Mastroberardino – the first Masters of Wine

This week we’re delighted to welcome back the extraordinary wines of Mastroberardino – which has recently appointed a new UK agent. Some of the wines are available for delivery next week but the first large shipment arrives from Italy at the end of next week and so the wines are available for delivery from Wednesday October 3. After a fabulous tasting dinner with Piero Mastroberardino himself earlier this week we’re also pleased to report that their full portfolio of wines will be available for sale on winedirect.co.uk and that we are able to secure some sublime older vintages of the flagship Taurasi Radici Riserva.

Described by Antonio Galloni of Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate as “The Royal Family of Campania” , the house of Mastroberardino is one of the oldest and most well-respected wineries in Italy, producing red and white wines that rank among the finest quality in the world. The Mastroberardino winery is the most famous in Campania wines, and represents one of the region’s best areas for growing grapes: Avellino.

Mastroberardino was established in the 1750s by famed winemaker Pietro di Mastro Berardino. He took the professional title of Mastro (master craftsman) beginning the future succession of 10 generations of Mastroberardino family winemakers. Mastroberardino was officially registered in 1878 by Cavalier Angiolo Mastroberardino, great-grand father of the winery’s current President, Piero Mastroberardino.

The Mastroberardino family being “wine archeologists” is credited with locating, identifying and nurturing ancient vines that would have otherwise become extinct. Mastroberardinos have been directly responsible for reviving and preserving historic grape varieties (Greco and Aglianico) that were brought to Campania by the Greeks over 2,000 years ago, as well as, for propagating the Fiano grape variety that was grown by the ancient Romans and was indigenous to Southern Italy.

Piero, the current owner, is not hesitant to continuously experiment and improve with viticulture, blends, and even varieties and clones of grapes such as Coda di Volpe, Fiano, Greco di Tufo and Aglianico. Among other things, the winery has paid close attention to planting varieties on appropriate soils, to using the right type of vine training and trellising, and to adopting winemaking methods that maximized the grapes’ varietal character rather than techniques that buried it under oak and fruitness.

The grape Aglianico, specifically the DOCG Taurasi Aglianico, has been the backbone of Mastroberardino. It is on this grape variety and its 100% varietal expression in their wines that the winery has built and maintained its reputation for high quality.

The Taurasi Riserva is the estate’s most historically significant wine. It is a full-bodied wine with an aroma of plums, raisins and anise, with floral notes that melt into dark fruits like cherry and plum spiced with black pepper. Rosso Radici DOCG has a rich, ruby hue with an aroma full of violets and spiced cherries, and flavors again of black pepper and fruits. The name Radici, which means “roots,” embodies Mastroberardino’s values of typicality and tradition.

After a recent vertical tasting including 29 vintages of the Radici Taurasi Riserva , going back to 1928, Antonio Galloni observed that the Taurasi is “a legendary wine that can rival the best from any region”. Courtesy of Piero Mastroberardino we’re delighted to be able to offer our customers an exclusive tasting case comprising the 1997,1998, 1999 and 2005 vintages of the Riserva plus the 2005 Naturalis Historia and the 1999 Riserva Centotrenta – a special commemorative Riserva released in 2009 and made to celebrate the winery’s foundation in 1878.