Why it matters
The producer
Silvia Imparato farms five hectares of vines on a hillside in San Cipriano Picentino, forty kilometres east of Salerno, inside Monti Picentini Regional Park. The vineyard sits at 100 metres above sea level on what was once a Bourbon estate, on a southwest-facing slope in the shadow of a medieval castle, flanked by oaks, chestnuts, citrus trees and olives. That setting, the wild parkland and the old stone surroundings, tells you something about the estate's character before you open a bottle.
Imparato planted Cabernet Sauvignon in a region that had no serious commercial wine tradition. Her winemaking partner from the beginning was Riccardo Cotarella, one of Italy's most prominent consulting winemakers. The wine carries the estate's name: Montevetrano, a Colli di Salerno IGT red blending Cabernet Sauvignon, Aglianico and Merlot from the estate's own vines, fermented and bottled on the property. In September 2025, the estate was acquired by Tenuta Ulisse, controlled by White Bridge Investments II Spa.
Place and vineyards
Where the wines begin
Campania is southern Italian wine country, warm and dry, with soils shaped by centuries of volcanic activity. San Cipriano Picentino sits in the Picentini hills inland from the Tyrrhenian coast, where altitude and aspect temper the heat enough to preserve acidity in the grapes. The Colli di Salerno IGT designation covers the hills of Salerno province and was the logical label for a wine that did not fit Campania's traditional appellations built around indigenous varieties like Fiano, Greco or Aglianico alone.
The southwest exposure on the Montevetrano hillside means afternoon sun, full ripeness and warm tannins in the Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, while the altitude keeps freshness in the finished wine. The estate's position inside the regional park, away from intensive agriculture, adds to the setting's character.
In the cellar
Vineyards and cellar
The flagship Montevetrano is made from estate grapes only. Before fermentation begins, 15% of the free-run juice is drained from the must, concentrating the solids and increasing skin-to-juice ratio in the tank. Fermentation runs for roughly 20 days in stainless steel with long skin maceration, extracting colour and tannin from the Cabernet Sauvignon, Aglianico and Merlot. The wine then spends 12 months in new 225-litre barriques made from Nevers, Allier and Tronçais oak, three forest sources that each contribute slightly different grain and spice character. Twelve months in new wood at that scale adds body and rounds the tannin without softening the wine's frame.
Wines to know
The range in view
Montevetrano (flagship): A Colli di Salerno IGT red blending Cabernet Sauvignon, Aglianico and Merlot. A documented vintage used 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Aglianico and 10% Merlot, which gives a sense of the wine's architecture: French variety in command, Aglianico adding dark fruit and backbone, Merlot softening the seam between them. The 20-day fermentation with skin maceration and 15% must drainage produces a wine with concentrated colour, firm tannin and a mid-palate that holds its weight through the oak ageing. Montevetrano is a Campanian red that reads as international in its construction but southern Italian in its depth and warmth.
Core: A 100% Aglianico red from mature vineyards in Guardia Sanframondi and Castelvenere in Benevento province, first produced in 2011. The name carries two meanings: amore in Neapolitan dialect and the English word for essence. Compared to the flagship, Core is tighter and more angular, driven by Aglianico's high acidity and firm, grainy tannin. The volcanic soils in Sannio add a mineral thread through the fruit. Ten months in new oak softens the wine enough to approach it young.
A useful way in
A bottle to begin with
Start with the flagship Montevetrano. It is the wine the estate was built around: a Colli di Salerno IGT red blending Cabernet Sauvignon, Aglianico and Merlot from the estate's own five-hectare hillside vineyard in San Cipriano Picentino. The 20-day skin maceration and 12 months in new French barriques give it the weight and depth to hold up over a meal, while the Aglianico adds dark fruit and a southern Italian backbone that separates it from a straightforward international blend. The warm mid-palate, firm tannin and clean finish explain why this wine built Montevetrano's reputation in Campania.