My ‘small’ Italian white wine journey started in Campania with one of my favorites, Fiano d’Avellino, and based that result, I was anxious to taste Coda di Volpe, the other even lesser known Campanian white. Coda di Volpe is only grown the Campania region, and it was well known to the ancient Romans - to the best of my knowledge it’s been in continuous cultivation in various parts of the region since then. For much of its recent history, the grape named for the resemblance of its clusters to a ‘fox tail,’ was used to blend with other indigenous white grapes, such as Greco, Falanghina, and Verdeca, to produce the various Bianco wines of the region. I believe that this grape has experienced a renaissance in the last several decades with a fair number of single varietal Coda di Volpe wines now available - although, according to Italian wine labeling laws a wine need contain only 85% of a single varietal to be labeled as that varietal.
I knew that the famous Lacryma Christi del Vesuvio Bianco could be made with Coda di Volpe, but my reading of the Vesuvio DOC regulations indicated that the wine was typically a blend that might have significant amounts of Coda di Volpe or none at all. A few times last year I saw a bottle of Lacryma Christi del Vesuvio, either Terredora or Mastroberardino, on a store shelf, but pass it by not wanting to spend $25 on a blend that wouldn’t suit my immediate purpose – although, they were rare sightings. I finally spied a bottle of Coda di Volpe from the DOC Taburno region, made by the Ocone Estate in the town of Ponte, in the province of Benevento. While Coda di Volpe is grown in a number of Campania’s DOC regions, in most it is still used for blending Bianco. Three DOC regions do register Coda di Volpe wines as single varietals: Irpinia, to the east of Avellino, Sannio, encompassing most of Benevento province, and Taburno, a subset of Sannio to the north of Avellino. A number of winemakers growing grapes in the Vesuvio DOC , such as the two mentioned above, are now producing Lacryma Christi del Vesuvio Bianco with 100% Coda di Volpe - the prestigious name seems to carry a $5 to $10 premium over the single varietal Coda di Volpes from the other regions.
The Ocone Coda di Volpe Taburno DOC is farmed bio-dynamically, macerated a low controlled temperature and then fermented and stored in steel. It has a delightful nose, which popped out of the bottle with the cork, with lots of fruit - more indeed than in the Fianos I’ve tasted – and even a hint of candied fruit on the finish. The ‘official’ tasting notes from the winery indicated floral notes that I haven’t caught. Its brilliant, straw yellow color suggested a richness that it fully delivered on. It also struck me as being richer than Fiano, although not quite as complex. The initial impression of richness on my palate suggested a lightness in its weight, but as it developed I got to a medium-weight, chewy core. It has lots of nice, yellow fruit, starting with just-ripe peach wrapped around a touch of bitter almond and leading to just under-ripe peach as it moved into a nice acid finish with grapefruit, grapefruit astringency and just a touch of lemon. Subsequent sips revealed an interesting spiciness (extended maceration?), a touch of minerals in with the bitter almond and a nice whisper of sea salt to balance the citrus on the finish. Ocone Coda di Volpe DOC is a very, very nice wine, and at $16, it’s worth buying by the case. It would work with just about any fish or shellfish, raw, spicy, or even as rich a preparation as Coquilles St Jacques. It also went extremely well with thin slices of Fra’Mani Nostrana salami just now. I am now anxious to buy one of those Lacryma Christi del Vesuvio Biancos to taste what the volcanic soil and proximity to the sea do to the flavor and texture.
PS: I have created a summary chart of the small whites I’ve tasted and a photo album of the labels for those who are interested.
Found this blog while searching for Coda di Volpe, a varietal I haven't tried (but am getting in a wine club allocations Friday!) but have wanted to since I'm also a fan of whites from Campania. Nice entry -- I will keep my eye out for the Ocone!
Posted by: Megan Long | March 11, 2010 at 09:59 AM