WSET D3 - South Italy Flashcards
Summarise Campania.
Campania is south of Lazio and sits between the Mediterranean Sea and the Apennine Mountains providing a number of sites suitable for growing ripe, healthy grapes. Most viticulture is on slopes and at altitudes of 200–600 m. There is a range of soils. In Roman times, Falernian wine (unknown varieties) from northern Campania was famous for its quality and ability to age. Now the region is known for its three white local varieties – Falanghina, Greco and Fiano – and for the black variety Aglianico, especially from Taurasi DOCG.
What’s the growing enviroment and grape growing like?
Campania has a warm Mediterranean climate. Inland vines are planted on slopes up to 600 m altitude, providing a cooling influence. Many of the varieties grown are late ripening. They can be threatened by cold and rainy early autumns. Frost in spring can be a problem where vines are planted in frost pockets or lower slopes and valley floors.
What are the soil types found here?
There are three main soil types in Campania. The DOC(G)s are given here by the principal soil type:
* Limestone and clay soils in the hills, providing a good balance between fast drainage and water retention. This area includes the three best known denominations:
– Fiano di Avellino DOCG, white wine made with Fiano
– Greco di Tufo DOCG, white wine made with Greco
– Taurasi DOCG, red wine made with Aglianico
* Volcanic and sandy soils in the volcanic areas around Naples:
– Campi Flegrei DOC with tuff, pumice and sandy soils, typically fast draining: the wines are made principally from the white variety Falanghina and the black Piedirosso (for reds and rosés).
– Vesuvio DOC (which includes wines labelled Lacryma Christi)1 with similar soils: the wines are made principally from the white variety Coda di Volpe and the black Piedirosso.
* Alluvial sediments in the large area between Naples and Benevento with a number of denominations: Sannio DOC (the province of Benevento) and Beneventano IGP, all making wines from a range of Campanian and Italian varieties.
What are the top varieties planted here?
Aglianico
Falanghina
Barbera
Malvasia
Sangiovese
Greco
Describe Falanghina.
Long considered merely as a workhorse variety, Falanghina is important both for being the most grown white variety in Campania (second only to the black Aglianico) and for its rise in popularity around the world since the 1980s especially in the hospitality sector. Falanghina has good resistance to disease but the fruit can begin to shrivel at the end of the season and therefore choosing the correct harvest date is important.
It is mid-to-late ripening, which means it is occasionally threatened by autumn rain. The wines have medium intensity apple and white peach fruit with herbaceous notes (grass) and have medium (+) acidity. Nearly all wines are unoaked. The wines range from acceptable to very good quality and are inexpensive to mid-price.
Falanghina del Sannio (maximum yield 84 hL/ha), the largest DOC featuring Falanghina, accounts for one third of Campania’s plantings of the variety. The Campi Flegrei produces lower alcohol wines, 12–13 per cent, due to windier conditions than inland. Maximum yields for Campi Flegrei Falanghina is also 84 hL/ha.
Summarise Greco.
Greco is a challenging grape to grow as it is prone to grey rot and to both mildews and has low vigour and productivity. However, it is tolerant of heat and is drought-resistant, making
it suitable for a warm region. Vines either are trained with the Guyot system or are cordon- trained and spur-pruned, allowing some mechanisation on less steep slopes. The grapes are picked around the first week of October, giving a long season to develop depth of flavour.
The variety is particularly associated with the Greco di Tufo DOCG. This is a small but densely planted area with limestone and clay soils, offering a beneficial combination of good drainage and water retention. (‘Tufo’ does not refer to a type of soil; it is simply the name of
the principal town in the DOCG area.) The maximum yield for the DOCG is 70 hL/ha. Greco is less grown in Campania than Falanghina but more than Fiano. As a heat-tolerant and drought- resistant variety, it is attracting interest in countries with warming climates and water restrictions.The wines are deep lemon in colour, high in alcohol with an oily texture, with floral, stone fruit and smoky notes. Most wines are unoaked and the best can age in bottle. Quality is very good, with some outstanding examples, and prices range from mid-price to premium.
Summarise Fiano.
Fiano is a potentially high-quality white variety that has only one third of the plantings of Falanghina but is held in very high regard, especially for the wine coming from the Fiano di Avellino DOCG. It was rescued from neglect by the Mastroberardino family after the Second World War. Guyot and cordons with VSP are commonly used as training systems. It is sensitive to both forms of mildew but has thick skins and so can resist botrytis even though it is late ripening (harvested in mid to late October).
