“Seductive” Aussie Fiano!
97 Points for this racy white from Down Under
“A bloody delight to drink.”
2022 Unico Zelo Jade & Jasper Fiano
$21.89 (750ml) In Stock- Buy Now
Decanter Top 10 Australian Wines of 2022
In the Adeleide Hills of South Australia, Brendon and Laura Carter at Unico Zelo have a thing for Fiano. It's been at the core of their story ever since they began, this little white grape variety from Campania that they cherish. They have 6 - yes, 6 - different expressions of it that they make each year. But why do they love it so much? It's not exactly the winemaker's grape variety like Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Nebbiolo are - Fiano at its best is a barebones, minimalist grape variety, but with a fascinating history.
Fiano is an ancient grape. Some believe it to be a variety that was produced and consumed by the Ancient Romans who called it Apania, named after the bees that were tremendously taken with its sweetness. Sadly, as is the case for numerous grapes across the world, the devastating phylloxera virus wiped a large portion of Fiano from it's native Campania, and in the aftermath, the focus of the vineyard owners then shifted to varieties like Trebbiano and Sangiovese as they we're a lot higher-yielding than things like Fiano and Aglianico, the region's famed ancient red grape.
Enter the great Antonio Mastroberardino and his eponymous winery,
Mastroberardino. After World War II, which also had a large hand in the devastation of Campania's wine industry, dedicated his life to restoring his families ancient vineyard and the native varieties, Fiano and Aglianico in particular, and by the 1970s had firmly established themselves as a leader of DOC producers in Avellino. Over the next few years, their recognition grew massively, it's the ability to handle the heat of Campania that did wonders for it - and it started to prick the ears up of a few Australian winemakers.
In the early '00s, they planted Fiano in Australia and they didn't just keep it to themselves, they encouraged others to plant and make it too, as they knew the quality and climatic suitability to Australia. It quickly established itself as one of the fastest-growing grape varieties in Australia, and it grows everywhere. As winemakers, what Unico Zelo adores about it is that no matter how they make it, it's so outrageously expressive of its vineyard. Their 3 single vineyard Fianos taste so remarkably different from one another, despite being picked at the same pH and made the exactly the same way. Some argue that Riesling is the grape most expressive of its vineyard, and they retort - as much as we all adore Riesling - "Fiano".
But most of all it's just so suited to Australian conditions. It can be dry grown in the hottest areas in the country and still craft refreshing and textural wines, and it still does supremely well in cooler regions like the Adelaide Hills, where its natural acid retention creates wines that are downright a thrill to drink. Including the textural “smashers” like their first foray into the variety “Jade + Jasper”.
"It's an incredibly flexible grape that while being able to be crafted in a multitude of styles, its varietal nature still screams from every expression - and it certainly does no harm that that nature is a bloody delight to drink."
