A Glimpse into the Wines of Campania

The wines of Campania are a great choice any time of year and especially during the holidays.  There is a beautiful array of wine selections throughout the region made predominantly of red wines from the Aglianico grape, but also a great white wine selection primarily found from the Fiano, Greco and Falanghina grapes.    

I've been meaning to write about an online seminar I attended that gave an overview of the Campania wine region led by Master of Wine, Justin Martindale, and Andrea Erby.  Let’s take a birds eye view of the Campanian wine region and it’s many native grapes. 

You may have been to Campania without really even knowing it.  If you’ve been to the Amalfi Coast, Pompeii, Naples, Avellino, Caserta or Salerno then check Campania off your list.  The real question is whether you indulged and visited its abundant vineyards.  The Campania wine region hosts a number of wine appellations with 4 DOCGs, 15 DOCs and 10 IGPs across 63,000 acres of vineyards found throughout the region.   

Faraglioni Rocks in Capri

The beginnings of viticulture in Campania 

The viticulture of Campania had many influences in its development starting with the Greek Hellenic culture followed by the Etruscans. Southern Italy was the center of the Magna Grecia, Great Greece, that as instrumental in the development of viticulture.  During the Risorgimento in 1861 there was a mass emigration where many of the vineyards were abandoned.  Today exists a generation of producers that are turning the wine industry around in Campania working with local grape varietals and producing unique wines on this ancient volcanic terroir.  

The Landscape of Campania 

The terrain of Campania is predominantly made up of hills and mountains with only about 15% of the land covered in plains.  As one can imagine there are many high elevations that reach upwards of 2,000+ feet above sea level.   

If you’re familiar with the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD that forever changed the landscape of the terrain, it’s no surprise that the soils are made up of various volcanic matter including ash, rock as well as sand deposits.  Along with Vesuvius, there is also a history of volcanic activity from Campi Flegrei and the island of Ischia. 

Main wine regions and grapes of Campania 

Some of the main wine areas to try are the following: 

• Taurasi DOCG 
• Aglianico del Taburno 
• Fiano di Avellino DOCG 
• Greco di Tufo DOCG 
• Campi Flegrei DOC 
• Vesuvio DOC 

The Irpinia wine subregion hosts 3 of the 4 DOCG of the Campanian wine region: Taurasi DOCG, Fiano di Avellino DOCG, and Greco di Tufo DOCG.  The Taurasi DOCG was the first in southern Italy.  Primarily focused on the Aglianico grape, this appellation owes many thanks to known Antonio Mastroberardino, whom preserved the ancient, ungrafted Aglianico vines to keep native varieties in this area.  You may want to compare the Aglianico of Taurasi against the other Campania DOCG focused on this grape, Aglianico del Taburno.   

Aglianico grapes - sourced from Consorzio Tutela Vini Irpinia

As the names Fiano di Avellino and Greco di Tufo suggest, these appellations are focused on the respective grapes, Fiano and Greco.  Fiano is a grape that is subdued in its youth showing notes of pear and citrus, but with age these wines take on a new profile of honey with a tinge of smokiness.  Greco shows more complex fruit up front and is structured with a grippy mouthfeel.  As Greco wines age they become more nutty and tend to be oxidative.  Both of these whites have great capacity to age.  

Fiano grapes - sourced from Consorzio Tutela Vini Irpinia

The Campi Flegrei DOC is located west of Naples, Italy’s 3rd most populated city.  The name, Campi Flegrei, derives from ancient Greek translating to burning fields.  The wines to try from the Campi Flegrei DOC include the Campanian native white, Falanghina, and the native red, Piedirosso.  Some of the suggested producers from the webinar include Contrada Solandra, La Sibilla, Cantine Astroni and Salvatore Martusciello. 

Greco di Tufo grapes - sourced from Consorzio Tutela Vini Irpinia

The Vesuvio DOC is located in a circle around the slopes of Mt. Vesuvius.  As one would imagine from the explosion at Mt. Vesuvius, the topsoil of this area is covered in volcanic ash and lava. Within the Vesuvio DOC sits the subdesignation of Lacryma Christi del Vesuvio.  You will also see Piedirosso produced here for reds along with Aglianico and Sciascinoso.  For the whites there is Coda di Volpe, Verdeca, Greco and Falanghina to discover.  Some suggested producers are Cantine Villa Dora, Casa Setaro, Cantine Matrone and Bosco de Medici. 

