Winemaker Notes
This comes from a 0.9-ha. parcel of Fiano between 20–30 years of age planted in the volcanic clay-limestone soils of Lapio, a commune in the far eastern reaches of the Fiano di Avellino appellation considered not only the variety’s spiritual home but its greatest terroir. Lapio's cool microclimate, high altitude, and huge diurnal temperature shifts allow for Fiano of exceptional precision and complexity, and Joaquin's combines those traits with a magnificently concentrated palate which swells dramatically on the finish. The wine spends 8 months on its fine lees in steel and fiberglass without temperature control, and it undergoes an additional stint in bottle before release—a purposeful delay which allows the variety's youthful floral aromatics to subside a bit while its signature note of toast begins to emerge.
Professional Ratings
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Vinous
The 2019 Fiano di Avellino Riserva captivates with its savory aromatics, blending spiced citrus peels and dusty dried flowers with ginger and baked apple. It’s deeply textural, nearly oily in feel, with stimulating minerality and brisk acidity that enhances its honeyed inner florals and tart orchard fruits. The 2019 lingers incredibly long, perfumed and nearly salty in concentration. Tropical citrus and sour melon notes seem to last up to a minute. It’s almost impossible to stop at one glass. The Fiano di Avellino Riserva spends eight months resting on its lees in steel and fiberglass without temperature control prior to an extended stay in bottle...This is a beauty.
Fiano is an aromatic, white variety fully suited to the Apennine Mountains of Campania and has been documented in the region since the 13th century. It is at its best in the hills of Avellino where volcanic soils give it a charismatic aromatic lift and support a range of styles from taut and steely to nutty and smooth. Somm Secret—If you like Chardonnay, Viognier or Pinot Blanc, Fiano would be a great new wine to try!
A winemaking renaissance is underfoot in Campania as more and more small, artisan and family-run wineries redefine their style with vineyard improvements and cellar upgrades. The region boasts a cool Mediterranean climate with extreme coastal, as well as high elevation mountain terroirs. It is cooler than one might expect in Campania; the region usually sees some of the last harvest dates in Italy.
Just south of Mount Vesuvio, the volcanic and sandy soils create aromatic and fresh reds based on Piedirosso and whites, made from Coda di Volpe and Falanghina. Both reds and whites go by the name, Lacryma Christi, meaning the "tears of Christ." South of Mount Vesuvio, along the Amalfi Coast, the white varieties of Falanghina and Biancolella make fresh, flirty, mineral-driven whites, and the red Piedirosso and Sciasinoso vines, which cling to steeply terraced coastlines, make snappy and ripe red wines.
Farther inland, as hills become mountains, the limestone soil of Irpinia supports the whites Fiano di Avellino, Falanghina and Greco di Tufo as well as the most-respected red of the south, Aglianico. Here the best and most age-worthy examples come from Taurasi.
Farther north and inland near the city of Benevento, the Taburno region also produces Aglianico of note—called Aglianico del Taburno—on alluvial soils. While not boasting the same heft as Taurasi, these are also reliable components of any cellar.