An Adventurous Grape From Southern Italy

When my wife recently went to Eataly without me, she asked the wine department to help her find a bottle for me. I’m lucky that way. She knows that I like to have an adventure when I sip a glass, so she asked for a wine made from a grape with which not many people were familiar. 

Well, the 2024 Enoz Tra Cielo e Terra Piedirosso fit the bill perfectly. It’s made from 100% Piedirosso grapes grown in the Campania region of southern Italy, the Roccamonfina IGT. The winery reports that the soil 280 meters up the dormant Roccamonfina volcano is loaded with clay, heavy rock, sand, and volcanic lava bits. The wine was fermented in amphorae and aged there for nine months, then it sat for half a year in the bottle. The natural wine is unfined and unfiltered, has alcohol at 13% abv and it costs $32 at Eataly. 

This wine is fairly dark in the glass and it has an unusual nose. I couldn’t put my finger on it until Denise told me that it smelled metallic to her. I kept sniffing, and finally realized it was giving off a hint of iron, like a nail, which I had experienced before in Pinotage. There is also a slight vegetal aroma, but plums are the fruit I get. The palate is smooth enough, and certainly savory, with middle-of-the-road tannins and a refreshing acidity. I think it would pair well with lamb sausage or a ham sandwich. 

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