2016 SIOPE Aglianico Luigi Maffini, Lea & Sandeman

SIOPE

2016 Aglianico Luigi Maffini

Grapes Aglianico
Colour Red
Origin Italy, Campania
Other Certified Organic
ABV 14.5%

This is a new wine from Luigi and is the result of the painstaking work that he has undertaken, to find the best expression of Aglianico, from his vineyards situated in the area of Guingano. Harvested by hand from a 1.3 hectare Cru and sorted twice prior to crushing, then fermented and aged for 12 months in new French oak barrels. It spends a further 2 years in bottle prior to release. Luigi strives to make a wine that is powerful and densely fruited, but that retains freshness, balance and poise, something that he achieves here with aplomb. The fruit is of the red spectrum and there is a beautifully integrated seam of spice that runs through the palate. This wine will age beautifully, if of course you can keep your hands off it. Siopé apparently means silence in ancient Greek, the sound that Luigi hears when he walks through his vineyards. Organically grown and just 3,080 bottles produced. Drinking range: 2020 - 2030 L&S (Jul 2020)


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Certified organic. Single vineyard in the hills. 12 months in new oak and three years in bottle before release. Very dark crimson. Initial impression is oak spice but no sweetness. Savoury black fruit with a hint of smokiness. Powerful yet extremely elegant, refined tannin texture though the tannins build on the finish. Refined and long and still so youthful. (JH) 14.5% Drinking range: 2025 - 2035 Rating: 17.5 Julia Harding MW, www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2023)

You certainly won’t regret giving the 2016 Aglianico Siope some time to open up in the glass. What starts as a delicate display of plums with hints of mint gains in volume and depth, as grilled sage and rum-soaked black currants mix with sweet tobacco and allspice. Frankly, you could lose yourself in this bouquet. Its textures are silky and fleshy in feel, guided by nervous acidity, as ripe black cherries and a hint of cranberry sauce creates a sweet and sour tug of war upon the palate. There’s amazing concentration within; and yet, energy remains incredibly high, even as grippy tannins mount toward the close. Notes of sour citrus, savory herbs and tart wild berries linger incredibly long through the structured yet remarkably fresh finale. There are only 3080 bottles produced of this Cru bottling, and lovers of Aglianico owe it to themselves to seek this out. Drinking range: 2023 - 2032 Rating: 95 Eric Guido, www.vinous.com (Jan 2022)

Luigi Maffini

Luigi Maffini's vineyards are on the coast of Campania, south of Naples, across the bay from Positano, and planted with the local grapes, Fiano for the whites and Aglianico for the reds. While the family's first vines were planted in the seventies, the real beginning of this winery dates from 1996.

Luigi and his wife Raffaella are both graduates of Naples university in agricultural sciences. Luigi specialised in viticulture and winemaking. Ten years elapsed between our first tasting of his wines and getting Luigi 'on board', but he has now been with L&S since 2009.

Raffaella and Luigi run the vineyards organically, and share the land with their two children and three dogs, as well as hares, foxes, hedgehogs, hawks and wild boar, with which they are happy to live in peace. There are now two vineyard sites, at Castellabate and Giungano, so some of the wines are DOC Cilento and some DOC Paestum.

You can read more about the estate on Sarah Marsh's blog 'The English Nose'

This wine isn't currently part of a mixed case, but you can always browse our full selection of mixed cases here.
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