Breaking the Mold: Campania’s Push to Reinvent Itself

BY ERIC GUIDO | MAY 23, 2024

Campania remains one of the most polarizing regions in Italy. It can produce high-quality, long-aging wines that compete with top reds and whites worldwide. They’ve proven this over and over again, going as far back as the 1960s. There has never been a more extensive selection of fine wines from Campania than there is today. However, outdated perceptions of these wines pose a challenge. Experiences with young Aglianico often leave consumers confused and wondering how intensely structured and often painfully youthful wines could ever evolve into mature masterpieces. The global market lacks sources of aged wines for consumers to explore. I question whether I would have ever fallen in love with Barolo if the wines of the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 1990s weren’t available in the secondary market when I began collecting. Without a clear illustration of what’s possible, and only young, aggressively tannic and animalistic wines to give insights into the future, how does a young consumer decide to make a 20- or 30-year investment? 

Salvatore Molettieri's Cinque Querce vineyard in Taurasi.

Many categories of reds, including Taurasi, Aglianico del Taburno and Cilento Aglianico yield world-class, seriously ageable wines that represent remarkable value. Considering the escalating prices across the globe for high-quality wines of longevity, a savvy collector can fill their cellar with Aglianico and Aglianico blends at a fraction of the price. 

Producers in Campania are starting to explore their region and its terroir more deeply. This trend is slowly gaining traction with wineries such as Quintodecimo, Feudi di San Gregorio, Guastaferro, Cantine Lonardo and Salvatore Molettieri. However, I’m surprised by the small number of single-vineyard wines that speak to the individual traits of specific sites. Let’s keep in mind that the five previously mentioned producers aren’t new to the game. Still, their work hasn’t inspired countless others. It’s clear as day that Aglianico is a site-transparent variety that produces wildly different wines from one location to another. Granted, few winemakers talk about that outside of the many DOCs, DOCGs and IGTs of Campania. That said, there are smaller producers willing to focus on experimenting with the region's older vineyards, tiny parcels of 150-200-year-old vines considered too challenging to maintain by most wineries. The prospect of seeing single-vineyard bottles from old-vine locations is fascinating, yet I expect quantities to be minimal.

We can generally rely on the wines of Taurasi to deliver power, earthiness and gruff tannins, and for Aglianico del Taburno to be richer, deeper and rounder, with more pronounced acidity. Cilento Aglianico and Paestum Aglianico provide a Mediterranean flair—plush with sweet tannins, yet still particularly balanced and refined. All of them can age remarkably well, retaining that textbook acidity that carries the variety through decades in the cellar, each developing quite differently over time. This is the tip of the iceberg showcased by the producers listed above.

Silvia Imparato, of Montevetrano, and her daughter Gaia.

Campania suffers from a severe identity crisis. It needs more organization and clearer messaging to consumers in Italy and abroad. Beyond the renowned DOCGs of Taurasi, Fiano di Avellino and Greco di Tufo, readers will find a treasure trove of fantastic, progressively styled wines that bend the rules. These are instead labeled as IGT Campania and Irpinia Aglianico. Each year, I find more serious Aglianico matured only in stainless steel, concrete or amphora. Where do these wines fit in, and aside from following the work of a publication such as Vinous, how does a consumer become aware of them?

Many of Campania’s producers are fractured within their communities or siloed. It’s rare to see winemakers working collaboratively or speaking favorably about each other's projects. Historic producer Mastroberardino remains separate from the Consorzio Tutela Vini d’Irpinia because they believe the organization operates in favor of bulk wine production. Also notable is Luigi Tecce, who abandoned the Taurasi DOCG and began labeling his wines as Campania Aglianico. The Consorzio remains largely out of the picture, as Campania is one of the few regions in Italy that doesn’t insist on having an open line of communication with journalists. 

A growing number of wineries have the right idea, and they want to move the region forward by improving the quality of their work and communication with international markets. However, an overwhelming number of producers seem frozen in time, stuck within a paradigm of what they consider traditional winemaking instead of challenging an older model that today’s consumers consider antiquated. As a result, those excessively dark, rich, sometimes dirty and overly tannic wines still exist today.