Casa Setaro, Fuocoallegro Piedirosso, Vesuvio, Campania, Italy 2019

The Piedirosso variety is a Vesuvian native -- and a perfect example of the many indigenous varieties in Europe previously dismissed for being over-light or inadequately showy, but which are now finding favour, thanks to a global wine aesthetic which increasingly values digestibility, nuance, freshness and climatic aptitude. This dark red wine is indeed fresh, with early autumn fruits whose natural sweetness almost seems to have a balsamic note. It’s pure and lively on the palate with a cascade of tumbling acidity and fine-grained tannins: an energetic, even athletic reading of Campania’s volcanic soils and bright light. The amphora ageing helps shape and refine the purity still further, and those balsamic notes continue to provide interest all the way to the clean, deft, sappy finish.

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