The Campania region of Italy produces some of the most popular Italian wines.
The Campania region is one of the largest wine producing regions in Italy, and although far from the most famous, it produces some of the most popular Italian wines. It lies in the South of Italy, on the West coast and is bordered by the Tyrrhenian Sea. The region has a long history of wine production with archaeological evidence suggesting that grapes were grown here as far back as 1500 BC. The large-scale production started with the arrival of Greek settlers in 750 BC.
Red grape varietals used in wine making in Campania include piedirosso and aglianico.
- Piedirosso: This dark red grape is grown in some of the most difficult and breathtaking sites in Campania. It has several different names, depending on where it’s grown. Piedirosso means “red foot,” referring to the color and shape of its stem.
- Aglianico: This is a very old varietal that was planted by ancient Greeks all over southern Italy – even today, aglianico is one of the pillars of Campania wines. It’s a medium-to-big-sized grape with a thick skin; it tends to be late ripening and produces wines that are rich and intensely flavored (think dark fruits).
White grape varietals used in wine making in Campania include fiano and falanghina.
As I mentioned, the Campania region of Italy is known for its white wines. The two most common white grape varietals used in wine making in this region are fiano and falanghina.
Fiano is a white wine grape used in the Campania region of Italy. The wine from this grape is light, with a honeyed aroma, and a slight nutty flavour. It’s usually very high in acidity with notes of fresh apples and pear.
Falanghina is also a white wine grape used in the Campania region of Italy. This type of wine has floral aromas like honeysuckle or lavender with notes of pineapple, lemon, and even briney notes like salt water taffy. It’s typically medium body with medium acidity as well.
Campania is also well known for its dessert wine, Vin Santo or ‘holy wine’
In case you are a fan of sweet wines, Campania is also well known for its dessert wine, Vin Santo or “holy wine”. It is produced from white grapes such as malvasia, trebbiano and moscato. After harvest, the grapes are dried for several months before fermentation. The result is a sweet wine, with high levels of residual sugar. Indeed the grapes are picked when they are over-ripe.
Wines that are native to the area include Lacrima Christi, a red sweet wine made with piedirosso and aglianico grapes, which is produced on the slopes of Mt. Vesuvius, and Falerno del Massico, a white wine made with falanghina and coda di volpe grapes.
There are a number of wines that are native to this region. Some of the most famous include Lacrima Christi, a red sweet wine made with piedirosso and aglianico grapes, which is produced on the slopes of Mt. Vesuvius, and Falerno del Massico, a white wine made with falanghina and coda di volpe grapes.
Make sure you try a few bottles of these before you visit the region.
After a week of traveling around Italy, we arrived in Campagnia. We were expecting some sort of big wine region, but this was just the same as when we left Salerno and Avellino. It is called Campagna, which means “countryside.” We found out later that this is a reference to primitive land where vines were grown. That’s it. There are no big red brick buildings with Italian flags flying outside, just green rolling hills and villages that would be better suited with signs saying “Welcome To Narnia.”