"Beyond the Taburno at the last slope / between broken towers appears a «no and steep / and always open to the furor of the winds..." Thus Antonio Mellusi, poet, historian, politician of the second half of the 800th century portrayed in a few verses equivalent to an artist's brushstroke, Torrecuso del Sannio a small village of medieval origin, immersed in the Taburno regional park, or rather a vast area of territory where nature has largely been safeguarded over time and where agriculture, viticulture and olive growing has always represented the life of the locals. Tough people used to fighting with the "rage of the winds" as well as the vines that have been producing wines of great intensity here since Roman times.
Here since the last century a family of winemakers, the Rillos, has been producing wines with the passion and tenacity of the people of these parts. Telling the origins of the Fontanavecchia cellar is a bit like telling the story of Torrecuso and its people. In an old register from the Bourbon era it is attested that already, over one hundred and sixty years ago, the good wine of these lands was produced by the hands of the winemakers of the Rillo family, attentive guardians of the vineyards and protectors of the ancient traditions in the magical city of Benevento ".
The Fontanavecchia cellars built by the progenitor of the Rillo family, starting from the XNUMXth century and then restructured and enlarged over time, today represent a leading wine-producing reality in the Campania region.
The centennial experience of the Rillo family in the winemaking field expresses the essence of the territory through two very ancient autochthonous wines, true "identity cards" of Samnite viticulture: Aglianico del Taburno and Falanghina del Sannio.
«In our wines (excluding the Orazio), the Falanghina and Aglianico are vinified alone. We want to get straight to the soul of this territory, enhance its qualities, demonstrating that these vines are able to reach a perfect organoleptic balance and aromatic fullness without the need for help» explains Libero Rillo, owner of the company together with his brother Giuseppe and the Father Horace.
And such tenacity has been amply repaid by the rich basket of awards that come from the most authoritative guides, from Bibenda to Gilbert & Gaillard, to Daniele Cerilli to Slow Wine.
The company from Campania this year obtained the recognition of excellence with Quattro Viti on the AIS Vitae 2021 Guide for the Vigna Cataratte Aglianico del Taburno Reserve 2015,
In addition to that it is also awarded the prestigious Tastevin AIS by joining the 22 companies selected by the Sommelier Association for 2021 and awarded for having product "Wines that have helped to give a productive turning point to the territory of origin, which represent reference models of undisputed value in the respective area, or which have rescued from oblivion and brought back to the attention of the forgotten grape variety sector"
All the wines produced by the Fontanavecchia company are an expression of the Samnite winemaking tradition. In managing the vineyards and the cellar, the Rillo family has always favored quantity, quality, in the belief that for each different type of wine, be it a reserve or a younger wine, its distinctive character must be respected and enhanced , while retaining a great pleasantness. For the Rillos, the quality of the wines originates above all in the vineyard, seeking solutions and methods of cultivation, harvesting and vinification that are able to respect the soil, the environment and tradition in the best possible way. Starting from the first operations between the rows, it is decided to use organic fertilizers, with particular characteristics and qualities whose effects are useful for balancing and improving the vitality of the soil and plants, so as to obtain a favorable cultivation environment for the production of excellent quality grapes. It is in this way that both the line of younger wines, such as Falanghina and Aglianico or Greco, Fiano and Piedirosso, and the great reserve wines, such as Grave Mora, Orazio, Libero and Facetus, succeed to express their maximum lightness and harmony while maintaining elegance and body, and a surprising resistance over time.
The Vigna Cataratte Aglianico del Taburno Riserva 2015, the company's flagship label, is a 100% Aglianico produced with selected grapes harvested in boxes that is born at 300 meters above sea level on clayey soils with outcropping calcareous marls. The vinification is carried out at a controlled temperature with a long fermentation of about 12 days. Aging is 18 months in French oak barriques.
Elegant ruby red wine with a beautiful fruity imprint of small red fruits, which then gives way to interesting spicy nuances of nutmeg and cloves with a balanced tannin ratio.
It goes well with red meats but the suggestion, to remain in the elegy of the Samnite territory of which the wine is an excellent expression, is to accompany it with a typical cheese of the area, the caciocavallo di Castelfranco in Miscano aged 15/18 months.
