Aglianico

Ok. So I love Barolo/Barbaresco/Langhe Nebbiolo. Very keen on Etna Rossi. Don’t mind a bit of Brunello and Chianti Classico. But where next? I’ve tasted a few Aglianicos and they look promising. Maybe a bit ‘big’, but it has complexity and interest (IMO.) Is this a good direction to go? Are there better varieties in Italy?

Yes it’s all subjective, but Italy is such a complicated region to navigate, a few opinions would be welcome. TIA.

Nothing wrong with a little Taurasi every one once in a while, although in my personal experience they require a lot of time to mature, a lot. A 10-year old Mastroberardino Radici is not what I would call very approachable.

Otherwise it’s the usual suspects I would look for: Alto Piemonte (Carema, Ghemme, Gattinara, Boca), Valtellina (a very small region with many emerging producers), Abruzzo (a good number of solid producers in addition to the legends Emidio Pepe and Valentini)…

Depends what you like, but there are near countless varieties there. Many producers off the beaten path really pushing quality with unique grapes.

Perhaps the best wine book ever written, well, a very fun and informative read, is Native Wine Grapes of Italy by Ian D’Agata.

A couple that are easier to find are the related Lagrein and Teroldego. They can both have a bit of a fresh hops character in the mix, which I quite like. Grignolino can be quite good.

As for any such question, if you post a link for a retailer you like, we can make some specific recs. (K&L would be optimal for me, since I’ve tried a lot of what they carry.)

Many call aglianico the nebbiolo of the south. Very different profile but the complexity can reach highs. There are aglianico from various southern regions but I find those from Campania to be my preferred. Mastroberardino Radici and Feudi de San Gregario’s various offerings. The Vulture are very classic with the Taurasi more polished. Galardi’s Terra di Lavoro is unique, rather modern but very impressive. Liquid lava. Basilicata has Vulture that is very fine such as Balisico.

[winner.gif] I thought nebbiolo of the south was nerello mascalese. Maybe Sicily doesn’t count as the south as it’s a separate island.

Anyway, I think I should deep deeper into aglianico territory. Thanks for the suggestions.

Thanks for the alternative suggestions, too! Hopefully I can explore them as well one day.

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For Aglianico de Vulture, I love Elena Fucci, see if you can find one at auction that’s 10 years old or more, they tend to be a bit wild young. I hate the term nebbiolo of the south, while Aglianico can be very long lived and complex it’s a complete different style of wine

Thanks, Rory. I take nebbiolo of the south in the loosest form. I mean, I’m sure it’s nothing like it really, but just the mere suggestion (to me) means it’s a serious variety that has something to excite the serious wine drinker even if the two varieties are quite different.

Maybe I should have asked the question: ‘is aglianico a variety that can excite the kind of wine drinker who loves barolo, Burgundy and Etna Rosso? Or are there better Italian varieties?’

Rory, how would you characterise aglianico?

Actually, to me, Aglianico is much closer to Nebbiolo than Nerello Mascalese. They do have somewhat different aromatics when they are young and Aglianico often produces more sturdy and concentrated wines, but not always - many Radici Riservas by Mastroberardino are noticeably lighter and more delicate than the average, super-powered high-octane Taurasis. They can be very Barolo-like from the get-go. However, Nebbiolo and Aglianico seem to converge quite a bit with age: as they lose their more distinctive primary qualities and start to show some tertiary characteristics, the wines - to me - become quite similar to each other.

Nerello Mascalese, on the other hand, feels more like a bolder and weightier counterpart to Pinot Noir, or perhaps Gamay from the best Cru Beaujolais sites. When young, it might share some qualities with a younger Nebbiolo, but as a whole, Nerello isn’t that similar to a Nebbiolo, at least according to my palate.

Definitely, although Aglianicos are often weightier and more extracted in style. I really don’t find much interest in the modernist Aglianicos, but the best classic examples are up there with the greats of Piedmont and Sicily. The only problem is that they need time - all too often wines younger than 10-15 years of age are just too primary, too tannic or just more or quite closed. They really need time to come around.

Sagrantino di Montefalco is worthwhile too. I ultimately prefer Aglianico and Nerello as it seems like there are more outstanding producers of those two, but there are some very good Sagrantino producers, including Paolo Bea (which is quite expensive, and not always everyone’s cup of tea, but loaded with character), Lungarotti (consistently good, and well-priced), Perticaia, Cantina Scacciadiavoli, Antonelli San Marco, Lunelli, and Tenuta Baiocchi. Arnaldo Caprai is ubiquitous and get a lot of “points”, but I’ve always found the wines exceedingly thick, tannic, bitter, out of balance and undrinkable.

For Aglianico, lots have already mentioned Mastroberardino and Galardi, but there are other terrific producers, such as Terredora di Paolo (possibly the single most consistent producer besides Mastroberardino), Molettieri (whose Cinque Querce Riserva is terrific), and Feudi di San Gregorio (which veered way off course toward internationally styled wines in the 2000-2006 era, but seem to be back to making great wines today).

I still find many Feudi di San Gregorio wines a bit too modern for my taste - although it has been a few years since I’ve last tasted them. And some of their top wines feel like they can actually turn quite great if just given enough time.

