Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Avellino. Sannio Fiano and Cilento Bianco can
be good too, either as monovarietal fi anos or as
blends. In Sicily, at least one extraordinarily
successful wine is being made by Planeta, and
some Puglian wines are compelling. Interest-
ingly, an analysis of the viticultural and eno-
logical characteristics of Fiano and other varie-
ties planted in Tuscany found that the wine was
not characterized by features noteworthy
enough (at least from those vines planted near
Arezzo, Grosseto, and Pisa) to recommend
planting it in Tuscany (Bucelli, Egger, Faviere,
Giannetti, Pierucci, Piracci, and Storchi 1999).
In my view, volcanic soils are best for Fiano,
as they allow the formation of penetratingly
pure mineral and delicately fruity aromas,
archetypal of great Fiano wines. In fact, even
more than with many cultivars, soils are all
important, for there are marked differences in
wines from the various sites where Fiano is
grown in Campania. In my view there are at
least three specifi c subzones of quality Fiano
production: one famous area (Lapio, Montefal-
cone) is heavy and clay-dominated; most others
(Cesinali, Santo Stefano del Sole) are very
loosely packed and rich in sand, yielding fruity,
lighter wines of early appeal; fi nally areas such
as Montevergine, Sant'Angelo a Scala, Sum-
monte, and Capriglia, all at about four hundred
meters above sea level, give fruitier wines
marked by smoky or
fumé
notes, due to soils
rich in calcareous conglomerates and a thin
layer of volcanic ash. That said, Antonio Mas-
troberardino believes that true Fiano never
gives smoky wines: therefore, he suspects some
might be unknowingly using a similar but dis-
tinct variety.
In fact, part of Fiano's appeal is that, depend-
ing on growing conditions, it can give either a
steely-mineral or decadently lush and rich
wine. The most typical Fiano wines are the
former, offering very refi ned aromas of hazel-
nut, green apple, pear, and honey. This is espe-
cially true of those wines made in the manner
of Mastroberardino (two-week maceration/fer-
mentation at 18°C maximum, more usually at
15-16°C). Other vinifi cation techniques can
increase the size and weight of wines, giving
surprisingly smoky, almost muscat-like aro-
mas. Most likely, Mastroberardino is correct in
his assumption that some estates may be
unwittingly growing a different, aromatic bio-
type of Fiano (or a distinct variety altogether);
but my experience also tells me that some of
those smoky, almost burnt-rubber notes (in
wines really made with nothing but true Fiano)
may result either from fermentation tempera-
tures that are too high (estates without temper-
ature-control in the cellars), grapes grown in
excessively hot conditions or picked overripe, or
from grapevines planted in northern exposed,
cold, loose soils. I could very easily be wrong.
According to Luigi Moio, one of Italy's great-
est winemakers and perhaps the single greatest
expert on the cultivars of Campania, concentra-
tions of geraniol and linalool (which give Fiano
a fl oral note) allow easy sensorial discrimina-
tion between wines made with Fiano, the
Falanghina
s, and Greco (2012). According to
Moio, Fiano wines develop a toasty, slightly
herbal note with age that is most likely due to
the presence of free alkyl-2-metoxypyrazines
and volatile phenols. His research team at the
University of Naples has also found that while
concentrations of geraniol and linalool are
linked to specifi c yeast metabolic activity, con-
centrations of molecules such as terpin-4-ol,
β
-damascenone, 1,1,6-trimethyl-1,2-dihydro-
naphthalene (TDN, a molecule usually associ-
ated with riesling's diesel-fuel aromas), and
1- (2,3,6-trimentilfenil)buta-1,3-diene (TPB) are
infl uenced by acid-catalyzed reactions, and are
most likely responsible for aromas of wild fen-
nel, broom, and acacia sometimes described in
Fiano wines. Interestingly, the Fiano variety
appears to be rich in glycosilated aromatic pre-
cursors, an important fi nding because these
act as a “deposit” of aroma and fl avor molecules
that can be freed via specifi c viticultural and
winemaking decisions. This also means that,
more than with other Campanian varieties,
varying the time of harvest, length of must to
skin contact, or length of air-drying will greatly
affect the characteristics of Fiano wine.
