which every year they bottle a special selection. The current release is a 10-year-old Chardonnay of vitality and complexity.

Terlaner Chardonnay Alto Adige 1995 HHHHH N/A UK; +39 047 125 7135

Valentini, Abruzzo

Edoardo Valentini, who died in spring 2006, created artisan wines with energy, richness and longevity. His son, Francesco, now runs the 60ha estate, making limited quantities of barrel-aged, unfiltered Trebbiano and Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, which are released when deemed ready.

Trebbiano d’Abruzzo 2003 HHHHH

£34 IB; F&R

Other Second Growths I Could Have Chosen

Allegrini (Veneto); Biondi Santi (Tuscany); Castello di Brolio (Tuscany); Caprai-Val di Maggio (Umbria); Aldo Conterno (Piedmont); Castello di Fonteruroli (Tuscany); Felsina (Tuscany); Fontodi (Tuscany); Masciarelli (Abruzzo); Luciano Sandrone (Piedmont); Enrico Scavino (Piedmont); Schioppetto (Friuli-Venezia Giulia); GD Vajra (Piedmont); Vie di Romans (Friuli-Venezia Giulia);Roberto Voerzio (Piedmont)

For a full list of UK stockist codes see p124.

Richard Baudains is the regional chair for Italy at the Decanter World Wine Awards. Do you agree with his choices? Are you outraged by who he left out? email your views to editorial@decanter.com

Modern style Aglianico , which celebrate the grape’s robust character rather than trying to tame it, have put Basilicata firmly on the map, says Richard Baudains.

Communications have improved since the days when Mussolini used to exile political opponents to the remote mountain villages of Basilicata, but this small southern region is still decidedly off the beaten track. Basilicata forms the ankle of the Italian peninsular, between the Adriatic, Ionian and the Tyrrhenian coasts, nearly 1,000km from Milan and 350km from Rome. Most northern Italians would have difficulty placing it geographically but for anyone with an interest in wine, Basilicata is a place you definitely want to know about. It only grows one variety to speak of and has only one DOC, but the string of extraordinary new that have appeared in the last three years qualify Basilicata as one of the fastest developing and most exciting regions in the whole of Italy.

The wine that has put Basilicata on the map is a forceful red called Aglianico del Vulture. Aglianico is the name of the variety, Vulture is an extinct volcano in the north of the region. The historic growing areas lie on the steep eastern flank of Mount Vulture around the villages of Barile, Rionero and Ripacandida at altitudes ranging from around 350m to well over 500m above sea level. From here, the DOC zone extends south and east, taking in the wine towns of Lavello, Venosa and Genzano. Most recent planting has concentrated on this high plateau area, which is easier to cultivate than the slopes under the volcano and which today accounts for the lion’s share of production. Vulture has the typical climate of the high Appenines. Winters are severe and spring can be late, summers are hot and dry and the autumn unpredictable. It might seem an unpromising climate for grape growing, but over the centuries Aglianico has adapted perfectly.

The variety was probably brought to Basilicata from the colonies founded on Italy’s southeast coast by the Greeks in the 6th century BC, the generally accepted theory being that the name Aglianico is a corrupted form of Ellenico, meaning Greek.

It is an extremely low-yielding variety. ‘You couldn’t force the yields even if you wanted to,’ says Gerardo Giuratrabocchetti of the Cantine del Notaio. Aglianico is also a stubbornly late ripener. ‘In the old days, we used to pick the grapes right up until All Saints Day. Sometimes you’d be harvesting when there was already snow on the mountains,’ says Donato D’Angelo.

https://www.decanter.com/features/italy-the-new-great-estates-of-italy-247966/

It makes a wine that simply bursts at the seams with colour, alcohol, acidity and tannins. The traditional approach to this muscular raw material is encapsulated in the DOC production norms of 1971, which established what today seem anachronistic periods of ageing – three years for the quaintly named Vecchio category and five years for the riserva. Wines in this style have the classic brick-orange shade of traditional barrel ageing. They have a glycerine-silky palate, complex aromas with a liquorice, herbal character and a mineral finish.