Within the Fiano di Avellino DOCG, maximum yields are 70 hL/ha. The wines have medium (–) to medium intensity floral, peach and hazelnut aromas and flavours, with medium (+) body, medium to medium (+) acidity and a waxy texture. Fiano is grown in a range of soils with resulting different expressions. Lighter, fruitier wines come from open, sandy, soils (with fast drainage) and weightier wines from clay-dominated soils (high water retention). Quality is very good to outstanding and prices range from mid-price to premium. The best wines
can age for 8–10 years in the bottle. Most wines are aged in stainless steel tanks but some producers make a small- production wine aged in wood.
Summarise Aglianico.
Aglianico is a black variety that is early budding (and therefore vulnerable to spring frost) and late ripening. It requires a long season for the tannins to ripen. It is a vigorous variety and yields have to be controlled if its quality potential is to be realized. It is prone to botrytis bunch rot and therefore vulnerable to rain late in the season. Despite its name (‘hellenic’), DNA
analysis does not support the traditional view that it is a Greek variety and it is probably an ancient grape from Southern Italy. It is mostly planted on spurred cordons or cane-pruned with VSP and at medium densities, enabling some mechanisation.
The wines have medium (+) to pronounced intensity rose, red plum and blackberry aromas, high acidity and high tannins which can be softened either by ageing in high quality small barrels or long ageing in traditional large oak casks, plus bottle age.
In Campania, Aglianico produces high quality wines on the cool slopes (200–600 m), these cooler sites creating a longer season and more intense flavours. The most important denomination for Aglianico is Taurasi DOCG, with a minimum 85 per cent Aglianico.
Maximum yields are 70 hL/ha. The DOCG requires three years of ageing, a minimum of one of which must be in wood (four years including 18 months in wood for riserva). For fully ripe skins and pips, the grapes are picked at the end of October and early November. The wines are made with long maceration on the skins (20 days or more) and aged French oak barriques or, as in the past, in large oak casks. The wines are very good to outstanding in quality and mid-priced to premium in price. Sales are divided between Italy and exports with the USA being the most important market.
Describe Piedirosso.
This is an old Campanian red variety, probably from the Vesuvius area, making pale ruby wines, with fresh, medium (+) acidity, medium tannins and red plum and red cherry fruit.
It is grown mainly in the area around Naples (Campi Flegrei DOC and Vesuvio DOC) including the islands of Ischia and Capri. In the two DOCs it has to form at least 50 per cent ofthe grapes used but in practice most of the wines are 100 per cent. It is adapted to the heat and drought (and flourishes here with only 600 mm of rainfall per year and windy conditions), and has open bunches with thick-skinned berries (and so resists botrytis). It is little troubled by powdery or downy mildew thanks to the dry and windy conditions in the growing season. In the two DOCs mentioned, many vines are planted on their own roots (phylloxera is present but does not spread in the sandy soils) at low densities. It used to be trained very high with many bunches for high volume production but the producers have now moved to Guyot or spurred cordons to achieve better fruit quality with greater fruit concentration. It is harvested late but still produces wines of only 12–13% abv.
Piedirosso is used partly to make early-drinking, varietal wines and partly to soften Aglianico-based wines where it adds perfume and freshness. Most wines are aged in stainless steel or old oak with a few growers ageing their top wines in new French oak barriques. Markets are principally local (the region, Naples and its tourists) but with some international interest because of the theme of volcanic wines. Prices are in the range of mid-priced to premium.
Wine law and regulation.
The individual DOC(G)s and their markets have already been commented on. They are complemented by province-wide DOCs for a whole province, e.g. Irpinia DOC for the province of Avellino and Sannio DOC for the province of Benevento. These DOCs include a wider range of varieties that can be grown and less stringent production rules.
Wine business.
Campania has a number of large private companies that have vineyards across multiple denominations and provinces. Mastroberardino played a significant role in the recovery and commercialisation of the Campanian varieties, Terredora is an offshoot from the same family, while Feudi di San Gregorio has done much to update the image of Campanian wine. In some provinces, co-operatives are very important. For example, La Guardiense (see picture) in the province of Benevento is a 1,000-member co-operative that makes about 15 per cent of the production of the province as a whole. Exports increased significantly in the decade to 2019, at more than twice the rate of Italian wine exports as a whole in that period.3
Summarise Basilicata.
Basilicata sits between Campania and Puglia. Most wine production is of IGT or simple ‘wine’ quality. Its most important denomination, Aglianico del Vulture DOC, is to the east of Monte Vulture, an inactive volcano. Here potentially high quality, structured red wine is made from the Aglianico variety, which accounts for nearly one third of all plantings in the region. Across the region, small amounts of wine from other varieties (e.g. Italica) are made, mainly for local consumption.
