A volcano older than Vesuvius, inhabited by biodiversity and suitable for agriculture, where viticulture is at home and offers results to watch out for.
The volcano of Roccamonfina is located in the province of Caserta, 40 km from Mount Vesuvius and 30 km from the Reggia Vanvitelliana, part of the Roccamonfina and Foce Garigliano Volcanic Area Regional Park, which covers about 11,000 hectares, up to the border with lower Lazio. È older than the famous Vesuvius, with a monogenetic characteristic, meaning that it had only one eruptive episode in history, occurring about 350,000 years ago, during the Pleistocene, producing a large amount of basaltic lava that formed the volcanic cone we see today, with a height of 1,006 meters and a circumference of 8 km.
Its summit offers a panoramic view unique over the surrounding countryside and the Gulf of Gaeta. Although it has been inactive for more than 50,000 years, there have been over time manifestations of volcanic activity, such as fumaroles and hot springs, contributing to the formation of a Soil rich in minerals and nutrients.

Rich in biodiversity
Volcanic soil saturated with organic matter, making Roccamonfina a very fertile place, inhabited by biodiversity and suitable for agriculture, with the presence of curiously shaped rocks reminiscent of the area’s past volcanic activity, now covered by crops of chestnut trees, olive groves and vineyards, which during spring is enriched by the beautiful blooms of crocuses, buttercups, primroses, orchids, anemones and violets. The park is also home to specimens of extremely rare birds and of great interest, such as the red heron and the more common marsh owls, ospreys and white storks that testify to the functionality of the ecosystem of the entire area, and with a bird fauna that includes breeding populations of buzzards and kestrels.
It is a special place, crossed by the Garigliano River, which carves its way through volcanic and limestone soils down to the mouth of the Baia Domizia coastline. In this context, vineyards are located between 200 to 500 meters above sea level, taking advantage of the Mediterranean climate with continental influences and by temperature ranges between day and night that participate in slow and gradual ripening of the grapes, giving the wines important complexity and structure.
The varieties grown
Grape varieties grown include mainly. Aglianico, Piedirosso and Falanghina, then Fiano, Coda di Volpe, Greco, Primitivo and Sciascinoso and in smaller quantities Pallagrello Nero and Bianco and Casavecchia. Beyond the winemaking practices of individual producers, red wines in general have great structure and are marked by longevity, developing very interesting identifying notes of humus over time, while the white grapes produce fresh, aromatic and extremely saline wines.
Authentic wines, that reflect the identity of the Campania Felix territory that intersects with the historic Falerno road from Roccamonfina, and that in most cases refer to limited, artisanal bottles from wineries that are mainly concentrated along the eastern slope of the volcano.
In recent years, flanking the incumbent companies have sprung up different realities, particularly beautiful and integrated into the natural environment, focused on representative wines in the entire volcano. They bear in some cases the Galluccio DOC (which falls in the municipalities of Conca della Campania, Galluccio, Mignano Monte Lungo, Rocca d’Evandro, Tora and Piccilli) in others of the Igt Roccamonfina (They are joined by Caianello, Carinola, Cellole, Francolise, Calvi Risorta, Rocchetta e Croce, Riardo, Pietramelara, Roccaromana, Pietravairano, Vairano Patenora, Presenzano, Marzano Appio, San Pietro Infine, Sessa Aurunca, Falciano del Massico, Mondragone, Sparanise, Roccamonfina, Teano). Credit must be given to the productions at the historic Villa Matilde Avallone and then Galardi, Telaro, Porto di Mola, Poderi Foglia Vestini Campagnano, Masseria Starnali and many others.
We have selected 8 wines, for us the most representative.