2012 Donato D'Angelo Aglianico del Vulture Basilicata Italy 750 ml

“Wonderful, Age-worthy” Red for Fraction of the Price

Ask a hundred somms to name the best wine they can think of that still doesn’t quite get the widespread respect that it deserves, and a huge number of them are bound to say Aglianico del Vulture.

It’s always been this way…which, actually, isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

It means that age-worthy, food-friendly wines like this 2012 Donato D’Angelo Aglianico del Vulture remain an absolutely incredible bargain. Think of it this way: The best examples of Aglianico del Vulture mature with all the grace and excitement of top Barolo, but at a fraction of the price. No wonder they’re such a sommelier favorite!

Take this one, for example. It’s already six years old and in a brilliant place right now, yet the evolution it has in front of it promises to be otherworldly. When we recently tasted it (and decided that we had to offer it to our members), we were utterly bowled over by its ambrosial aromas of dried rose petals and tar lifted up with spice, orange peel, and red fruit to spare. Ian D’Agata, one of the world’s foremost experts on the wines of Italy, raved in his 92-point Vinous review about its “knockout perfume of red cherry, herbs, pomegranate, blood orange and violet.” He called it “dense and weightless…wonderful, ageworthy.”

These aren’t terms that we’ve come to expect from the usually more reserved Mr. D’Agata. But wines like the 2012 Donato D’Angelo Aglianico del Vulture tend to do that to people.

It makes sense. The owners are the latest in a multi-generation effort by the family to coax the best from their uniquely situated land: Oenologist Donato D’Agata and his wife Filomena—she has a degree in viticulture and oenology—are passionate about expressing the volcanic soils of their property in Basilicata. In order to achieve that, they allow the grapes to take all the time they require to ripen, which, at their property approximately 500 meters above sea level, means putting off the harvest until late-October or even early-November. From there, they macerate the juice with the skins for 12 full days, pumping over twice a day for the first five in order to extract as much color and character as possible.

After fermentation, the wine is refined for a full year in 500-liter oak tonneaux, and then another year in stainless steel tanks. As if that weren’t enough, they then age the wine in bottle for a third year before releasing it to the market. It’s not the easiest way to make wine, and it’s certainly not the most financially expedient. But the D’Angelos know exactly how lucky they are to be making wine on their privileged perch in Basilicata. They’re willing to put in any effort required to make sure that the finished product is a complete expression of the incredible high-altitude volcanic soils of their beloved appellation.

Aglianico del Vulture is often referred to as the Nebbiolo of Southern Italy, and we couldn’t agree more: Both have the ability to channel the ancient depths of their terroir with a sense of clarity, energy, and longevity that is unique in the world of Italian wine. No wonder the wine pros love Aglianico del Vulture so much. It’s a reliably remarkable wine…and, as this one demonstrates, often shockingly affordable to boot.