More than once, I’ve told wine-centric friends that “Marc Mackondy knows more about Italian wines than God.” Heresy, I suppose, but expecting a deity to keep track of a thousand-plus grapes and many more wineries is stretching the bounds of omniscience.

Anyway, I asked Marc, whose family owns I Nonni restaurant and Buon Giorno market and wine store in Lilydale and Bibo in Eagan, about the state of southern Italian wine. As often as he travels in Italy buying for his family’s businesses, he’s almost certainly the foremost local expert and the obvious source for today’s Liquid Assets column. So it was no surprise that his response contained a cornucopia of great info:

“Italy as a whole was frustratingly behind France and even America to a degree in terms of understanding their terroir, agronomy, technological advancements etc.  During your time there, in the late 1970s, many regions started to go through a sort of “renaissance,” Piedmont and especially Tuscany.  Here is where we saw for the first time vineyard names on Barolo bottlings, and wines such as Tignanello, Flaccianello, Cepparello, Brunello start to turn the heads of the wine world.  This is not to say that great wines were not made in these areas……they were, but they were rare and not indicative of the overall regional wine industry.  Bartolo Mascarello, Giacosa, Gaja, Rinaldi, Antoniolo, Biondi Santi, Barbi, Il Poggione, Castel’n Villa just to name a few of the historic wineries who always have made and bottled great wine in the north.

“The Roman society’s wine of choice came from the Caserta province of Campania during the Campania Felix; Casavecchia, Palagrello, Palagrello Nero and of course Falernum (which was made from Falanghina).  But soon after as the French were producing the finest wines in the world, extreme poverty came to this part of Europe; the people vanished to America, Argentina and Canada looking for work, and the vineyards and the viticulture all but crumbled. 

“But, just like the above list of northern wineries that have always produced great wines here too there is a list; Mastroberardino and their historic Taurasi Radici, Aglianico from Vulture in Basilicata, Primitivo from the tiny Sava zone in Puglia, Edoardo Valentini’s impossible-to-find Montepulciano d’Abruzzo and of course the once-legendary wines of Mount Etna.

“Today, with the actual success of the northern wine zones and sometimes with the help of northern winemakers, better understanding of agronomy, more sustainable and organic practices in the vineyards and practicing green harvest, the south of Italy has been re-born.  [It is now] producing more innovative wines based on interesting and indigenous, ancient varietals than any other wine-producing area in the world.

“Don’t believe me?  Pick up a bottle of Etna wine based on Nerello Mascalese.  A Nero d’Avola from the Pacchino, Noto or Avola zones.  Try a Gaglioppo-based wine from Calabria or a Taurasi from Campania, a Montepulciano from Colline Teramane.  Those are just the reds … Greco di Tufo and Fiano di Avellino with all their blue-blooded minerality and ripe fruit. 

“How about dessert wines?  Italy’s best passito come from the south, Moscato di Noto, Passito di Pantelleria (try one from Debartoli or one of his amazing marsalas), Moscato di Seracena or Malvasia delle Lipari.  How about rose’ wines?  Again, the best in Italy come from the south.  Salento Rosato, Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo, Rose dell’Etna, rose from Gaglioppo, Librandi.  They truly rival the best from Bandol and Tavel.

“And we haven’t even touched on Sardinia’s varietals; Vermentino, Nasco, Cannonau and Carignano del Sulcis and Bovale.

“So what really changed?  Understanding fruit/vineyard management, severe green harvests, what clones of what grapes go best with what soil, the use of water, or NOT using water, stainless steel.  In a very hot zone like the Mezzogiorno temperature-controlled fermentations are very important.  Harvesting earlier. Utilizing schooled, trained enologists and agronomists.  Organic methods in the vineyard.  Newer, cleaner barrels (in some cases).  Growing white grapes on north facing slopes!  Sound crazy?  Try a Passerina or Pecorino from Abruzzo.  But more than anything the consumer changed.  And in doing so it was inevitible that the styles of the ancient wines would as well.”

Mackondy recommended these producers, many of whose wines he has obtained for the local importer World Wide Cellars.

Sicily: Cornelissen, Graci, Gulfi, Serramorrocco, Il Cantante, Ferrendes, Debartoli.

Calabria: Odoardi, Statti, Librandi.

Basilicata: Cantina del Notaio, Tenuta Le Querce.

Apulia: Ampelo, Paolo Petrilli

Abruzzo: Gran Sasso, Barone di Valforte, Valentini, Emidio Pepe, Agriverde Plateo.

Campania: Alois, Terre del Vulcano, Molettieri, Caggiano, DeAngelis, Pietracupa, Clelia Romana Colli di Lapio, Galardi.

Sardinia: Argiolas, Mura, Sardus Pater, Dettori, Capichera.

Lazio: Costantini, Terenzi.

Sorry, it got a little wordy but I hope it helps,

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