A very old picture of me at the Mastroberardino vineyards inside the ruins of Pompeii

If Campania is a wine region that is newer to you, I strongly suggest exploring these wines and native grapes in the new year.  These wines are some of the best in Italy. 

If you're familiar with the wines of Campania wines, what have been some of your favorites that you’ve discovered?

Campania's wine appellations - Copyright of Federdoc

Check out some of the wines of Campania on Wine.com.  Vino Travels may receive compensation for any purchases made to support the operations of this website.

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Garlic Herb Encrusted Cod paired with Donnachiara's Aletheia Greco di Tufo

Near the end of last year I attended a virtual tasting with Winestudio led by Tina Morey.  It was a partnership with Susannah Gold of Vigneto Communications whom represents the wines of Donnachiara.  The real treat was having the owner, Ilaria Pettito, join us and provide some background on the winery and lead us through the tasting.  I’ve featured some of these wines in the past and had the opportunity to try more of their production leaving a continuing impressive impression.   

The Donnachiara winery is located in the southern region of Italy in Campania.  The winery is located in Montefalcione in the province of Irpinia on a hill about 600 meters above sea level.  Their vineyards, totaling around 66 acres, are situated in 2 of the 4 DOCG appellations in Campania.  The majority of the grapes they grow are dedicated to the red grape, Aglianico, but they also grow the white grapes, Fiano and Greco.  These are grapes that had been brought to Campania and other southern regions of Italy by the ancient Greeks.  Campania is home to over 100 indigenous varietals.  

Donnachiara was established in 2005 by Ilaria’s mother, Chiara, and father, Umberto.  Ilaria joined the family business in 2008 after leaving the legal field.  At that point in time the winery was producing about 10,000 bottles.  Over time with Ilaria’s leadership the winery has expanded to a production of around 200,000 bottles.  They have employed the expertise of the highly respected Italian enologist, Riccardo Cotarella, whom serves as their winemaker.  Per their site they practice “integrated management” that focuses on eliminating plant diseases, recycling their water supply and running on solar power energy.   

Riccardo and Ilaria ~ Copyright of Donnachiara

About Greco di Tufo

In order to carry the Greco di Tufo DOCG status the wines must be made of at least 85% Greco.  The wine Greco di Tufo is a clone of Greco Bianco.  It is named after the grape itself and is the name of the local town, Tufo.  It is also named after the volcanic rock and ash, known as Tufo or tuff in English, in which the vines grow.  This soil is what lends minerality and the aromatic profile to the Greco di Tufo wines.    

The Wines 

In two or three weeks I’ll be featuring another of Donnachiara’s wine made from the Aglianico grape as the focused will be on a wine pairing with braised meats.  Today I’m sharing their 2018 Aletheia made from Greco that I paired with a garlic herb encrusted cod over spinach.

2018 Donnachiara Aletheia Greco di Tufo DOCG: Made from 100% Greco on tuffaceous soil.  The fermented must was left on the lees for a year noticeable in the glass.  A brilliant straw color in the glass the aromas from this wine left notes of pineapple, peach and lemon wafting from the glass.  Medium-bodied, the wine had crisp, tangy acidity with beautiful ripe fruit.  The texture was almost waxy on the palette.  Overall well-balanced with a lingering finish.  ABV 13% SRP $18  

Ilaria shared with us that in the future Donnachiara will be producing a rose’ via the metodo classico style in stainless steel from the Aglianico grape.

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*This wine was provided as a sample, but opinions are always my own.

Thanksgiving Italian Wine Picks

Jen of Vino Travels
2017 Donnachiara Greco di Tufo DOCG

There isn't just one easy choice for whenwhen it comes to the Thanksgiving meal with the large variety of accompaniments to the turkey.  I usually choose a dry, crisp white to start followed by wines from the Veneto, usually an Amarone, but if not a Valpolicella of some degree.  I recently just tried the 2017 Donnachiara Greco di Tufo and if I had a 2nd bottle I'd be having that with my Thanksgiving feast.  This wine hails from the Campania region in southern Italy within the Avellino province.  This wine was dry and delicate filled with citrus.  It was backed with good acidity along with nice salinity and minerality rounding out with a lengthy finish. SRP $20 ABV 13%

David of Cooking Chat

2016 Capanna Rosso di Montalcino
When thinking of an Italian wine pick for Thanksgiving, my first thought was a number of Italian whites could work nicely, but I already had quite a few whites waiting in the wings.  This Rosso di Montalcino might seem like a bit over the top for Thanksgiving given the high alcohol content and tannins.  But this Sangiovese-based wine has a lot of elegance, drinking well above its price point.  I tasted it yesterday at Pairings with some salame, and they were great paired together.  I plan to bring some of that salame to nibble on along with this wine and all the other food. ($27, 14.5 ABV)

