Taurasi is a town and municipality in the

province of Avellino The Province of Avellino ( it, Provincia di Avellino) is a province in the Campania region of Southern Italy. The area is characterized by numerous small towns and villages scattered across the province; only two towns have a population over 20,0 ...

Campania (man), it, Campana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demog ...

, southern

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. In antiquity it was a town in

Samnium Samnium ( it, Sannio) is a Latin exonym for a region of Southern Italy anciently inhabited by the Samnites. Their own endonyms were ''Safinim'' for the country (attested in one inscription and one coin legend) and ''Safineis'' for the Th ...

. The town's name probably derives from the Latin ''Taurus''. Over time it changed from ''Taurasos'' to ''Taurasia'' (not to be confused with the Taurasia founded in northern Italy by the Taurini, which is now called

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

) before changing to its current form. Taurasi is best known for its increasingly famous red wine also named Taurasi, made of

Aglianico Aglianico ( , ) is a black grape grown in the southern regions of Italy, mostly Basilicata and Campania. It is considered with Sangiovese and Nebbiolo to be one of the three greatest Italian varieties. Aglianico is sometimes called "The Barolo ...

grapes along with

Piedirosso Piedirosso is a red Italian wine grape variety that is planted primarily in the Campania region. The grape is considered a specialty of the region, being used to produce wines for local and tourist consumption. Its name "piedirosso" means "red f ...

and

Barbera Barbera is a red Italian wine grape variety that, as of 2000, was the third most-planted red grape variety in Italy (after Sangiovese and Montepulciano). It produces good yields and is known for deep color, full body, low tannins and high level ...

grapes.

History

According to the epitaph on the sarcophagus of Lucius Cornelius Scipio Barbatus,

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states throu ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

3 BC __NOTOC__ Year 3 BC was a common year starting on Wednesday or Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar (the sources differ, see leap year error for further information) and a common year starting on Tuesday of the ...

, he captured ''Taurasia'' (and ''Cisauna'') from the

Samnites The Samnites () were an ancient Italic people who lived in Samnium, which is located in modern inland Abruzzo, Molise, and Campania in south-central Italy. An Oscan-speaking people, who may have originated as an offshoot of the Sabines, they f ...

. However, modern scholars have ruled out that ancient ''Taurasia'' (surely located north-east of '' Beneventum'') could be related to modern Taurasi.

Main sights

*Porta Maggiore (Main Gate). It was built by the Lombards in the seventh century above Roman ruins discovered during restoration works in 1997. It is the main point of entry for the historical centre. In the past it was the passageway through the city walls. *Palazzo Baronale, called simply "castle" by the locals. Its origins date back to Roman times, but it is now in Renaissance style. It has a large hall that used to be a court of justice, a chapel and a hall of arms. *Chiesa dell’Immacolata, a church which was completed in 1590. It is thought that it is an extension of the church of San Cataldo, which dates back to the seventh century. It also had the crypt of the Confraternita dell'Immacolata Concezione, which hosts the body of Saint Benigno the martyr since 1804.

Wines

The town was centred on by a

Longobard The Lombards () or Langobards ( la, Langobardi) were a Germanic people who ruled most of the Italian Peninsula from 568 to 774. The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the ''History of the Lombards'' (written between 787 and ...

castle which was enlarged by the Normans. Taurasi is a centre of production of the red wine

Taurasi DOCG Taurasi and Taurasi riserva are red, still Italian wines based principally on the Aglianico grape variety produced in the Province of Avellino in the Campania region. They were awarded ''Denominazione di Origine Controllata'' (DOC) status in 197 ...

. It is a full-bodied dry wine with an aromatic vein. The wine must be aged for three years, of which one must be in chestnut or oak casks. In the three succeeding years, the wine can be tasted in the fullness of its quality and is particularly good as an accompaniment to roasted red meats. The variety of grapes it is made from,

, is believed to have been introduced by Hellenic peoples around the time of the foundation of

Cumae Cumae ( grc, Κύμη, (Kumē) or or ; it, Cuma) was the first ancient Greek colony on the mainland of Italy, founded by settlers from Euboea in the 8th century BC and soon becoming one of the strongest colonies. It later became a rich Ro ...

. It is found in virtually the whole of southern Italy but the wines produced from it are considerably different, depending on the places where the vines grow. Aglianico has a medium-sized cluster of grapes which is cylindrical-conical in shape.

References

Cited sources

External links

*
Taurasi DOCG wines
on taurasidocg.com. *
sito del vino Taurasi
Cities and towns in Campania {{Campania-geo-stub