Wine of the Week 12/14/21

La Capranera Aglianico 2020

Regularly $17.99/On Sale for $14.96

From the same winery as our last white Wine of the Week, we bring you a 100% Aglianico! (ah-lyee-AH-nico!) We think Aglianico is one of Italy’s greatest unrecognized (in the US, at least) red grapes! It can make huge, decades-aging wines in Taurasi, and it can make great everyday table wines like this one!

La Capranera, located in Campania, focuses on making wine from sustainably-farmed indigenous grape varieties. La Capranera, which translates to "black goat" in Italian, is named for the breed of goats - cilentana nera - that graze in the national park near where the grapes for these wines are grown. Once on the verge of becoming extinct, the goats have had a resurgence in population, just as wines from Campania have recently enjoyed increased visibility internationally. This wine is made from Aglianico, one of the three ancient, local grape varieties that Capranera specializes in (Fiano, Falanghina, and Aglianico) as harvested from vineyards located in the Capaccio-Paestum area of Campania in the middle of the Cilento National Park. The Tyrrhenian Sea is located just a few miles away and has a moderating effect on the climate of this region, producing excellent wines of exceptional ripeness and balance.

The grapes for the Capranera are softly crushed and fermented in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks. The wine ages for six months in tank before bottling. A very pretty wine, that still has structure for food. We are very excited to introduce this producer!