Lauren of The Swirling Dervish
2016 Brunori San Nicolo Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Superiore

Thanksgiving traditions vary from one family to another, but the one thing we all have in common is that our tables are laden with a variety of dishes – some sweet, others savory. Turkey, stuffing, roasted vegetables, and (maybe) a dish of canned, jellied cranberry sauce. It’s hard to think of just one wine to accompany them all, so I’m offering up a wine that will sing with your vegetable dishes. The grape is Verdicchio and it comes from Le Marche in central Italy, along the Adriatic coast. It’s a citrusy white wine with some herbal undertones (think fennel) that makes a smashing partner with carrots, potatoes, yams, and celery root. One of my favorite dishes with Verdicchio is roast fennel and potatoes dressed in a lemon-parsley vinaigrette. And it will pair nicely with an herb-roasted turkey too! SRP $18

Katarina from Grapevine Adventures
2015 Aquila del Torre Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso

For my wine recommendation for this Thanksgiving holiday, I actually need to take a jump back to May earlier this spring. In mid-May, I was invited to a lovely lunch at the restaurant Gurdulú close to Piazza Santa Spirito right in the center of Florence. However, we were not there to taste Sangiovese wines but rather the organic and biodynamic wines of Aquila del Torre winery in Friuli Venezia Giulia. I met Michele Cianis who together with his father Claudio is running this very interesting winery in Povoletto in the province of Udine.

The wine that caught my attention was their Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso 2015. I am always fascinated by these grape varieties that are lesser known or that in the past have been considered less suitable or fine wine production. This interesting grape that produce somewhat rustic and a bit woodsy wines yet with a certain elegance has had a come-back during the last years. This 2015 vintage has lovely rich notes of red and dark fruit, such as cherry, combined with spices, cocoa beans, a green undertone of moss. Distinct tannins that are not invasive. A mix of austere, woodsy, full-bodied, and elegant in its character.

I would say it can be paired perfectly with many of the dishes on a traditional as well as untraditional Thanksgiving table.

Jill @ L'Occassion

2017 Primitivo di Manduria 'Passo del Cardinale' Paolo Leo 

At Thanksgiving we are all about family, so this year I’m featuring a wine that my cousins brought back for me in their suitcase from a recent trip to Italy. My cousin is a chef, and while she was in Puglia for work, she visited Paolo Leo. Pop this open and drink away was the advice from the producer, so here we go. The harmony of fruit and spice, delivered on a persistent finish makes this a bold, brash red wine option. We are having a ‘help yourself’ Thanksgiving so guests can sample wine from a wide spectrum. Primitivo di Manduria ‘Passo del Cardinale’ will fit right in. Warm holiday wishes from our house to yours! SRP $10

Susannah of Avvinare
2016 Botonero Terrazze Retiche di Sondrio I.G.T. 
My Thanksgiving wine hails from the Valtellina, a part of Lombardy famous for its Nebbiolo which they call Chiavennasca and its heroic mountain viticulture. Valtellina which I have visited, is beautiful and the wines can be sublime and rival their more famous counterparts in Piedmont. There are 44 producers who are part of the Consorzio and Mamete Prevostini whose wine I am recommending is the President. Valtellina has a number of sub-zones: Sassella, Grumello, Inferno, Valgella and Maroggia,, each known for their particular differences. The Mamete Prevostini winery, was started by Mamete’s grandfather about 70 years ago. Their goal is to produce wines with elegance, finesse and power. They have a famous family restaurant called Crotasc and all of their wines are very food friendly. Mamete took over in 1988 and is a firm believer in terroir. My choice for the Thanksgiving meal is one of their entry wines, Botonero Terrazze Retiche di Sondrio I.G.T. The grapes can be sourced from the entire production area of the Sondrio Province. The wine is made from 100% Nebbiolo grapes grown on soils that are a mix of sand, silt, limestone with a high content of granite rock and little clay. The wine ferments and undergoes maceration in stainless steel tanks and then ages in the bottle before release. It sees no wood and will pair well with a number of the Thanksgiving dishes, particularly dark meat Turkey and Ham, two of my favorites. At 13% alcohol, it won’t overwhelm your palate and at a SRP $14 it won’t hurt your wallet too much either.

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