Terra di Vento

Terra di Vento

Terra di Vento are a lesser known Campanian outfit producing good quality, fair priced local varietal wines. Terra di Vento were introduced to me by that other fine Italian wine blogger Mr Terence Hughes of Mondosapore. Terry, top bloke that he is, had Terra di Vento send up some wines to our HQ in Venice.

I had every intention of tasting them last night but got distracted by the wine pages. So, this morning, at the ungodly hour of 7am I tasted the Aglianico and Fiano, two of Campania's finest, before making my way to work.

I'm unsure if the effects of morning grogginess on wine tasting have been thoroughly studied, but I can tell you for free, wine at 7.00am kick starts your mouth like nothing else! Forget flossing. Forget mouthwash. Swirl some of this tannic/acidic Aglianico round your chops, it's quite a shock to the system!

Terry, I don't think he'll mind me telling you, is something of a champion for less famous grape varieties, importing lesser known Italian wines into the New York area in an effort to get people drinking these great wines that the majority of US drinkers haven't yet heard of. These wines will make unique additions to restaurant lists thanks mainly to very good (say it with me) QPR.

So what of these wines? Well, aromatically they are both explosive with wonderfully deep colour on both the red and the white, both followed a similar pattern of holding some fruit on the palate having good acidity but the red especially was a little thinner than expected especially for the grape variety and both of them faded fast. However, these are wines that will both retail under €8 and the sheer fruit on the nose and palate will make them very popular internationally. Both wines do represent their varietal faithfully. I was impressed.

Terra di Vento Faiano Fiano 2007 - BUY - €6 (ish)

Clear, golden colour. Tropical fruits on the nose, pineapple and banana, honey notes also a little sweet spice. The wine is mid bodied with good acidity, a little hot on the finish but the tropical flavours still abound. One dimensional but enjoyable. 84 Points

Terra di Vento Petrale Aglianico 2006 - BUY - €8 (ish)

Intense dark ruby red, black in the centre. Gorgeous nose of dark cherry, a little earth and some raspberries, if blind I'd have guessed a young Barolo! Tannic, good acidity, almost well balanced and fruity, thinner bodied than I was expecting. The finish is watery and disappointing. Perfect start and middle, let down by the end. 85 Points

These are both loose BUY recommendations. I would buy these wines to take to a party, or to have with a typical Campanian meal or to introduce someone to the wines of Campania. They are both strong stylistically so are interesting wines and would make a nice, cheap, talking point.

Where can I buy these wines?

Hmm, good luck finding these wines. There's a chance we will be stocking them but using the normal wine searching tools, no one is stocking these wines. That's why Mr Hughes is bringing 'em over innit!

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Not to advocate 7am wine drinking, I would normally refuse a drink before lunchtime, but where is your personal line? Which O'Clock is it just plain wrong to taste before? (and Mr Hughes, if you read this, let me know how you feel about these two wines)