Aglianico: Southern Italy's Great Red, Taurasi and Vulture

Aglianico is the great red grape of southern Italy, grown mainly in Campania and Basilicata. It makes dark, firm, high-tannin wines with black cherry, plum, smoke and spice, and its top versions, Taurasi and Aglianico del Vulture, are built for long aging. If you like Barolo or big, structured reds, this is the southern Italian bottle to try.

What Aglianico tastes like

Wine Folly lists Aglianico as bone-dry and full-bodied, with high tannins and medium-high acidity, at 13.5–15% alcohol. Its main flavors are white pepper, black cherry, smoke, game and spiced plum. Italian Wine Central adds red roses, sour cherries, leather, herbs and smoke, and describes very high acidity, “prominent minerality” and wines that are usually quite tannic.

Trait	Typical Aglianico
Sweetness	Dry
Body	Full
Tannin	High
Acidity	Medium-high to very high
Alcohol	13.5–15%
Flavors	Black cherry, plum, white pepper, smoke, leather, herbs
Ageing	Wine Folly: 10+ years; “best enjoyed aged”

In our view, a young Aglianico can feel severe on its own; give it food or a few years in bottle.

Italian Wine Central notes that the three DOCGs have their own biotypes (local strains of the grape), and that plum notes are typical of Vulture, leather and herbs of Taburno.

Where Aglianico grows

Italian Wine Central counts about 9,579 hectares (23,670 acres) of Aglianico, 79% in Campania and 12% in Basilicata. It says the best vineyards are on volcanic soils on mountain slopes. The grape ripens late: Wikipedia says harvests can run as late as November in parts of southern Italy, and that picking too early or cropping too high gives aggressively tannic wine.

The top denominations, with the rules as listed by Italian Wine Central:

Denomination	Region	Status	Aglianico	Minimum ageing	Vineyard (2021)
Taurasi	Campania	DOC 1970, DOCG 1993	At least 85%	3 years, 1 in barrel; Riserva 4 years, 18 months in barrel	472 ha (1,166 acres)
Aglianico del Taburno	Campania	DOC 1986, DOCG 2011	At least 85%	Rosso 2 years; Riserva 3 years (12 months barrel, 6 bottle); also a rosato	127 ha (314 acres)
Aglianico del Vulture	Basilicata	DOC 1971	100%	Rosso released from September 1 after the vintage; also a spumante	582 ha (1,438 acres)
Aglianico del Vulture Superiore	Basilicata	DOCG 2010	100%	3 years (12 months barrel, 12 bottle); Riserva 5 years (24 barrel, 12 bottle)	71 ha (175 acres)

DOC and DOCG are Italy’s quality tiers for wines of controlled origin; DOCG is the top one, with stricter rules. Our Italian wine guide explains the system.

Aglianico also turns up in many other southern denominations. Italian Wine Central lists it as a main grape in, among others, Irpinia, Sannio, Cilento, Vesuvio, Falerno del Massico and Castel del Monte. Falerno del Massico Rosso, for example, needs at least 60% Aglianico.

Taurasi, Campania

Taurasi is the benchmark. A Regione Campania guide to the DOCG calls it the first wine of southern Italy to earn DOCG status. Its production zone covers 17 communes in the province of Avellino, centered on the town of Taurasi, and the rules allow up to 15% of other non-aromatic red grapes. The rules accept hillside vineyards or sites with suitable position and exposure, and exclude damp, poorly sunlit valley floors.

The Campania guide says Aglianico finds its best expression here in clay-limestone soils and a harsh climate of mild summers and cold winters. The harvest, it says, never starts before the second half of October and runs until about November 10. The compulsory wood ageing, in the guide’s view, is what tames the grape’s typical hard edges.

Aglianico del Vulture, Basilicata

Across the border in Basilicata, Aglianico grows on the slopes of Monte Vulture, an extinct volcano north of Potenza. Berry Bros. & Rudd describes the soils as a mix of volcanic deposits and clay, and the wines as robust, deeply colored and long-lived. Italian Wine Central notes that the DOC is 100% Aglianico, and that the Superiore DOCG, the top tier, needs at least three years of ageing.

In our view, Vulture is a good place to look for value: it is less famous than Taurasi, and its basic DOC wines are released younger.

Is Aglianico Greek?

The old story says Greek settlers brought the vine to southern Italy, and the name is often traced to Ellenico, “Hellenic.” Italian Wine Central lists Ellenica and Ellenico among its alternative names. Wikipedia reports that modern DNA analysis doesn’t support the Greek link, finding little relation to Greek varieties, and that there is no record of the name before the 15th century. The grape may simply be native to the region. Wikipedia also notes the nickname “Barolo of the South,” for its ability to make refined, complex fine wines like Piedmont’s Barolo.

How to read the label

• “Taurasi DOCG” means Campania’s top Aglianico, at least three years old on release. “Riserva” means at least four.
• “Aglianico del Vulture DOC” is 100% Aglianico from Basilicata; “Superiore DOCG” is the aged top tier.
• “Aglianico del Taburno DOCG” is Campania’s other DOCG, with a rosato as well as reds.
• Other place names such as Irpinia, Sannio or Cilento can also appear on Aglianico; in our view, these broader denominations are an easy way to try the grape.
• Vintage: check it. In our view, a Taurasi or Vulture Superiore less than five or six years old will often still be firm.

Food pairing

Aglianico’s tannin and acidity call for rich, savory food. Wine Folly suggests gamey dishes and Texas-style barbecue, and says a well-aged bottle can be sipped like a fine Islay Scotch.

Food	Why it works
Lamb, game, wild boar ragù	Gamey flavors echo the wine; fat softens tannin
Barbecue brisket, ribs	Wine Folly’s pick; smoke meets smoky wine
Steak and chops	Protein and char tame tannin
Pasta with meat sauce	Acidity matches tomato
Aged hard cheeses	Salt and fat balance the grip

The table’s matches beyond Wine Folly’s are our suggestions based on the wine’s tannin and acidity. If you like Aglianico, our Nebbiolo guide covers its northern Italian counterpart in structure.

Good-value bottles to try

We don’t name specific Aglianico bottles on this page yet. Our picks follow how we rate wine: every wine needs a published critic score for a named vintage and a US price checked at two or more retailers, and we haven’t completed that check for an Aglianico.

What to look for: in our view, Aglianico del Vulture DOC and the broader Campania denominations are the easiest ways in, with Taurasi as the step up. Under our thresholds, an Aglianico scoring 90 to 92 points is a Great Value at $20 or less and a Good Value at $30 or less; at 93 points or more, it is a Great Value up to $30.

How to serve it

• Temperature: Wine Folly suggests 60–68°F (15–20°C).
• Glass: an oversized red wine glass.
• Decanting: about an hour, per Wine Folly; we’d give a young Taurasi longer.
• Ageing: Wine Folly gives 10+ years for good bottles.

Tip: If you open a young Taurasi and it feels hard and drying, recork it and try it again the next day, or serve it with a fatty cut of meat. The tannins are the point; they just need food or time.