When I started working at New York’s Babbo Restaurant in 2001, “Montevetrano” already had an outsized reputation and a prominent place on the wine list. Along with another southern Italian cult red that debuted in the 1990s (Galardi’s “Terra di Lavoro”) Montevetrano was a wine you brought to Bordeaux-loving heavy hitters who didn’t think Italy had anything to offer them.
And I’ll tell you what: I never had to take one back, and many people got their first taste of the Aglianico grape (while falling in love with Montevetrano in the process). Yet, despite my long relationship with this wine, I was still taken aback by how good—and how affordable—today’s 2012 is. First off, it was poured for me blind: I often game the system around here and assume I’m getting something Italian, but this glass had me on the Left Bank of Bordeaux, in someplace serious like Pauillac and Margaux; it obviously had some age, with some beguiling secondary aromas creeping into the picture, and it obviously had ‘breed,’ too. Although there was a hint of licorice and spice I couldn’t quite place (it ended up being the Aglianico, here blended with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot), I stuck to my guns: I assumed it was high-end Bordeaux priced well into the three digits. And, much like those guests of mine from my restaurant days, I was thrilled with the “reveal.” It had been a few years since I’d tasted a vintage of Montevetrano, and I wasn’t just impressed—I was blown away, and so were my fellow SommSelect-ers. You want an iconic, cellar-worthy red that’s also shockingly affordable? Here it is!
Named for a castle in the hills outside the Campanian port town of Salerno, Montevetrano is a small estate that had been in Silvia Imparato’s family for years before friends encouraged her to follow her wine dream and revive the vineyards there. Imparato was a professional photographer by trade, but the “friends” in question included prominent Italian wine journalists as well as winemaking brothers Renzo and Riccardo Cotarella; Renzo is the longtime enologist/CEO of Tuscan giant Antinori, while Riccardo is perhaps the most famous “flying winemaker” in Italy. Since the estate’s beginnings in the mid-1980s, Riccardo has been Montevetrano’s consulting winemaker, encouraging Imparato to plant “international” varieties such as Cabernet and Merlot to supplement the native Aglianico. Although other Campanian wines from Aglianico had a little traction internationally—like those from Taurasi, further inland—it was still mostly unknown and unappreciated.
Taking a cue from many of the “super-Tuscans,” Cotarella and Imparato saw some similarities between the soils of coastal Salerno and Bordeaux; although many of Campania’s most famous terroirs are volcanic (Vesuvius; Taurasi), the soils around Montevetrano are described as silty, pebbly loams. The total area under vine has remained small, just five hectares, with annual production of today’s wine topping out at around 2,500 cases (compared to tens of thousands for the typical Left Bank Bordeaux).
Comprised of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Aglianico, and 20% Merlot, Montevetrano is aged 12-14 months in French oak
barriques, then six months in bottle, before release. In the glass, it displays a dense ruby-black core moving to garnet and a slight hint of brick orange at the rim—just now starting to show signs of maturity in both appearance and aroma. Richly fruited scents of black currant, mulberry, cassis, and cranberry are beautifully complemented by earthy notes of leather, tobacco, graphite, espresso, and dark chocolate. It is full-bodied but blessed with the kind of seamless, velvety texture that only comes with time; while this wine can be a dark, chunky
bomba in its youth, several years of bottle age have given it dimension, nuance, and incredible length. This is a red of serious pedigree, and frankly, I’m shocked it is still obtainable at this price; at least 10 more years of positive evolution are still in store for this 2012, and I wouldn’t hesitate to put it on a table next to some big-ticket aged Cabernets and see how it fares (I’m guessing well). Decant it (watching for sediment) about 30-45 minutes before serving in large Bordeaux stems with a beautiful grilled ribeye; some medium-rare lamb chops; or richer game birds like squab or duck. You’ll see why this wine attracted the cult following it has. Enjoy!
