Colli di Lapio Irpinia Campi Taurasini

Aglianico deserves far more attention than it gets.

Say it slowly: Ah-LYAH-nee-co. It rolls off the tongue like a secret, which is appropriate, because that’s essentially what it still is north of Naples — a secret that serious Italian wine lovers know well while much of the world argues about Barolo and Brunello.

Here is the open secret: Aglianico, grown on the volcanic hills of Irpinia in Campania, is what the Italians themselves call “the Barolo of the South.” Not as a marketing slogan. As a genuine statement of quality — a grape capable of the same structural complexity, the same brooding dark fruit, the same iron-and-earth minerality, the same demanding tannins that need time and patience and reward both handsomely. The difference is that Aglianico remains far less famous, which means the prices are still, blessedly, sane.

Donna Chiara is one of Irpinia’s finest producers, and their Campi Taurasini is an ideal starting point for this world. Campi Taurasini comes from the same volcanic hillside soils, the same Aglianico grape, the same ancient terroir that gives rise to Taurasi — Irpinia’s great DOCG wine, the one that commands real money and real patience, with years of aging legally required before release. But Campi Taurasini, by regulation, is released earlier: more approachable, ready to drink now with a good decant rather than a decade in the cellar.

Think of it as the insider’s entry point into one of Italy’s most compelling terroirs.

The wine opens with black cherry, wild blackberry, crushed violets and warm Mediterranean herbs — all underpinned by that smoky, volcanic mineral signature that is nearly impossible to replicate anywhere else. The palate is energetic and structured, youthful tannins framing a core of dark fruit before giving way to a long finish of graphite, iron and savory spice. It has impressive depth without sacrificing freshness — the kind of wine that drinks beautifully tonight with a decant but will only get more interesting over the next several years.

For Nebbiolo lovers, this is its southern cousin — leaner than Cabernet, more structured than Syrah, deeply mineral, deeply Italian, deeply itself. For anyone new to Aglianico, this is exactly the right place to start.

Wines like this rarely stay overlooked forever. The sommelier world has been talking about Irpinia for years, and prices on serious southern Italian reds have been quietly climbing. This one is still where it should be — which is to say, remarkably reasonable for what’s in the glass.

Open it with slow-braised lamb, a plate of aged pecorino or a simple pasta with wild mushrooms and good olive oil. Give it an hour in the decanter. Then prepare to wonder why Aglianico hasn’t been in your glass all along.

That's la dolce vita, my friends.