Cantina Giardino

In Ariano Arpinio, in the northern part of Irpinia, Cantina Giardino makes authentic expressions produced without compromise. In fact, the production vision embraced by the winery tends not to disrupt or alter the rhythms of nature, but rather to go along with them, in order to faithfully reflect the splendid Irpinian territory. The project was officially born in 2003, but already five years earlier Antonio di Gruttola, a technician and oenologist, had begun experimenting with artisanal winemaking flanked by a group of friends and family members, without the use of selected yeasts, filtrations or clarifications and excluding even the use of sulfites. Because the basis of this winemaking purpose is a love and passion for wine, the blunt and sincere kind, far from sophistication and artifice.

Cantina Giardino consists of 25 hectares planted with vines, located about 500 meters above sea level and in which there are vines that are close to 50 years old. The estate, which follows the principles of organic farming, exclusively raises native grape varieties such as Aglianico, Fiano and Greco. Both in the vineyard and in the cellar, processing is highly traditional, and macerations for the reds are very long, with periods varying between 30 days and 6 months. The whites also remain in contact with the marc during fermentation, for times that can be short or very prolonged, and amphorae, both terracotta and stoneware, are also used for vinification. Peculiar is the fact that the clay of which the earthenware jars are made is obtained from the same soils where the vineyards are planted.

Cantina Giardino's production began with Aglianico, a black grape variety par excellence in the area today offered in four different versions. The wines of this Irpinian viticultural reality do not follow protocols, except for 'Sophia', a white macerated on the skins for a good 6 months that can be produced from time to time with a different grape depending on the characteristics of the vintage, in order to enhance the attributes conferred by the wine vase rather than by the grape variety. In addition to 'Sophia,' the estate makes three other amphora labels: a rosé, a red, and another fresher, more immediate white. Beyond the type under consideration, those of Cantina Giardino are interpretations with a strong personality, marked by a fascinating ancestral dimension.