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Agnanum

Piedirosso 'Sabbia Vulcanica' 2017

Price: $24.95
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Tasting notes

This is one of the rare places in Italy where Piedirosso grows ungrafted on volcanic sand, giving the wine a mineral-saline edge you simply cannot replicate elsewhere. Cherry, wild berry, violet, and a whisper of graphite — it drinks like a coastal red with real geological identity. At 12% ABV, it is agile and food-friendly without being thin.

BodyFruitTanninAcidity
Taste profile
CherryVioletRaspberrySalinity
  • Style: Light-bodied natural red; bright ruby; cherry, violet, mineral-saline; 12% ABV; stainless steel only
  • Grapes & Terroir: 100% Piedirosso; organic; ungrafted vines 50-100+ years old; volcanic black sand, Agnano crater, Campi Flegrei
  • Winemaking: Native yeast fermentation; aged in stainless steel; minimal sulfites at bottling (<15ppm SO2); no wood contact
  • Serving: Serve at 60-62F; light decant optional; enjoy within 3-5 years of vintage
  • Pairing: Tomato-based pasta, grilled fish, fried seafood, eggplant parmigiana, rabbit, herb charcuterie
  • Similar To: For fans of Gamay, Nerello Mascalese, or coastal Italian reds who want volcanic minerality and low tannin

Agnanum's Sabbia Vulcanica is 100% Piedirosso from the Campi Flegrei, the supervolcanic caldera on the western edge of Naples. The vineyard sits within the crater of Agnano, adjacent to the Astroni Natural Park, on steep hand-cut terraces of black volcanic sand. The soils have four distinct layers of volcanic deposit, all loose and sandy, which is precisely why these vines survived the phylloxera epidemic — the louse cannot travel through dry, friable volcanic sand. Vines here are 50 to over 100 years old and grow ungrafted.

The name Sabbia Vulcanica means 'volcanic sand' in Italian, a direct reference to the terroir that defines this wine. All work in the vineyard is strictly manual: no mechanization is possible on these terraces, which must be continuously rebuilt by hand after rain. Raffaele Moccia shapes small concave basins next to each individual vine to capture rainwater, the only source of irrigation. Yields are capped at 30 to 40 quintals per hectare, and harvest is intentionally late.

In the cellar, the wine is fermented with native yeasts in stainless steel and aged entirely in stainless steel to preserve the wine's freshness and varietal character. Only a minimal amount of sulfites is added at bottling. The result is a light-to-medium-bodied red with bright ruby color, delicate tannins, lively acidity, and a pronounced mineral salinity driven by the volcanic sandy soils and proximity to the Tyrrhenian Sea.

The wine's fresh acidity and subtle salinity make it a natural match for tomato-based pasta dishes, grilled fish with herbs, or fried seafood in the Neapolitan tradition. It also works well alongside eggplant parmigiana, rabbit dishes, or herb-dressed charcuterie. Serve slightly cool at around 60 to 62 degrees Fahrenheit.

Wine details

Dry/Sweet:, Dry
Wine Type:, Red Wine
Wine Style:, Light Body
Grapes:, Piedirosso
Farming:, Organic
Vintage:, 2017
Alcohol:, 12%
Country:, Italy
Region:, Campania
Appellation:, Campania IGT
Bottle Size:, 750ml
Sugar Level:, Zero Added Sugar

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.


Important Compliance Requirements

FedEx and other carriers we might occasionally use can only deliver wine to customers who are 21 years or older. Someone must be at the address to receive the package, carriers don't just drop a package and leave. They must ensure the person receiving the wine is 21 or older.


Re-shipping a Package

If a package is returned to us after three failed delivery attempts, we can only re-ship the wine upon payment of a re-shipping fee, to be determined based on the shipping address and number of bottles. Shipping wine is extremely expensive. We are sorry about this, but we have no other choice. Please make sure there's always someone at the address you enter as your shipping address.

If you'd like to receive a refund for a package that was returned to us after FedEx made three delivery attempts, we can do that but we must keep a $20 refund fee; FedEx charges us a lot of money for returns, unfortunately, I can't stress this enough.


Re-routing a Package

If you'd like to reroute a package after it's been shipped, we can do so for a $20 re-routing fee. We cannot re-route a package across state borders. For any change of address, please contact us as soon as possible, ideally within 1-2 days from placing the order or we cannot guarantee we'll be able to reroute or change your order's shipping address.


