Garlic Herb Encrusted Cod paired with Donnachiara's Aletheia Greco di Tufo

Near the end of last year I attended a virtual tasting with Winestudio led by Tina Morey.  It was a partnership with Susannah Gold of Vigneto Communications whom represents the wines of Donnachiara.  The real treat was having the owner, Ilaria Pettito, join us and provide some background on the winery and lead us through the tasting.  I’ve featured some of these wines in the past and had the opportunity to try more of their production leaving a continuing impressive impression.   

The Donnachiara winery is located in the southern region of Italy in Campania.  The winery is located in Montefalcione in the province of Irpinia on a hill about 600 meters above sea level.  Their vineyards, totaling around 66 acres, are situated in 2 of the 4 DOCG appellations in Campania.  The majority of the grapes they grow are dedicated to the red grape, Aglianico, but they also grow the white grapes, Fiano and Greco.  These are grapes that had been brought to Campania and other southern regions of Italy by the ancient Greeks.  Campania is home to over 100 indigenous varietals.  

Donnachiara was established in 2005 by Ilaria’s mother, Chiara, and father, Umberto.  Ilaria joined the family business in 2008 after leaving the legal field.  At that point in time the winery was producing about 10,000 bottles.  Over time with Ilaria’s leadership the winery has expanded to a production of around 200,000 bottles.  They have employed the expertise of the highly respected Italian enologist, Riccardo Cotarella, whom serves as their winemaker.  Per their site they practice “integrated management” that focuses on eliminating plant diseases, recycling their water supply and running on solar power energy.   

Riccardo and Ilaria ~ Copyright of Donnachiara

About Greco di Tufo

In order to carry the Greco di Tufo DOCG status the wines must be made of at least 85% Greco.  The wine Greco di Tufo is a clone of Greco Bianco.  It is named after the grape itself and is the name of the local town, Tufo.  It is also named after the volcanic rock and ash, known as Tufo or tuff in English, in which the vines grow.  This soil is what lends minerality and the aromatic profile to the Greco di Tufo wines.    

The Wines 

In two or three weeks I’ll be featuring another of Donnachiara’s wine made from the Aglianico grape as the focused will be on a wine pairing with braised meats.  Today I’m sharing their 2018 Aletheia made from Greco that I paired with a garlic herb encrusted cod over spinach.

2018 Donnachiara Aletheia Greco di Tufo DOCG: Made from 100% Greco on tuffaceous soil.  The fermented must was left on the lees for a year noticeable in the glass.  A brilliant straw color in the glass the aromas from this wine left notes of pineapple, peach and lemon wafting from the glass.  Medium-bodied, the wine had crisp, tangy acidity with beautiful ripe fruit.  The texture was almost waxy on the palette.  Overall well-balanced with a lingering finish.  ABV 13% SRP $18  

Ilaria shared with us that in the future Donnachiara will be producing a rose’ via the metodo classico style in stainless steel from the Aglianico grape.

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*This wine was provided as a sample, but opinions are always my own.