Grifalco, Damaschito, Aglianico Del Vulture superiore

The wine Damaschito from the DOCG area Agianico Del Vulture Superiore is from the producer Grifalco in Basilicata in Italy. The wine is made from 100% Aglianico grapes and the vntage is 2015. Basilicata is an unnown region region in the south of Italy and Vulture is an extinct volcano in that area. Around the volcano a lot of good Aglianico grapes are grown.

Grifalco was funded in 2004 by Fabrizio Piccin and Cecilia Naldoni after they tired of Tuscany and moved to Basilicata. Today it is the sons Lorenzo and Andrea who runs the business. The grapes for this wine comes from the place Maschito and the vines are about 80 years old. Altitude is 580 meters above sea level.  Fermentation takes place with a temperature that never exceeds 28 degrees, followed by a period of maceration on the skins that reaches and pass the 60 days in which the malolactic fermentation takes place. It ages in Slavonian oak for the next 12/18 months. Then it is aged in bottles for at least 12 months.

This is a strong wine  with a taste of black currant, leather, plum and strong tannins. It needs time to open up so open the wine at least one hour before consumption. This is a wine which can be easily stored for at least ten more years and I think that 4-5 more years of ageing will bring out the best of this wine. Now it is very good but give it 3 more years and it will be excellent.

Agliancio and Falanghina from Fattoria Pagano

Fattoria Pagano is a producer in Campania in Italy. The vineyard is situated in the area of Casale di Carniola in the sout of Campania. The company was founded by in 2001 by Antonio Pagano. The vineyards are situated on a height of 270-300 meters above sealevel and the soil is old volcanic soil.

The first wine is a young Falanghina wine from 2019. It is made of 100% Falanghina grapes which is a white grape that is common in Campania. Before being bottled it has been aged two months in steel vats. In the taste I get apple, pear, grapefruit and some minerals. A nice good Falanghina which is very easy drinking and is perfect for an aperitivo or together with fish or spicy food.

The second wine is a bit more mature. It is an Aglianico from 2017 made from 100% Aglianico grapes. Agliancio I have talked about in my previous posts and it is the red wine grape of southern Italy. This wine has been aged 6 months in steel vats and then 10 months on the bottle before being sold. One year ago I tasted the same vintage so it will be interesting to see how it has changed. In the taste I get cherry, black currants and with big powerful tannins. One more year of storage has integrated the flavours in the wine and I think one more year would make this wine even better.

 

Gricos, Aglianico Del Vulture from Basilicata

Gricos is a red wine from the Aglianico Del Vulture area in Basilicata and the producer is Gricfalco, which is is a produer i Basilicata. The Grifalco company was founded in 2004 by the Fabrizio and Cecilia Piccin after having been a wine producer in Montepulciano, Tuscany, for 20 years. They wanted to forge a new path and start producing Aglianico wines in Basilicata. Thi project is run by their sons Lorenzo and Andrea. Grifalco has 16 hectars of vineyards with different age of the vines. They have five different vineyards around the extinct volcano Vulture in the wine area called Aglinico del Vulture. 

The grape that Grifalco is focusing on is the Aglianico grape. Which is one of the best red wine grapes of southern Italy which requires a long ripening time with an harvest in early November. They produce only wines using the Aglianico grape, no other grapes. Currently for red wines and one rose is produced using the Aglianico grape. The wine Gricos is a basic Aglianico and is normally produced using the grapes of the youngest vines coming from Venosa, Maschito and Forenza vineyards. They produce 40000 bottles per year of this wine. The altitude of the vineyards are at 450-550 meters a.s.l. The wine is fermented in steel tanks and then aged in reused American oak barrels and French oak barriques. The vintage is 2017 and the ABV is 13%.

On the nose I get black and red currants. In the taste plum, black currants and some tannins. This is a good wine and I believe that with 2-3 more years of ageing this wine will be even better and more complex. Works very well with food.

Feudi Di San Gregorio part 3

For the last part on Feudi Di San Gregorio I will focus on one Aglianico wine from them. The wine is Dal Re and is made from 100% Aglianico which is considered one of great red wine grapes of Italy. It is mostly grown in Southern Italy because Aglianico needs a long maturing period and is normally picked in November which is quite late for a grape. This grape tends to do well in Volcanic soils which can be found in Campania and Basilicata.  The Dal Re is an Irpinia Aglianico DOC wine. It is aged six months in French barriques and the rest of the time in stainless steel vats. Before being sold it is then aged six months in the bottle. This wine is part of their more exclusive line for the best restaurants and wine bars. The vintage is 2016 and the ABV is 13,5%.

