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Aglianico wine variety in Australia

Aglianico is a robust red wine variety from Southern Italy which is now used in Australia

There are now more than two dozen producers of Aglianico in Australia

Aglianico, the name of this red wine variety which is now at home in Southern Italy, is believed to be derived from Ellenico, the Italian word for Greek. This gives us a clue that the wine may have been introduced by the Greeks who settled in Southern Italy a couple of millennia ago.

The variety hasn't moved far since, seemingly content to hibernate in obscurity in the southern Italian regions of Campania and Basilicata, but that is now changing.

In his latest book Wine Terroir and Climate Change, Gladstones includes Aglianico in Maturity Group 8, along with varieties such as Montepulciano, Mourvedre and Carignan.  This means it is a late maturing variety, best suited to warmer wine regions.

In Italy this variety makes full bodied elegant wines with firm tannins and high acidity. Aglianico is made into varietal wines or is often the dominant variety in blends.

It sometimes plays a minor role in blends with other varieties such as the ubiquitous Sangiovese.

The Italian DOCGs of Taurasi in Campania and Aglianico of Vulture in Basilicata are where the best Aglianico wines are produced. Learn about Italian wine regions with this map.

Australian wineries have been slow to adopt this variety compared to other recent imports but the number of producers is growing steadily.  Aglianico's ability to make deeply coloured and aromatic wines in warm to hot regions indicate that it is a variety with considerable future in Australia. 

As more wineries and grapegrowers become more concerned about global warming they are looking for varieties like this one, and for example the white varieties Fiano and Bianco d'Alessano.

Australian WIneries using Aglianico

Innovative label design, innovative wine. Hither and Yon McLaren Vale

• Amadio Adelaide Hills
• Atze's Corner Wines Barossa Valley
• Beach Road McLaren Vale
• Brown Brothers King Valley
• Bunyip Hollow North East Victoria
• Calabria Family Wines Riverina
• Cantina Abbiatiello Riverland
• Carillion Wines Orange
• Chalmers Heathcote
• Collins and Co Wines Barossa Valley
• Conte Estate Wines McLaren Vale
• Cradle of Hills McLaren Vale
• D'Arenberg McLaren Vale
• Dell'uva Wines  Barossa Valley
• Di Lusso Estate Mudgee
• Dowie Doole McLaren Vale
• Fighting Gully Road Beechworth
• Grey Sands Northern Tasmania
• Hither and Yon McLaren Vale
• Il Modo Murray Darling
• Izway Wines Barossa Valley
• L’Enologa Murray Darling
• La Curio McLaren Vale
• Lethbridge Wines Geelong
• Pepper Tree Wines Orange
• Pertaringa McLaren Vale
• Purple Hands Wines Barossa Valley
• Sabella Wines McLaren Vale
• Scarpantoni Estate McLaren Vale
• Scott and La Prova Adelaide Hills
• Somos McLaren Vale
• Spinifex Barossa Valley
• Surveyor's Hill Winery Canberra
• Susuro Adelaide Hills
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• Sutton Grange Winery Bendigo
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• Tallavera Grove Winery Hunter Valley

Award winning Aglianico

At the 2019 Australian Alternative Varieties Wine Show eleven wines were judged.  Three Golds and five Bronze medals were awarded.  Izway won gold medals for both their 2108 Mates Aglianico and their 2018 Angelo Aglianico, while S C Pannell received a Gold for his 2018 Aglianico.

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This dozen contains 2 bottles from each of six different producers in several regions. It gives you a good overview of the styles of Australian Tempranillo.

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More Italian red wine varieties used in Australia

Aglianico and food

Spaghetti Putanesca

These wines are firm and full bodied. Perhaps you could choose a game dish such as wild boar, or kangaroo.

In Southern Italian cuisine spicier sauces are often used for pasta dishes. One of the favourites in the region is Spaghetti alla puttanesca, prostitute's spaghetti, where the sauce is made with garlic, olive oil and tomatoes but given a spicier savoury flavour by the addition of anchovies, capers and chilli.

See more about Food Pairing with Aglianico in Evan Goldstein's Daring Pairings book

Fighting Gully Road Aglianico

Learn More about Grape Varieties

De Long's Wine Grape Varietal Table

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