Lonardo Irpinia Rosso Aglianico 2019

“The winemaking philosophy at Lonardo is one of “enlightened traditionalism”. So, macerations are long, and aging is done in 600-liter tonneaux, with only a small percentage of new to not “mark” the aromas of the wines. The resulting wines are pure expressions of Aglianico, in the old and soulful sense. They are big, deep, powerful, and tannic, and unabashedly so. Perhaps they are not for everyone, but then again you could always lay them down for 40 years…” -Polaner

Lonardo is a special estate that is doing something unlike anyone else in Campania in the south of Italy. They are one of the last few traditional Taurasi makeres in the world – Aglianico producers who are making some of the most ageworthy wines in the entire country.

The Aglianico vines here are as old as 85+ years old – many still on their original rootstock, something you woudln’t expect to see many other places in the world. They make the wines with long macerations as opposed to the shorter ones your used to seeing in the more modern styles, but this is the stuff you really want. If this was Barolo – you’d be paying a whole lot more for these beauties!