As we observe social distancing we have not distanced ourselves from drinking fabulous Aglianico del Vulture wines. In addition to the three wines highlighted in my blog post of May 3, 2020, here are three more classics from the Aglianico del Vulture wine area: 2016 Titolo from Azienda Agricola Elena Fucci, 2013 Stupor Mundo Riserva from Azienda Vinicola Carbone and 2012 Caselle from Casa Vinicola D’Angelo. We have visited Elena Fucci and D’Angelo three times and Carbone two times.
Azienda Agricola Elena Fucci
Titolo 2016
Elena Fucci’s winery is also located in the town of Barile, PZ. Elena’s grandfather Generoso purchased the vineyard in the late 1960s. After the family stopped selling grapes, Elena, who went to oenology school in Pisa and worked at French and Italian wineries for a few years, produced the estate’s first vintage in 2000 of only 1,200 bottles. Today, Elena and her husband Andrea Manzani produce about 18,000 bottles of Titolo, their only label. Titolo is recognized internationally as one
of the finest Italian wines. Wine Spector recently acknowledged Titolo’s excellence; and for twelve consectutive years Titolo has been awarded the highest three glass designation from Gambero Rosso, a leading Italian wine guide. Titolo is organic. Elena has built an eco-friendly cantina. With the assistance of specialists in the construction of buildings that use minimal fossil fuel energy sources, Elena vinifies and stores her wine in a building, which was dug into volcanic rock, that optimizes the use of sunlight and special construction materials. The walls are specially designed to allow for proper ventilation to cool and heat the cantina naturally. Most of the building materials are recycled products. The building reduces energy consumption to nearly zero. She observes a non-interventionist approach to the vinification of the wine. For example, Elena uses the “soft press” method when the grapes are placed in stainless steel tanks. The weight of the grapes causes the separation of skins from the juice, thus gravity, as opposed to a machine, produces the liquid for wine. After fermentation in stainless steel tanks, malolatic fermentation takes place in French barriques, in which the wine mature for 12 month. The wine is fined in the bottle for another 6 months before release. Elena Fucci is a member of member of the Federazione Italiana Vignaioli Indipendenti (“FIVI”), which translates to Italian Federation of Independent Winegrowers. FIVI promotes the quality and authenticity of wine.
Azienda Vinicola Carbone
2013 Stupor Mundi Riserva
Carbone winery, located in the town of Melfi. PZ, is headed by sister and brother, Sara and Luca Carbone. Sara directs marketing and Luca oversees operations. In 1970 their parents planted the first vines consisting of chardonnay, pinot noir and other international grapes. They sold the grapes. The international grapes, however, were not popular in the Aglianico del Vulture wine
area, so the family switched to aglianico and fiano grapes. The first vintage, 2005, was released in 2007. When the family purchased the cellar, which is over 1,000 years old, it was only partially accessible because an earthquake in the 1930s blocked the entrance with over 20 feet of debris. The family discovered the full size only after purchase. I said to Luca that it was a lucky discovery, causing him to smile and reply that it is not as if the cellar is located in Rome or Venice. The cellar is located in the heart of Melfi. It was excavated inside volcanic rock, which is an ideal place to age aglianico wines due to its constant temperature and natural humidity. The cellar is a time trip: volcanic eruptions stratifications tell the story of the formation of the Vulture territory. There are marks of pick axes used to carve the cave, and the stone arches built along the centuries give stability to the structure. Carbone several years ago reduced its annual production to 20,000 bottles to focus on quality. The grapes for Stupor Mundi Riserva are hand-picked in late October/early November. Maceration takes pace in small steel containers over a three week period. The wine is aged two years in 500 liter tonneaux barrels and two years in the bottle. Carbone is organic and a member FIVI.
Casa Vinicola D’Angelo
2012 Caselle
D’Angelo, located in Rionero del Vulture, under the stewardship of sister and brother Erminia and Rocco D’Angelo; is the oldest independent winery in Vulture. Rocco’s and Erminia’s grandfather, also named Rocco, started the winery in the early 1920s. Rocco and Erminia assumed ownership of the winery after the death of their father Lucio. The initial activity, as was the case with many Southern Italian wineries, was to export harvested aglianico grapes to Northern Italy, which was used to”cut” wines with little body and color. With the conferral in 1971 of the DOC to Aglianico del Vulture, under the guidance of grandfather Rocco, the winery began to use all harvested grapes to produce wines under the D’Angelo label. Due to the lack of access to capital at the time of DOC designation, D’Angelo was one of a few commercial wine producers from the remote Vulture area.
As a result, the D’Angelo family for years has been an ambassador of the Aglianico del Vulture wine area. A large producer with an annual production of 300,000 bottles, D’Angelo has the most diverse portfolio of wines in Vulture. The fermentation of grapes occur in large cement tanks
instead of stainless steel tanks, a process that differs from most others in the area. Per Antonio Passannante, Erminia’s husband, who is involved in all aspects of the winery, less oxygen penetrates the cement during fermentation causing natural temperature control. The large cement tanks have to be cleaned inside by a person, specifically a small person who can fit into the small opening at the base of the tank. After fermentation Caselle ages 24 months in larger oak barrels.
