Three Terrific White Wines From Campania

Irpinia is the historical name of the province of Avellino, inland in the Campania Apennines. That is the place that the Feudi di San Gregorio winery calls home. They are quick to note that they identify with Irpinia, not Campania. The winery was established by two families in 1986.

At Feudi di San Gregorio, they believe that a bottle of wine and a work of art arrive through the same creative process. They try to show the artistic side of the wine biz, with their labels all designed by Massimo Vignelli and a winery design from Hikaru Mori.

The 2020 Feudi di San Gregorio Falanghina carries the Sannio appellation and is made from 100% Falanghina grapes, aged in stainless steel tanks for five months, on the lees. Alcohol is quite restrained at only 13% abv and wine sells for around $23.

Despite the inland origin of the grapes, this wine smells like the seashore, with some nectarines, apricots and citrus thrown into the mix. The palate offers a showcase of minerality, with Meyer lemon and stone fruit trailing behind. Acidity is fresh and racy, perfect for pairing with a seafood dish, oysters in particular.

The 2020 Feudi di San Gregorio Greco di Tufo comes, naturally, from the Greco di Tufo appellation. The grapes are 100% Greco variety and the wine clocks in at 12.5% abv.  It retails for $28.

This beautiful white wine also carries with it a whiff of the sea, much like its cousin, Feudi di San Gregorio's Falanghina. The stone fruit comes across a little stronger on the nose, but the minerality and salinity fall right in line. This wine shows a less sharp acidity and would seem to be better suited to salad than seafood. It is, however, a delicious sipper.

The 2019 Feudi di San Gregorio Fiano di Avellino carries the Fiano di Avellino appellation. It is made from 100% Fiano grapes and has alcohol at 13% abv. Retail is $28.

The straw yellow wine shows stone fruit and salinity on the nose. The palate is savory, with a ton of minerals and a hint of apricot and lemon. The acidity is racy and the long finish is all minerality.

Follow Randy Fuller on Twitter

SUMMERY WINE ON A SUMMERY DAY

Recently, my wife had a hair appointment in Beverly Hills, followed immediately by a girlfriend lunch, also in Beverly Hills.  I dropped her off and ran a few errands, but still had a lot of time to kill in Beverly Hills.  I turned to the wine.

I had been meaning to explore few wine-oriented places in the Hills of Beverly for quite some time, and this sunny Saturday afternoon seemed perfectly suited to the occasion.

It was around noon - okay, it was 11:32 - when I walked into Enoteca Drago on Cañon Drive.  There are, maybe, a dozen Italian restaurants in Beverly Hills.  About 11 of them are owned and operated by the Drago family.  That’s alright by me, as I always have wonderful food and a thoughtful wine list at a Drago restaurant.

Enoteca is even more focused on wine than the other family locations, since it is a wine bar.  The menu offers 11 different flights of wine in the $15 - $20 range, while single glasses are in the $9 - $23 neighborhood.  The wine list has lots of variety, including late harvest selections, Ports and Grappa choices, too.  There’s also a complete menu of Italian fare to pair with the wines.

I chose a flight of three medium-bodied, semi-aromatic white wines for $17.  Included in the flight were the following wines, with my tasting notes:

Greco di Tufo, Terradora DiPaolo, Campania 2010 -
Richest color of the trio. Apricot and ocean on the nose, golden apples with a hint of honey on the palate.  Minerals abound, great finish.  Greco is an Italian grape, thought to be of Greek origin.

Sauvignon Blanc, Joel Gott, Napa Valley 2010
Palest of the three, almost clear.  Grassy and fruity notes make up the nose, with melon and herbal notes present. Peach and apple cobbler flavors are on the palate.  The cobbler is a complete surprise, but it works.

Gavi, Villa Sparina,  Piemonte 2010
Medium straw in color the light nose is very hard to pick up.  What is that lovely taste?  It seems like cantaloupe or honeydew.  There’s a lot of minerality, too.  Wine from Gavi area of Piemonte is made exclusively of the Cortese grape.

I ordered the calamari alla griglia with this flight.  All three wines pair well with the calamari, the Gavi matches it the best.  The Joel Gott Sauvignon Blanc went best with the rapini.  By the way, when grilled calamari is offered, it should always have the grill marks on it.  It does at Enoteca Drago.

After checking in with the wife and friend at Cafe Roma (oddly enough, not a Drago restaurant) I was invited to go away a while longer, as the chatting got out of hand.

Just up the street is Il Pastaio.  Yes, it’s another Drago restaurant.  This place looked really busy and festive at 1:00 or so Saturday.  As I approached, a guy in a big, white Cadillac pulled up, with Italian music blaring at festival volume from his car stereo.  As he made the corner, with the window down, he looked over at the sidewalk lunchers and led with his finger to the music.

The mobile maestro was obviously enjoying the moment to share his passion, and I overheard a guest comment, “Wow, that’s real.”  Indeed.  I stepped inside and took a seat at the bar.

I only examined the wine list for rosé, as that’s what I really wanted.  The Chiaretto Provenza is $10.50 by the glass.

Made with Groppello, Marzemino, Sangiovese and Barbera grapes, the wine hails from the area near Lake Garda in the northern part of Italy.  The winery, Azienda Agricola Provenza, is located in the Lombardy region.  Lake Garda has a special microclimate in which palm, olive and lemon trees thrive practically at the foot of the Alps.

The wine is a nice, rich, salmon color and the ice cold status at which it’s served makes it a little hard to discern too much on the nose.  The palate shows bright cherry and strawberry fruit with a hint of raspberry tartness.  The wine is dry and crisp - very refreshing.  The finish is good, and minerals are the last thing remembered after the sip is gone.