Learning about wine is something that you can never really get enough of. Discovering new and exciting wines is like reconnecting with a long lost friend. Campania is a prominent wine region in Southern Italy, which is located along the Tyrrhenian Sea. Last week, some of the tops wine producers in the region showcased their varietals at Il Gattopardo in New York City.
Campania, which is touted as one of the oldest wine producing regions in Italy, is home to a wide array of grape varietals, including Aglianico, Fiano, Falanghina and Greco. During the tasting, we sampled all of these varietals from some of the featured wineries, but being ever short on time (and liver), we were sadly unable to sample them all! The featured wineries included Cantine Di Marzo, Cantine Rao, Contea de Altavilla, DonnaChiara, Macchie S Maria, Tenuta Cavalier Pepe, Tenute Bianchino, Tenuta Scuotto, and Terre di Valter.
Cantine Di Marzo had some incredible wines, ranging from their light Greco di Tufo to their richer, full-bodied Albertus. Our favorite of the bunch, though, was hands down their Anni Venti, a Greco di Tufo Spumante DOCG, or as Americans call it, sparkling wine. It was definitely the hit of the night, with folks clamoring back for seconds, and even thirds.
Tenuta Scuotto could do no wrong, either. Their Oi Ni (Fiano) was a unique, yet delicious white wine, which was very dry with hints of hazelnuts, fennel and dried apricot. The Fiano di Avellino went down dangerously easy, which boasted both fruity and floral qualities. Their Campania Aglianico was deliciously warm, and would be a dream when paired with red meats (dibs on a steak dinner).
While we loved tasting a sampling of these wines, we only wish there was more time to try them all. Make sure not to count these out on your next trip to the wine store!
Twisted Talk: Have you tried any wines from the Campania region before? What’s your favorite grape varietal? Discuss below!
