Vini del Vulcano – Wines of the volcano

A feature by Slawka G. Scarso on wines coming from the areas in Italy where volcanoes are still active, covering Etna, Vesuvius and Campi Flegrei. First published in Bibenda – February-March 2005

INCIPIT
Thousands of years have passed since it was commonly believed that the ironmonger-god Vulcanus worked under the island of Volcano. Or that fumes from the Hades came out from the craters in the Campi Flegrei area. Nowadays than our ancestors- Italy can still count on a few areas where volcanic activity persists.
We’re not talking of soils originated by eruptions which took place 50 or 200 thousand years ago, but of active or quiescent zones. Here, volcanoes might not necessarily represent a threat for wine making (the ashes emitted recently by Etna, for instance, haven’t caused any damage in the vineyards, if anything they did quite the contrary), but they are, nevertheless, a presence with which it is necessary to come to terms.
The wines tasted on this occasion come from the slopes of Etna and Vesuvius, and from the Campi Flegrei area, where the last eruption dates back to 1538 but hydrothermal emissions and bradyseism phenomena are frequent. Made mostly of Nerello Mascalese, Carricante, Falanghina, Piedirosso, Coda di Volpe, these wines are in some cases based on international varieties, with an interesting surprise coming from Grenache. Good quality products on the whole, with ample space for improvement and some already very good results which could serve as an example for the others.
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A sample from the tasting notes
Benanti – Etna Bianco Superiore Pietramarina 2000 86/100Lit by golden accents, it offers scents of broom and acacia flowers, framed by aromatic herbs. Very good acid and mineral components, carefully balanced by a round note on the palate. Citrus fruits suggestions intertwined with floral tones emerge in the long final. From the vineyards in Milo, it rests for 24 months in steel tanks. Ideal for linguine with tomato and lobster sauce.

Photo courtesy of Magmatrek - www.magmatrek.it