Coda di Volpe

The importer I represent recently started carrying Italian and Croatian wines, in addition to the French and German wines they already have.  I was really excited about the new products.  I believe I’ve covered some of the Italian wines and I’m covering another one today, and next post I’ll probably address the Croatian wines, as they’ve been fascinating.

When my boss handed off a few cases of Italian samples to me, he told me to have fun with them.  There was just one in the box that I’d never heard of, so he told me I’d probably be able to find some information on it - “Coda di Volpe.”

Well, from what I know of the Italian language, I remember that volpe means fox.  And from my music sheets, I know that coda means tail.  So it was fairly easy to guess that Coda di Volpe means fox’s tail.  The rest was up to me to learn.

The Coda di Volpe that I represent is the 2011, produced by Tenuta di Cavalier Pepe, which is the producer we represent from Campania.  Coda di Volpe is an ancient white grape grown almost exclusively in Campania, and ours is from Irpinia.  What I love about wines from Campania is how many off-beat Italian wines come from there.  When we think of Italian wine, we think of Chianti, Pinot Grigio, possibly Nebbiolo, and lately we think also of Moscato.  Campania is different - expressive wines made from Aglianico, Falanghina, Greco di Tufo, Fiano di Avellino, etc. are produced in Campania.  Coda di Volpe is another example of wine from that region.

The Cavalier Pepe Irpinia Coda di Volpe is straw colored with soft aromas of citrus, orchard fruit, nut, and soil.  On the palate, it’s clean and reflects the aromas, with the nut flavors lasting into the lovely finish.  This is a perfectly food friendly wine, and I’d choose this over most Pinot Grigio on any given day, especially since it’s so reasonably priced, probably retailing under $20.