Canceling an Order

If you'd like to cancel an order after it's been shipped, we can do so upon payment of a small cancellation fee – the amount depends on the size of the order. Carriers charge us a lot of money to recall a package en-route.


Heat/Frost damage

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Placed an order. What next?

1. You will receive an order confirmation email with your order summary.*

2. As soon as your order ships from the warehouse, usually within 2-3 business days, this applies to all shipping rates, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with your tracking information. 2DAY shipping refers to shipping time; we still need 2-3 business days to prepare an order. We need to pick and pack, QA, add printed collateral, and palletize the orders.

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4. The carrier will attempt delivery a maximum of 3 times. After 3 delivery attempts, your package will be sent back to our warehouse.**

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**If delivery is attempted 3 times without success, or if you fail to retrieve your package from the carrier depot by the stated deadline, the shipping fee will not be refunded to the customer.

Returns Policy

If you are not satisfied with your purchase, please contact us at (424) 414-2040 or via e-mail at hello@primalwine.com between 9 am and 5 pm Pacific Standard Time, Monday through Sunday, we would like to understand and try to solve your concerns. We can offer refunds only as store credit.

Producer profile

Agnanum

Agnanum is a small family estate located within the crater of Agnano, near Pozzuoli, on the western edge of Naples. The estate sits adjacent to the Astroni Natural Park, the only vineyard in the Campi Flegrei directly abutting this ancient forest. Gennaro Moccia founded the estate in 1960, recovering old vineyards and planting new ones; some of the oldest vines on the property are over 100 years old. Raffaele Moccia, Gennaro's son, gave up his career as an agro-technician to manage the estate full-time and was the first in the family to bottle wine, beginning in 2002. The estate currently farms approximately 4 hectares.

All vineyard work is done by hand. Mechanization is impossible on these steep, narrow, hand-cut terraces of volcanic sand, which have no rock reinforcement and must be continuously rebuilt after rainfall. Raffaele shapes small concave basins next to each individual vine to capture rainwater, replacing any need for irrigation. Farming is organic. Yields are held to 30 to 40 quintals per hectare through low plant density and late harvest. The Piedirosso vines are ungrafted, having survived phylloxera because the sandy volcanic soil prevents the louse from traveling between roots.

Fermentation takes place in stainless steel with native yeasts. The wine is aged entirely in stainless steel for several months, with no wood contact, to preserve the freshness and primary fruit character of the grape. Only a minimal addition of sulfites is made at bottling, documented at under 15 ppm SO2 in recent vintages. The wine is released approximately one year after harvest.

Wine region

Campania, Italy

Campania sits in southern Italy along the Tyrrhenian Sea and encompasses some of the country's most geologically active terrain. The region includes the Campi Flegrei, a supervolcanic caldera northwest of Naples; the slopes of Mount Vesuvius to the east; and the island of Ischia to the west. Soils across the region range from volcanic ash, lapilli, and tuff to black volcanic sand, all of which contribute to the pronounced minerality typical of Campanian wines. The climate is Mediterranean, moderated along the coast by sea breezes, with harvest dates among the latest in Italy.

Campania holds four DOCGs — Taurasi, Fiano di Avellino, Greco di Tufo, and Aglianico del Taburno — and 15 DOCs including Campi Flegrei and Vesuvio. The Campi Flegrei DOC covers roughly 100 hectares of vineyards in the municipalities of Bacoli, Marano, Monte di Procida, Naples, Pozzuoli, and Quarto. The primary red grape of Campi Flegrei is Piedirosso, known locally as Per' e Palummo or 'pigeon's foot,' an ancient variety documented as far back as Pliny the Elder's Naturalis Historia. Single-varietal Piedirosso from Campi Flegrei tends toward pale ruby color, restrained tannins, brisk acidity, and a saline mineral character linked to volcanic soils and coastal exposure.

Frequently asked question

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.

Signature on delivery is mandatory for wine deliveries. Please make sure someone is at the shipping address to sign for the package.

If applicable, please consider delivering the package to a business address to ensure someone is available to sign for the package.

We also have the option of delivering the package to a Carrier's store for pickup. Please reach out to us to coordinate.

Carrier will try to delivery a package up to three times before returning the package to us.

See here our shipping policy.

If you miss a delivery and a package gets returned to us we have two options:

1) Reship the package right away: due to the very high cost of shipping and returns, we must charge a re-shipping fee to be determined based on package size and shipping destination.

2) Consolidate the returned package with your next order: this option is free of charge and it's the most popular option.

See here our shipping policy.

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