VINEYARD | Once a hunting reserve for the Bourbons and today a WWF Natural Park, the Astroni crater also baptises this beautiful reality located in the portion of the city of Naples that falls within the Campi Flegrei area. The vineyard is located on the southern slope of the Camaldoli hill, on loamy-sandy soils of tuffaceous nature, with alternating layers linked to past Phlegrean eruptions. Here we find the rows of Piedirosso, a native variety that has finally found a new dimension in the last few years. The production is artisanal to say the least: manual destemming, vinification in a truncated cone cherrywood vat, fermented on its own indigenous yeasts; then, maceration on the skins for about 60 days. After which time it rests in different barrels (350 litre chestnut, medium and low toasted French oak barriques) and then refines in the bottle for 20 months.
PERSON | Started at the end of the Nineties as a "premium" project of the historic Varchetta family of winemakers, it is now led by a close-knit team that sees Gerardo Vernazzaro with wife Emanuela and his cousin Vincenzo at the forefront. The merit of making a varied range of Campania types that are increasingly personal goes to the trio, where the Astroni, Camaldoli, Imperatrice and Jossa crus stand out.
WINE | Sensation of warmth, a whiff of sulphur, ripe black olives, roasted coffee. Not exactly the aromas that we find in all wines. The mouth is dense, almost viscous, with a fleshy profile that accentuates the pulp and makes it truly delicious. It has chestnut-like traits, combined with ripe sensations of black fruit, but also tones of laurel and rosemary, in the background a herbaceous spiciness typical of broccoli rabe. The opening is ripe and rich, then the wine accelerates on increasingly smoky tones, pleasantly sulphurous, for a long finish that continues to change and evolve.
