Ep. 306 Monica Colangelo (Nativ) | Discover Italian Regions: Campania

Italian wine podcast. Chincin with Italian wine people. Okay. Hello. This is the Italian wine podcast. My name is Monty Walden. My guest today is Monica Conland Jalon. Yeah. It works for the native winery in Porto, Napoleon in the Penine mountains, just east of Naples in Italy's Campania region. And this is one of the most important centers for the establishment of wine growing in Italy. So it's a really, important place, and we're gonna find out a little bit more with Monica. Monica. Welcome. So what is your role, what is your role, what do you do? What's your title? Well, I joined Native Family four years ago, and I deal with the experts. So the foreign markets, and, I look forward to to spread the wine, our wines in, all the world. This is you brought a wine with you today. This was an award winning wine. What award did it win and what wine is it? The wine is Ericosan critical. Here it is. It is a very valuable wine for us because it is the first wine actually that was created when the company was founded, more than twelve years ago. And, it, always bring back to the origin. The wine is called the, Ermo San Quico. San Quico is the area where the wine is cultivated. And, Ermo means a hermitage. Because there there are still the remains of an old heritage near the vineyards. The village where we are located is called Paternopoli, and is very rich in history. It was created more than two thousand years ago from old priests who isolated on the years of Paternopoli. And we still have the the remains, of what they founded, of what they built. In fact, Paternopoli, have has some monuments that were, declared as a part of, the world heritage of UNESCO. This one, in particular, Eramos San Curico, is an Elpina Campi, BOC. It means that, the wine is made of ayanico grapes. Ayanico is one of the most, of the oldest grapes, in, in Italy. It was imported by the old Greeks Actually, it wasn't so popular in the past. It started to become more popular, in the in the eighties after Philoxera because it started to be exported in Europe. And then, it it, started to become more popular in the nineties when it was, exported. So now it has been defined as one of the five best Italian grapes because it is a great reach of tannins which gave structure to the wine, a rich top polyphenols and unto Shannins, which gave the wine aromas and, and color. But was it what is so special about this wine? But they're not only the place where we are is in the docG area of Taurazi, which has a wide variety of landscapes, and environments. Because at the same time, we have a a small blocks of land. We don't have extended vineyards. But we have small plots of land, some of which are car carriers and while others are volcanic. In particular, Adam with some critical growth on volcanic soil, and which are very rich in, minerals and allow the vineyards to have a very high longevity. In fact, some of the vineyards that give a fruit, to where the most critical, also have, are one hundred and fifty years old. So they are very old. That's the beauty of those volcanic soils as well, isn't it? Having those, incredibly old, those incredibly old bigyards. Yes. We still have some. Yep. Yeah. We have some vineyards that survived to Filoxera because the virus didn't take root on, on volcanic soil for the growing method, of the American food. So how long does that wine last in bottle? Given that you're in the south of Italy, but it actually gets very cold at nighttime. My brother-in-law comes from, I've been here. You know, we're touching as a police, but that's why he's very strong. It gets very, very cold to get a lot of acidity in the wine. How long will that life last? One of the characteristics of this wine, Ayanico, but, the Ayanico of Taurasi is the longevity also in bottles. It is true that the acidity is high, but all the timings of the wine, allows, to keep it for a very long time. Also, twenty years, and the more the wine ages the beautiful thing is that the more it ages, the more the timings become soft and, and round. I would even say that, I don't advise to to drink this wine before, three, four years because, tannies would be strong. So the more it it is the one that you can keep for occasions. I mean, So what's a good what's a good what's your favorite meal with that? Is that one with the native? I go crazy for, braised red meats. So a very classic matching for me. It is a very structured wine. And it, can go with, go well with, very strict red meats, but also very complex very complex wines. Also, very complex dishes and also some that are with the, what we call fat sources. Okay. R very rich sources. Yeah? Yeah. Reach sources. Yeah. Do you get quite emotional when you drink a wine that, you know, that vineyard, probably not all of the vines in it, but some of the, you know, like a hundred years old, is it is it quite an emotional thing when you drink that? Well, I'm very attached to to to our terraria. And, it isn't something enchanting. I really, advise anyone who wants to relax and discover some beautiful places of Italy to counter pattern globally because, you feel the relaxed, environment. Everything is quiet. Everything is peaceful. And, it is emotional for me because, I've been in the vineyards where, Eramo san, where we take the wine, the grapes to, to make Ermo san, Kerico. And, right in one of these vineyards, there is what I was talking about. I mean, the soil is volcanic. Can you see it? Because the the land is black. But, then if you move to the other plot of land, the the land is, gray, light, light brown because it is called caries. So this is really, really emotional, but, it's also emotional to see, in the same area, I mean, impassionobally. Veneers that are, so young, so they are quite short. Then you go in the vineyard where we take HADamo, and, the vineyards are so old that the tree, the the branches are almost like trees. They are very, very big, very thick. Yeah. And very and different. And you have to be very careful when you prune them as well, I guess. Yeah. So, just quickly last question on food. That's just, what is your favorite dish with with this wine? Oh, well, as I said, I like her very much red meats, and I would make also a reduction, a reduction source of the wine to to match it with, with red meat, with very thin meat. Do you do that very, very slowly? I guess. Yeah? So you like you basically like rich food, but you don't want it to be heavy. Correct? Mhmm. Exactly. Great one. Okay. Did we miss anything? Is there anything else you want to say that we want to say? Well, more or less I said anything, everything. I am just I think people already know. I mean, you can understand it that the name of the company, Nativa, is, comes from the focus on deducting us, vineyards of, of the terrar, native as native as native of the terrar, original of the place. We only have production of local grapes only Ayanyaniko as regards to red wine. And then, fiano and, falaangina and Greco, which are the typical grapes of, Virginia. Of the DSCG. So, this has helped me. It's a pretty good lineup having those varieties to sell. I mean, they're all well known varieties now. And, obviously, what you're saying about the native grapes is is, becoming a a real trend. So, so you got an easy job. You got all these great wines to sell. It must be easy. It's a lot of time at the beach, right, down into the Naples by up Naples weekend. Okay. I just wanna say thanks today to my guest, Monica, called Angelo. From inactive or native winery in Paterinopoly in Yes. In Lavelino province in In Avilino province. Yes. Yes. Yes. Now they need to be. Thanks very much. Yeah. Inside in the heart of Campania. Next time I come down with my brother, who I'll come and say hi. Okay. Thank you. Thank you very much. Have a great day. Thank you. Talk to the Italian wine podcast wherever you get your podcast. We're on SoundCloud, Apple Podcasts, Hemali FM, and more. Don't forget to subscribe and rate the show. If you enjoy listening, please consider donating through Italian wine podcast dot com. Any amount help cover equipment, production, and publication costs. Until next time.