The modern approach aims to preserve the grape’s natural character, rather than attempting to domesticate the variety through long ageing. The result is a style with huge impact. New-generation wines like Eubeo’s Roinos, the Consorzio Viticoltori’s Vetusto or Tenuta Le Querce’s Vigneto La Corona have impenetrable inky colours, concentrated berry fruit and often massive volume on the palate.

Modern vinification and barrique ageing has taken a while to work its way down the length of the peninsular but it has now well and truly arrived in Basilcata. Whether this style expresses the variety and its terroir better than the traditional one is a question that can fortunately still be approached by tasting the alternatives. Longer established producers like Tenuta del Portale or Fratelli Napolitano remain faithful to the old style, while Paternoster and D’Angelo offer a range that includes both.

Until the mid-1990s, Aglianico was a wine which, even in Italy, was easier to find in reference books than in your local restaurant. Basilicata is traditionally a region of growers and not wine producers, and the majority of the production was destined for blending and only a small percentage for estate bottling. Although bulk wine is still a key source of income for the region’s numerous cooperatives, there has been a significant increase in the production of premium bottled wines in the past five years. The trend has brought good quality cooperatives to the fore like the Cantina di Venosa (the biggest producer in Vulture) and the Consorzio Viticoltori Associati. It has seen large-scale investments by local producers such as the Pietrafesa family of Cantine Sasso and Tenuta Le Querce, and from outside the region by GIV (Gruppo Italiano Vini) and the Campania-based Feudi San Gregorio, whose new Vigne di Mezzo wines make their debut this year. It has also seen a mushrooming of small wineries, which has created an estate wine sector that barely existed in Basilicata in the past.

Shades of terroir in Basilicata

The ever increasing number of growers’ wines raises the question of terroir. Vito Paternoster is one of a group of producers who believes that the current DOC zone is far too large and would like to see revisions to the DOC to incorporate the definition of sub-zones. The issue is mainly about soils. As you move away from the side of Mount Vulture towards the plateau of Venosa, you leave behind the volcanic terrain of the historic growing area and enter one of predominantly calcareous clay. ‘Aglianico from the Barile-Rionero-Ripacandida area has the mineral quality that you get from volcanic soils and an aroma and finesse that comes with extreme night-day temperature variations. It is quite different to the wine from around Venosa, which is hotter and broader,’ says Paternoster.

https://www.decanter.com/wine-reviews/italy/basilicata/paternoster-don-anselmo-aglianico-del-vulture-2010-23295

Not everybody goes along with this theory. Gerardo Giuratrabocchetti, who has vineyards planted with the same clones and the same training systems in both areas, says he sees only minimal differences between the yields, harvest dates and grapes analyses in the different zones. ‘In percentage terms, the human factor, in the sense of vineyard management, counts for 70% and soils for 30%’. Taste and decide, but this could well be a strictly local debate. My impression is that the robust character of the variety tends to outweigh the differences of terroir – both areas produce high quality wines.

Donato D’Angelo says that on Vulture vintages are ‘either great or terrible’. The past 10 years have seen a lot of great vintages and no terrible ones. Even the more difficult vintages like 1996 or 2002 (the only years when Paternoster did not bottle its special-selection Don Anselmo) are far from a write-off. The best recent vintages to look for are 2001 and 2003. Few wines from pre-1998 wines remain in circulation.

Aglianico vintage Guide

• 2003 **** Vulture was one of the few Italian regions to escape the negative effects of this heatwave vintage. Big, ripe wines with lots of fruit. Keep
• 2002 *** Difficult year. Lacking the solidity of the best vintages, but vigorous Aglianico character with juicy fruit. Drink
• 2001 **** Great power, fruit and balance. The top selections are for long ageing. Keep/drink
• 2000 **** Hot, forward vintage with the ripe fruit and soft tannins which favour the modern style of Aglianico. Drink
• 1999 ***** Big, austere vintage with great depth and staying power. Some excellent traditional-style wines. Drink/keep
• 1998 **** Good quality, homogeneous vintage still drinking well. Drink
• 1997 ***** Full-bodied wines made almost exclusively in the traditional style. Drink
• 1996 *** Will not go into the history books. Skip
• 1995 ***** Highly regarded vintage, for fans of the traditional riserva style. Drink