Guastaferro makes some of the most impressive Taurasi wines from some ridiculously old ungrafted vineyards (the oldest are around 200 years old and still bearing minuscule amounts of grapes). These formidable wines, however, lack the finesse of Nebbiolos and Nerellos, being stylistically closer to super-concentrated and massively tannic wines from Montefalco or Madiran. Definitely built for the long haul.

d’Angelo makes some outstanding Aglianicos in Vulture. Very old-school and positively rustic stuff. The best vintages of their Riserva Caselle puts most of the Taurasi wines to shame.

I can’t think of any appellation that is more fun to say than Aglianico del Vulture.

Never really understood the “nebbiolo of the south” thing, the profiles are polar opposite. Aglianico is more like a cross between Graves and Hermitage, and maybe a dash of Bandol? I like Lavoro too - guilty pleasure. Titolo another one in that category, definitely aglianico but on the polished side. Perhaps Tecce or Ognostro are the best for those who like the wilder stuff. I’ve also got some Paternoster and Caggiano I’ve been waiting to see what happens to in the cellar.

As long as we are playing crossing games, I’ll chime in with a cross between tannat-touriga nacional-syrah-mourvedre for aglianico. I’ve never particularly cared for the ‘nebbiolo of the south’ moniker either. Lots of good examples and the quality is overall quite good, but I like to stay away from ones that fill up too much on new oak. Also, I’ve never had one that could be considered ‘over-the-hill’ and I’ve had Mastroberadino’s 68 Riserva. These wines are ageless.

Cantine Lonardo makes some terrific and very ageworthy Taurasi’s - leaning modern, but not by much. The ‘Le Coste’ has a striking elegance with the power of a coiled tiger, just waiting to strike.

I like alglianico (esp. in Taurasi) and Nebbiolo, but neither reminds me at all of Burgundy.

I can see your analogy between Taurasi and Bandol.

Some wines I rencently liked in a huge aglianico panel :

16,5/20 :
DOCG Taurasi - Contrade di Taurasi 2007

16/20 :
DOC Aglianico Del Taburno - Lorenzo Nifo Sarrapochiello “D’Erasmo” Riserva 2008
DOC Falerno del Massico - Azienda Agricola Viticoltori Migliozzi “Rampaniuci” 2009
DOCG Taurasi - Colli di Lapio di Romano Clelia “Vigna Andrea” 2004
DOCG Taurasi Riserva - Mastroberardino “Radici” 1999

15,5/20 :
IGT Roccamonfina - Azienda Agricola Galardi “Terra Di Lavoro” 2010 (aglianico + piedirosso)


Hence, some good quality but unable to challenge the best italian reds.

See here for an exhaustive description of aglianico by Nicolas Herbin (Basilicate, Campanie, Molise, Pouilles) :
http://www.invinoveritastoulouse.fr/index.php/degustations-thematiques/autour-d-un-cepage/721-2013-10-18-cepage-aglianico-entre-campanie-et-basilicate

One of the most expressive and “pretty” Aglianicos I’ve had recently was the 2008 Cantina Giardino “Nude” Aglianico d’Irpinia, which I had from a restaurant wine list recently. I’ve never heard of this producer or seen his wines anywhere, but it was good enough to seek out. I assume the “Nude” designation meant that it saw no oak (or possibly neutral oak), but I’m not sure… Worth trying if you ever see it…Louis/Dressner imports.


A quick update. Just looked it up and it is organic and does see old/neutral oak (24 months in old barrique and tonneaux, followed by 24 or more months in bottle depending on vintage).

In the horizontale I mention above, 2 original (weird ?) wines - report by Pierre Citerne (Revue du Vin de France journalist) :
13. IGT Campania Aglianico - Cantina Giardino “Le Fole” 2009
Depuis ce millésime, le domaine produit des vins issus de ses propres vignes. Fermentation et élevage en fûts usagés. So2 dosé à moins de 20 gr de libre. Œnologue producteur : Antonio Di Gruttola.
A l’ouverture : DS15 - MS(15) - PS15. Note moyenne AM : 15
Après 5 heures d’aération : DS17 - PC16 - LG14,5 - PR(ED+16) - NH13,5. Note moyenne SOIR : 15,4
Robe dense. Expression très ouverte, prenante, en grand contraste avec la timidité de la précédente : violette, thym, romarin, grenade ou encore orange sanguine… Les suggestions sont multiples, flamboyantes – et évocatrices, pour nous, d’une syrah rhodanienne en vendange entière ! La bouche recentre les débats sur l’aglianico, vive, puissamment acide, assez linéaire mais gourmande, tranchante, si décidée…

14. DOC Campania Aglianico - Cantina Giardino “Clown Œnologue” 2008
Vignes plantées en 1936. Foulage aux pieds. Macération de 180 jours dans des jarres d’environ 200 litres. Elevage dans des bonbonnes en verre. Mise en bouteilles sans SO². Œnologue producteur : Antonio Di Gruttola.
A l’ouverture : DS16,5/17 - MS16 - PS16. Note moyenne AM : 16,3
Après 5 heures d’aération : DS16 - PC15/15,5 - LG(13) - PR(ED+15,5) - NH12. Note moyenne SOIR : (14,5)
Aspect nuageux, nuances orangées… Nez « rafleux », entre laurier, herbe sèche, viande et anchois, terre mouillée, cuir, sueur… évocation de très longues macérations, à la géorgienne. La bouche se tient, malgré un peu de sécheresse ligneuse dans les tannins, une matière peut-être émaciée, à la limite d’être poussiéreuse, mais riche en goût et en rebondissements. Le vin s’épure bien à l’aération, dans le verre, et s’assouplit considérablement au contact de la nourriture.