The taste is of black currants, coffee, blackberry, dark cherry and nicely integrated tannins. A very good wine. Feudi Di San Gregorio is a big producer in Campania and they know how to produce good wines and I love that they focus on the indigenous grapes of Campania.

 

Feudi Di San Gergorio, part 1

This will be the first blogpost on the wines of Feudi Di San Gregorio. Feudi Di San Gregorio is a wine producer from Campania in Italy. They are situated in the area known as Irpinia which is the old historical name of Province of Avellino. This area is divided into Taurusi, Greco Di Tufo and Fiano Di Avellino. All area that are famous for their wine production.

The Feudi Di San Gregorio was founded in 1986 by two Irpinian families. This winery has focused on quality production and also on the native grapes of Campania such as Falanghina, Greco and Aglianico. They are quite big with 300 hectars of vineyards. For this part, I will try two wines one white and one red.

The Albente wine from 2019 is made of the white grape Falanghina. Falanghina is a grape that went almost extinct but has made a big comeback in recent years. The wine is stored for four months in steel tanks before being bottled. The taste is of pear, tropical fruits and citrus. It is very fresh and aromatic and is very good. Goes very well with fish due toe the acidity.

The Trigaio wine from 2018 is made of 100% Aglianico grape. I will write more about this grape in the next part but this red grape is one of the famous grapes of South Italy. Also this wine has been aged for four months in steel tanks before being bottled. On the nose I get a nice red fruit smell.  In the taste I get black currant, plums and some sour cherry. A bit lighter Aglianico with a lot of fruit character. Nice.

Basilisco, Teodosio Aglianico Del Vulture

With this review I will start looking into the wines from Feudi di San Gregorio. But first we have the producer Basilisco In Basilicata that is owned by Feudi di San Gregorio. Basilicata is not a famous wine region and finding wines from there in Sweden is rare. Basilisco was founded in early 1990 and from 2011 it is run by the Campania producer Feudi di San Gregorio. 

The wine Teodosio Aglianico del Vulture is named after an Roman emperor and the name Basilisco means little king in Greek The Vulture is an extinct volcano in Basilicata. The vintage is 2016 and the ABV is 13%. It is made from 100% Aglianico grapes that is grown at 500 meters above sea level near Barile in Basilicata province of Italy. The wine is aged for 10-12 months in French oak barriques. The taste is quite strong, I get oak, black currants, sour cherry and some plum. Quite tight at the beginning and it almost feels like a 15% ABV wine. This wine needs some air to open up an is quite dry, because of the tannins. Good to drink now but I think 2-3 more years of ageing will bring out some more complexity.

Sedura from Donnafgata and two other red wines from Italy

Finally I have found a different wine from Donnafugata which is not usually available and it is the wine La Bella Sedara.  The ABV is 13,5% and the vintage is 2017. This wine is made from several different grapes with the main grape being Nero D'Avola blended together with Cabernet Sauvigno, Merlot and Syrah.In the taste I get black currant, cherry and some spices and black peppar. A very nice easy drinking wine.

The wine Aglianico is from the producer Fattoria Pagano in Campania. It is made from 100% Aglianico grapes. The vintage is 2017 and the ABv is 14%. The vineyard lies at 270-300 meters above sea level in Casale Carniola in Campania. The taste is of black currant and plum with some tannins which some are a bit unripe. It is a decent wine which gets much better when paired with spicy food.

The last red wine is from the producer Bepin De Eto in Veneto. I have tasted the wine Cabernet earlier and still my thought is that it is a decent wine but I prefer the other red wines from Bepin De Eto which in my mind are better.

A white wine from Aglianico, by Mastroberardino

Aglianico is a red wine grape that is used for example for the mighty Taurausi wines from Campania in Italy. However, Mastroberardino has made a white wine called Neroameta from Aglianico. So that is one wine that I had to taste. The vintage is 2017 and the ABV is 13%.
The colour is very light. In the taste is apples and some pear with citrus and some flowers. Very fresh and crisp. A very nice and good white wine. Reminds me of a very good Verdicchio.

Next up is the producer Ca dei Frati and the wine I Frati Lugano, it is made of a local variant of the grape Verdicchio. The vintage is 2017 and the ABV 13,5%. I get gooseberries on the nose. In the taste I get minerals with some citrus and pear in the taste. A very good wine.

