Costa d'Amalfi

Styles

Principal grape varieties

Terroir

• About one and a half million years ago, at the end of the Pliocene, a large elongated structure formed in a west-north-west direction, separating the plain of the Sarno to the north from those of the Irno and the Sele to the south.
• The morphology of the Costa d'Amalfi area is marked by rugged relief that forms the backbone of the peninsula, culminating at the summit of Monte Faito at 1,270 metres above sea level.
• The backbone of the relief is calcareous in nature, but along the slopes — especially those facing the Gulf of Naples — more easily erodible clay soils are found, which soften the harshness of the terrain.
• These ridges alternate with deep incised gorges, carved by short watercourses with a torrential flow regime.
• The lowering of the permanent snowline below 1,500 metres must have triggered glacial phenomena, evidenced by the presence of conglomerates, calcareous breccias, and moraine deposits similar to those found on the highest peaks of the Alps.
• The climate of the Costa d'Amalfi area is a temperate Mediterranean one, with wide temperature ranges, hot summers, and cold winters.

• Historical documents from the city of Amalfi dating to 860 AD attest to the cultivation of the vine in relatively large plots.
• The ratio of vines to other plantings in this area shifted from 1 to 1 in 950 to 3 to 1 in the period 975–1025.
• On the hillsides descending from the Monti Lattari toward the sea, the prized Vino Latino was produced — so named because it was made from grape varieties introduced by the Romans.
• The wines produced in the area of the Republic of Amalfi were traded and transported by sea to other parts of Italy.

Facts drawn from the specification's terroir-link section by automatic interpretation — see the source.

Sottozone

• Costa d'Amalfi Furore DOC (PDO)
• Costa d'Amalfi Ravello DOC (PDO)
• Costa d'Amalfi Tramonti DOC (PDO)

All appellations in Italy

Sources

• eAmbrosia register (EU) — File number PDO-IT-A0278
• Official trade body site — Consorzio di Tutela Vita Salernum Vites