Greco di Tufo

History and origin

The story of Greco begins with the sea. When the Greeks landed on the coast around Naples in the eighth century BC, they brought cuttings of their vines. This white grape found a favourable home on the volcanic soils of the coast and from there was taken inland, to the hills of today's Tufo, where clay-limestone soils extremely rich in sulphur and other minerals allowed it to reach its fullest development.

Under the Roman Empire Greco production became a real economic activity, and it has remained a constant presence in the life of the area ever since. In the nineteenth century came Irpinia's first railway, known as the wine railway because it linked the wine towns of the Sabato and Calore hills to Italian and European markets: Tufo had two stops, one in the village and one at nearby Prata di Principato Ultra.

Greco di Tufo became a DOC in 1970 and a DOCG in 2003.

Sources: Consorzio Tutela Vini d'Irpinia: il vitigno Greco · Regione Campania, Assessorato Agricoltura — Greco di Tufo DOCG · eAmbrosia — Greco di Tufo (PDO-IT-A0236)

Area and method of production

The DOCG area covers eight towns in the province of Avellino clustered around Tufo: Tufo, Altavilla Irpina, Chianche, Montefusco, Prata di Principato Ultra, Petruro Irpino, Santa Paolina and Torrioni. It is hill country between about 160 and 700 metres, partly within the Partenio Regional Park, with the Sabato valley below. The soils, on marl and volcanic deposits, bear the mark of Tufo's old sulphur mines.

The wine is made from at least 85% Greco, with a possible balance of Coda di Volpe bianca. Harvest usually falls between the first and third ten-day periods of October. The berry is rich in phenolic compounds and high in acidity; the delicate skin readily releases its components into the must, and fermentation takes place in steel to preserve structure and aromas.

Besides the white, which can carry the Riserva mention after at least 12 months of ageing, there is a sparkling wine made by bottle refermentation: at least 18 months on the lees, 36 for the Riserva.

Sources: Regione Campania, Assessorato Agricoltura — Greco di Tufo DOCG · Consorzio tutela vini d'Irpinia — Greco di Tufo DOCG · Qualigeo (Fondazione Qualivita) — Greco di Tufo DOP

How to recognise it

The Greco bunch is medium or small, cylindrical or conical, often with a wing so pronounced that it looks like a double bunch; the almost round berries have a bloomy grey-yellow skin that turns amber in the sun.

In the glass the wine is straw yellow of varying depth, sometimes golden. The nose brings white and yellow-fleshed fruit such as peach, melon and apricot, apple, citrus, almond and aromatic herbs, with a marked mineral note; on the palate it is dry, fresh and savoury, with a long finish of almond and citrus. Its minerality, which the consortium links to Tufo's sulphur-bearing soils, is its signature.

The sparkling wine has fine, persistent bubbles and a delicate yeasty note, in styles from extra brut to extra dry. Greco di Tufo is a long-lived white: the basic version develops well for 5-10 years, the Riserva beyond 10-12, with notes of honey, dried fruit and petrol.

Sources: Qualigeo (Fondazione Qualivita) — Greco di Tufo DOP · Consorzio tutela vini d'Irpinia — Greco di Tufo DOCG · Consorzio Tutela Vini d'Irpinia: il vitigno Greco · Regione Campania, Assessorato Agricoltura — Greco di Tufo DOCG

In the kitchen

Greco di Tufo is a wine for fish and shellfish, to be served at 8 to 10 degrees. Its savouriness and body make it suited to heartier seafood dishes: fish soup, seafood risotto, fish baked in salt, and dishes cooked in broth, grilled or gratinated.

The consortium also recommends it with salt cod, even in tomato sauce, with fresh and goat's cheeses and with traditional Irpinian pasta dishes. The Riserva, more mature and full of personality, stretches as far as pairings with meat.

The sparkling version is suggested as an aperitif and with cold starters, and finds its ideal match in raw dishes, from the sea as well as the land.

Sources: Regione Campania, Assessorato Agricoltura — Greco di Tufo DOCG · Consorzio tutela vini d'Irpinia — Greco di Tufo DOCG

Where to taste it

The heart of Greco is the village of Tufo, in the province of Avellino, with vineyard hills sloping down to the Sabato valley. Around it, the other seven DOCG towns form a small, compact area: Altavilla Irpina, Chianche, Montefusco, Prata di Principato Ultra, Petruro Irpino, Santa Paolina and Torrioni.

The October harvest is when the hills show their bond with wine most clearly. The history of the sulphur mines and of the wine railway, with its two stops at Tufo and Prata di Principato Ultra, adds one more reason to travel this valley.

Irpinia's three DOCGs, Greco di Tufo, Fiano di Avellino and Taurasi, all come from the province of Avellino: an itinerary through Irpinia's wines can link them, moving from the hills of Tufo to those around the provincial capital and the Aglianico country.

Sources: Regione Campania, Assessorato Agricoltura — Greco di Tufo DOCG · Consorzio Tutela Vini d'Irpinia: il vitigno Greco · Consorzio tutela vini d'Irpinia — Greco di Tufo DOCG

Protection

• DOCG, PDO wine — PDO-IT-A0236 (eAmbrosia — Greco di Tufo (PDO-IT-A0236))

When

• Harvest: October (Consorzio tutela vini d'Irpinia — Greco di Tufo DOCG)
• Autumn

Where

Campania

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