2015 Villa Dora Lacryma Christi del Vesuvio Rosso "Gelsonero" Campania, Italy (750ml)   

Oliver McCrum is an importer of fine, Italian wines, and one of our most reliable suppliers. Here are Oliver's no nonsense notes on this intriguing wine: "80% Piedirosso and 20% Aglianico, organically grown: broad reddish-black color; smoky aroma with a hint of tar (notes I often find in red wines grown in volcanic soils); aroma and flavor of black fruit (blackberry, black cherry) and woody herbs (thyme, bay, rosemary); medium-weight but light on its feet.

It is aged in puncheons for about a year. Drink now with red meats or cellar. Volcanic soils make for interesting wines, and many of Campania's famous terroirs are of volcanic origin. Mount Vesuvius is an active volcano just east of Naples, and the organically farmed vineyards of Villa Dora are on the lower slopes of the volcano, inside the national park that surrounds it. The soil, ground-up pumice really, looks like black Grape-Nuts, and the wines are strikingly flavorful and distinctive. There is no known scientific reason why certain minerals in the soil would affect the flavors of the wines grown in that soil, but I have to think there's a connection. I hope you like these wines as much as I do."