In my callow and wasted youth I spent far too much of my time on clunky, clumsy, oaky chardonnays, and far too little of my time on wines like this. More fool me.
I did, however, come to my senses and discovered the joys of the white wines of Campania, primarily through the firm of Mastroberardini. Ahh, the Greco di Tufo, the Fiano da Avellino, the Lachryma Christi...but most of all, the Falanghina.
And that's because, essentially, there wasn't much besides Mastroberardini available. Don't get me wrong: Mastroberardini was fine, but I would've enjoyed a little variety. Eventually, the rest of the world caught up with the wines of Campania, and they became quite popular and well distributed, and more brands started showing up.
But the firm that, to me, generated the most excitement was Feudi di San Gregorio. And it turns out Feudi and Mastroberadino weren't all that far apart in many ways. What sealed the deal, however, was during a trip to Italy with friends when we stopped in a pizzeria in Emilia-Romagna, run by a chef from the Apulia, who was aggressively pushing the wines of Campania...and specifically, the wines of Feudi di San Gregorio! The Falanghina became our picnic wine to accompany our prosciutto, parmigiano, ciabatta and olio, and to assist in our lolling through a languid afternoon.
Falanghina dei Feudi di San Gregorio, Campania, 2007
Somehow, in a wonderful congruity of wine and marketing (trust me, those two aren't always all that congruent, sad to say), the Feudi di San Gregorio label says it all about what's inside the bottle; those bright mosaici adorning the severely structured label imply what the wine delivers abundantly.
The Falanghina is an altogether brilliant and delightful wine, crisp and lively on the palate, laced with flowers and fruit and all things sunshine-y from the Campanian summer, but braced with brisk acids and minerality from the crumbled volcanic soil of Mt. Vesuvius. It has a delicate aroma of fresh flowers---if fresh flowers were perked up with a splash of lemon juice, that is, for there is a lovely bright citrus cocktail there, with flavors to match.
There are two aspects to this Falanghina that I love. First, there's that intense fruit/brisk acid/stony minerality that stay in such perfect balance. Second, there's that wonderful clean line of flavor that results from that balance, a bright piercing quality that never fails or falters.
This is great wine on a sunny summer day. Or it's a great wine when you need to be reminded of a sunny summer day. Best to keep some on hand, just in case a rain cloud might come your way.
