2020 Elena Fucci Aglianico Del Vulture - Titolo

In 2000, Elena Fucci took over the Titolo vineyard, which her grandfather Generoso had purchased in the 1960s. This prize vineyard, with the family home smack in the middle of the vines, is located in the village of Barile, on the eastern slope of Monte Vulture. Vulture is an extinct volcano in the region of Basilicata (the “instep” of the Italian boot) and the core of the DOC, or appellation, Aglianico del Vulture. Elena’s Titolo (the wine) has become one of the most prized - and prize-awarded - aglianicos in Italy. Our own Marc Greilsamer featured this wine in his PMW newsletter article Why We Love: Aglianico earlier this month, so without further ado:

“Also from the Basilicata side, we have the 2019 Fucci Aglianico del Vulture ‘Titolo.’ Elena Fucci produces just this one cuvee from her vineyard more than 2,000 feet up in the Titolo lava channel, with most of the vines planted in the 1950s. After a manual harvest, the juice undergoes malolactic fermentation in 100 percent new French oak barrels. Herbaceous and savory, with notes of black tea and exotic spice, this wine will certainly benefit from a few more years of cellaring, but it’s already highly enjoyable (after a bit of decanting) with, say, a hearty bowl of pasta with pancetta, shallots, and sage leaves.”