Taurasi di Terredora: tasting at the winery

We have already encountered the Irpinian winery Terredora and its wines. A year ago we were with Paolo Mastroberardino at the Ristoro degli Angeli, a Roman trattoria, during a tasting dinner that paired four of the Terredora wines with dishes from traditional cuisine. This year I was invited by Paolo to the "pomeriggi in cantina" event, an in-depth seminar on the territory and the winery itself, featuring a tasting of a selection of Terredora wines no longer on the market.
The appointment is at 4 pm at the winery in Montefusco: I leave Rome at half past one in the afternoon and set off to cover the 275 km toward Irpinia, to reach the estate. I arrive a few minutes after 4 pm thinking I am late. Fortunately I still have time to be entertained, along with about a dozen attendees, by Walter, the family patriarch and Paolo's father. About a dozen tasters – roughly the number I had imagined. But I was making a major miscalculation.
When everything is ready, Paolo arrives and I greet him, as do the other people in the room. He invites us to follow him and, as we leave the welcome room, I immediately notice there will be more of us. Many more..
We make our way toward the winery, where, in the room housing the bottling line, a table is set with 70 stations. I choose my seat and immediately notice I have no fewer than 12 glasses in front of me. Paolo introduces the tasting by explaining what we will do and which wines we will taste, with the aim of understanding the territory and the noblest grape varieties grown there. He will also illustrate the winery's philosophy behind winemaking and, ultimately, will help us discover the aging potential of these wines, regardless of the grape variety used or the harvest vintage.
An exhilarating programme: the thought briefly crosses my mind that I will then have to drive another 275 km to get home, knowing, moreover, that I would be staying at the winery for dinner as well. I then push the thought aside and focus my attention on the magnificence of the table and its thrilling setting: 840 glasses laid out in the winery – there could be no more exciting situation.

Paolo then presents the winery, recounts its main history and tells us about the vineyards in the Irpinian municipalities where the grapes are grown. 200 hectares cultivated with the main Campanian grape varieties: from Aglianico to Fiano, from Greco to Coda di Volpe to Falanghina. He then presents the wines we will taste, in order: the Fiano di Avellino Campore from vintages 2010, 2009 and 2007; the Greco di Tufo Loggia della Serra 2009; the rosé RosaeNovae 2013, perhaps the only wine intended to be drunk young only; the Taurasi Fatica Contadina 2009; the Taurasi Pago dei Fusi from vintages 2008, 2007 and 2005; and finally the Taurasi CampoRe Riserva 2007, 2006 and 2003.
As we progress, Paolo provides us with essential information on the estate's crus and on the climatic conditions of the vintages of the wines being tasted (with which we cover practically a full decade). But the aim of this account is not to detail the technical tasting we participated in. Nor is it to give a report on the climate trends in Irpinia during this first part of the 2000s. I would instead like to focus attention on the wine that perhaps struck me the most. Not because it is better than the others – I consider it frankly impossible to single out one of these wines using that criterion. My choice fell on the emblematic wine of what that great grape Aglianico can offer when handled correctly both in the vineyard and in the winery in relation to the climatic conditions of that specific vintage.
After lengthy reflection and no small amount of hesitation, my choice fell on the Taurasi Pago dei Fusi 2005. It is a great wine, made from 100% Aglianico grapes sourced from vineyards located in Petradefusi, on the hills overlooking the Calore river valley. In the vineyard, the grapes are selected and harvested by hand, while in the winery the maceration on the skins lasts 12 days at controlled temperature (28°C). Once fermentation is complete, the wine rests for 14 months in barrique before continuing its refinement for at least another 24 months in bottle. "At least" seems a most fitting term in a case such as this.
The vintage is very good, though not as exceptional as the 2004 that preceded it (which was not part of the tasting). The generally more humid climate meant that the greater freshness was evident from the very colour concentration of the wine – which appeared in a still deep ruby dress with a barely hinted garnet rim. The contrast with the 2007 (a 5-star vintage) and the 2008 (very similar to the former in climatic pattern) is striking; both present a decidedly less intense colour. The brilliance of the sample we are describing is beautiful. Swirling the glass, as with all the other Taurasi wines in the tasting, it forms thick tears that slide down slowly, a sign of the great structure of the wine.
On the nose the wine is intense, broad, with aromas still of small red fruits in jam giving way to more tertiary notes of undergrowth, mushroom, spices of black pepper and cloves, a hint of tobacco and liquorice at the finish. The complexity of the aromatic profile is truly exemplary. On the palate the wine balances its majestic alcohol and softness with a whip of freshness and a tannin that is silkiest yet of enormous depth. Intense and very persistent (it lingers on the palate for minutes!) with balsamic retro-olfactory returns, the wine proves to be harmonious and to have only just entered its maturity. Its great freshness leads us to anticipate a long journey still ahead on the road of evolution. A wine to pair already today with great game roasts and particularly aged cheeses.
Truly a magnificent Taurasi, a masterly expression of Aglianico from this fortunate territory and of the skill of the man who works it – of Paolo and his team, whom we thank for the emotions they gift us.