Mastroberardino produces a range of great wines, but it truly excels with its Aglianico bottlings. The grape is an ancient varietal that dates back to antiquity. It’s sometimes cited as the grape of Falernian, one of the great wines of ancient Rome. That, however, is just a theory: The Romans didn’t leave any behind for us to test. (If Falernian was half as good as Aglianico, I could understand why.)
The Radici is the winery’s top bottling from the Taurasi DOCG; it is an essential part of a well-rounded wine collection. At the Wine School, we make it a point always to have several vintages of this wine in the cellar.
2007 offers a profound structure that manages to be full-bodied and highly tannic yet delicate and lithe. That is a rare combination. It offers spices and dark fruit on the nose along with forest floor and burnt rosemary. The palate pushes toward saturated big and bold flavors, with dark fruit flavors layered on top of roasted game and tar—the finish ebbs into cherry and tobacco notes—a stunning bottle of Aglianico.