I do love Campania – D’Agata’s right. It’s raw beauty; the Amalfi coast (and Sophia Loren grew up here), pizza, buffalo mozzarella and a wealth of archaeological treasures buried in the volcanic soils. What’s more, it hums with a frenetic energy. The people are a little wild, a touch crazy and a lot of fun, just don’t get on their bad side.
The local grapes mirror their original surroundings of the wild and verdant volcanic hills. Suprisingly, the wines of Campania account for just 3% of Italy's production. Just an hour’s drive from Naples, in the mountainous Irpinia region, here you’ll find the tiny winery, Petilia run by brother and sister team, Roberto and Teresa Camuto. Teresa is head of the local Consorzio; she won the position in a David vs Goliath feat (historically the bigger wineries held this position).
Drive into the estate and their mum's small house and thriving garden (it’s double the size of the house) first catches your eye. Fifty metres down the road leads to their winery, surrounded by their organically farmed vineyards of greco that’s buzzing with life and vigour.
Deep in Irpinia, they are in greco country, and theirs is packed with charm and Campanian wit. It won over NYT wine critic, Eric Asimov who’d never been a believer. Tom Hyland from Forbes is also fan, listing Petillia’s Greco in his Top 50 white wines of Italy! They also have vineyards close by where they grow fiano, falanghina and aglianico.
Roberto talks often about his ‘traditional’ winemaking styles, in effect, he embraces stainless steel to ferment the whites to showcase the DNA of the grapes. The red, algianico sees some larger tonneaux, mostly older and French. In essence, nothing detracts from the true identity of each grape. Roberto is a brilliant enabler, he lets the grapes be the best they can be.
After tasting in the cellar with Roberto and Teresa it’s immediate how authentic and riveting these wines are. Each stays true to their varietal; the fiano is a mix of ripe stonefruits and honey framed in an athletic and sinewy phenolic frame, complete with a saline bite.
The greco offers sweet spices, honeycomb and white pear with a shimmering backbone of minerality, while the falanghina is the finer-boned of the trio, with green almonds, blossom and crushed rock notes leading to a fine and almost slippery palate.
The aglianico, with a few years under its belt is all rose petals, blackcurrants, chestnuts and Amaro herbs. Cherry and a hint of porcini starting to poke through complexes the package. Lovely wine.
These are original and riveting wines, bonded together by their volcanic soils. Their expressions shimmer with originality and purity. While their flavour profiles differ, they possess a wonderful buoyancy and rocky mineralilty.
We continue talking and tasting over lunch, handmade pasta with fava beans (from mum’s garden) and the obligatory five courses to follow…
Roberto and Teresa are proud vignerons and even prouder Irpinians. As we finish our meeting they learn we have a few hours free before dinner. With that, Teresa makes a quick call and organises a tasting with a winery 10 mins down the road. And she even lets Michael drive their new tractor to the next appointment (he’d made a passing comment about their impressive… tractor).
Best of all, they’re so well priced - These are the wines to reach for to reinvigorate your mind and heart. If my numbers ever come up, you’ll find me in Campania eating buff mozz and sipping on Greco with the charismatic locals!
