Falanghina

Falanghina is one of Campania's ancient whites and is often suggested as a component of Falernian, the most celebrated wine of the Roman world, though the evidence for that is circumstantial. The name probably derives from falanga, the stake used to train the vine.

There are two distinct varieties sharing the name. Falanghina Flegrea grows in the volcanic Campi Flegrei around Naples; Falanghina Beneventana comes from the hills of Benevento inland. DNA has confirmed they are different grapes, and most of what is bottled commercially is the Beneventana.

The wine is dry and medium-bodied with citrus, green apple and white peach, a pronounced floral note of acacia and elderflower, and a herbal, faintly saline finish. Acidity is good and the texture is fuller than the freshness suggests. It is more aromatic than Greco and less structured than Fiano, which places it as the most immediately appealing of Campania's three main whites.

On the volcanic soils near the coast it develops a smoky, mineral edge; inland on limestone it is rounder and more floral.

Most is made in steel and drunk within two or three years, which suits it. A small number of producers use lees ageing or barrel to add weight, and those wines can develop for five years or so.

It has expanded rapidly since the 1990s and is now one of the most widely planted white varieties in southern Italy, largely because it delivers freshness reliably in a hot climate.