The Auswine Forum

From the Castel del Monte DOC, northwestern Puglia.

Made from 90% Aglianico and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon.

Intense black/red with a crimson rim.
Dusty, smokey seasoned spice on the nose.
A rich full palate of sweet spiced fruit of blackberries and cloves with a coffe background. An intense array of flavours.
Nice acid with plenty of drying fine powdery tannins with a long finish.

A big wine in any company with many years left (say 2015-20).

Have not had many Italian reds and know little of their wines overall, but after this one I will be looking for more of them.

John

How much did it cost ?

markg wrote:How much did it cost ?

I think retail is around $45-50.

JohnP wrote:Made from 90% Aglianico and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon.

John,

Do you know whether Aglianico is a derivation of any particular grape varietal? I know a lot of Italian grape names are variations of Sangiovese, but I haven't heard of this one...

Cheers,

Maximus wrote:

JohnP wrote:Made from 90% Aglianico and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon.

John,

Do you know whether Aglianico is a derivation of any particular grape varietal? I know a lot of Italian grape names are variations of Sangiovese, but I haven't heard of this one...

Cheers,

Maximus,

The following is an extract from the Wineguru

http://www.thewineguru.com/mortarticle4.htm

Aglianico is a grape few of us know and that is a pity. Aglianico is one of those historic grapes, dating back to the time of the Greeks, and, though overlooked internationally, it has always had a following in Basilicata, one of the least populated, smallest and poorest regions of Italy.

So I would doubt it is a Sangiovese variant.

John

John,

I took the lazy approach in my post above, hoping an answer would just materialise.

There is some further information at this URL: http://www.foodreference.com/html/artcampania.html

that reads...

For red wines, the Aglianico, Sangiovese, Piedirosso, Primitivo and Barbera are planted, with preference given to the first variety a requirement of the only D O C G (Denominazione di Origine Contorlata e Garantita) red wine of the region Taurasi. Taurasi is an appellation 50 Km east and north of Naples, featuring vineyards on slopes that are most suitable for Aglianico. Elsewhere, wineries market Aglianico with a regional suffix i.e. Aglianico del Taburno. This is a grape rich in ploy phenols, softer tannins, and possesses a depth of flavour other grapes seldom show. Some experts claim it to be the progenitor of Syrah, but this is highly disputable. Syrah, in fact is an accidental natural cross between Dureza from Ardeche in France and Mondeuse Blanche from the Jura in France.


Judging from your tasting notes, there may be similarities to Syrah rather than other alternatives. Did it taste very Italian? Sounds good and I'm keen to try one, becoming quite fond of the Italian wines from the little that I've tried. Unsure of whether it's available in Oz (it should be), the Le Volte is tremendous value at under $30 - made by Ornellaia who make their prestigous self titled Ornellaia along with the Masseto.

Cheers,

I can assure you there is no connection between Aglianico and shiraz, the Italians love to get a connection with their varieties and the french, they do the same with shyrah and nero d avola, which is a variety much closer from a wine point of view.

I am not a big fan of aglianico, the good ones tend to be pretty astringent and need a fair bit of bottle age. It is also a late variety which is always a concern in a place like southern italy.

Funnily enough I was in the other Tomaresca vineyard only last week, this one further south in Puglia. Puglia has great potential, and varieties. The soils in the southern part of Puglia are pure SE South Oz, terra rossa ranging to heavy grey clays. Primitivo and negro amaro are the ones to look out for.

Watch pout though there is still a lot of crap coming from these areas

cheers