Contrada Selvecorte Fiano di Avellino 2017 (750ml)

Among Campania's white grapes, Fiano holds a particular distinction for its texture and its ability to age, and the version grown in the hills around Avellino tends to carry both weight and nerve. This bottling from Azienda Agricola Contrada is a still white from the 2017 vintage, made entirely from Fiano in the Fiano di Avellino zone of southern Italy.

The color leans pale, straw with a green cast, and the aromatics arrive with surprising depth: talcum powder, lemon verbena and green apple, concentrated rather than simply pretty. There's a sense of place here, a chalky mineral thread that runs through white flowers, marzipan and hazelnut. The finish is long and lightly tactile, polished without giving up its grip. It manages to feel both ample and refined at once, which is the trick the best examples of this grape pull off.