Calabria to Umbria

Calabria at the tip of the Italian boot is a place I have never visited and also have not drank so much wine from. The wine Korone rosso from producer Poderi Marini is a new eperience. The vintage is 2015 and the ABV is 14%. The grapes used are mainly Aglianico and Sangiovese with some Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.  I get red fruits on the nose. In the taste I get dark cherries, black currants and some soft tannins and vanilla in the end.

Next wine if from producer Lungarotti in Umbria. Their Rubesco wine I have tried before but then it was the 2012 vintage and now I have tried their 2015 vintage. The ABV is 14,5% and the grapes used are Sangiovese and Colorino. In this wine I get red fruits on the nose. I get black currants and dark cherries in the taste with some tannins in the back that lingers for some time. A good wine that I think gets better with one or two years of storage.

From Montalcino to two new places, Montepulciano and Molise

Tody it is all M, red wine from Montalcino, Montepulciano and Molise.

First up is a red wine from Montalcino in Tuscany, it is the Villa al Cortile Rosso Di Montalcino from 2015 with an ABV of 13,5%. The bottle says the the grapes comes from the south and north slopes of the Montalcino territory. As usual the grapes are 100% Sangiovese Grosso. The taste is of red fruits, red cherries, soft tannins, some liquorice, and a good aftertaste. A good wine.

Next we move to the town of Montepulciano also in Tuscany. It is the wine Vino Nobile di Montepulciano from producer Poliziano, with the subname Viti nuove. The vintage is 2014 and the ABV is 13,5%. It is made of 85% Prugnolo Gentile and 15% of other grapes such as Colorino and Canaiolo. The Prugnolo Gentile is the name for Sangiovese in Montepulciano. The taste is very spice, some black peppars, black currants and some liquorice. There are some tannins lingering in the aftertaste. Also a good wine.

The last bottle is a red wine from the little known region Molise in Italy. It is called Biferno Rosso Riserva by producer Zengarello. This wine is of the vintage 2011 and the ABV is 14%. The wine is made of the grapes Agliancio and Montepulciano, not to be confused with the town Montepulciano. The taste is of black currants, tobacco and liquorice. The tannins are quite strong. This is a wine that will age very well and I would probably like it even more when it becomes older. A good wine today with some ageing potential.

From Campania to Tuscany

Mastroberardino is a famous producer in Campani. They are known for their red Taurasi wine and also for preserving ancient grapes. Finally I have had the chance to try their Taurasi wine called Radici from 2009. This wine is made of 100% Aglianico grapes and is from the Taurasi DOGC. The colour is very dark ruby. The smell is very strong. The taste is intense and very strong. Definately a food wine. Very good.

Further north in Tuscany the grape Vermentino is popular and it gives very good wines. I have tasted the wine Litorale by producer Val Delle Rose.  It is a very good Vermentino wine. Light but still fresh and excellent when served chilled.

Rubrato from Campania

Aglianico is a grape grown mostly in Campania and is used to make wines like the Taurasi. It is a very important grape in this region and in previous times it was shipped northwards in Italy to augment "weaker" red wines, the so called "wine railroad".
The wine Rubrato Aglianico from 2012 by producer Feudi Di San Gregorio in Campania is made by 100% Aglianico grapes. This wine is from the Irpinia Aglianico DOC. The colour of the wine is very dark. The taste is of black currant and dark cherries, it is very strong and leaves a long after-taste. This wine needed to breath before drinking. When drinking it at once it showed to be very closed and after twenty minutes it had reached it full potential. Like the Aglianico wines I have drunk previously it need some time in the glass before drinking. Yet another good wine from Feudi Di San Gregorio.

I tried the producer Peter Semmers Chardonnay a couple of months ago and this time I had the chance to they Peter Semmers Pinot Grigio from 2013. This one is better than the Chardonnay. Taste like what a Pinot Grigio should taste like and is a good wine. Yet another good wine from Alto Adige.

From one end of Italy to the other

Campania, the region there Napoli is situated has the grape Aglianico that is used in the Taurasi wines and is also used in the IGT wine Aglianico by producer Terredora. Compared to the Taurasi wine this is stored less on barrels and has less tannins. The vintage is 2010 is deep red. It has a strong taste of black currants, violets, a bit sharpness and a strong aftertaste. Worked very well with good green olives from Sicily.

On the other side of Italy, in the region Friuli bordering Slovenia the white wines are dominating. The bottle from producer Bidoli is a pinot grigio wine and is the first bottle I ever bought from this region. The colour is very light yellow and is almost clear. The taste is light and is of pears, citrus and ends with an aftertaste of grapefruit. Good wine.