his wine is called after the ancient city of Atina, the farthermost and probably most imposing of Samnite bastions. Atina was first mentioned by Virgil, who included it among the five Latium cities that were allies of Turno against Aeneas. The Latin poet called the city Atina Potens. Atina was conquered by the Romans in the 3rd century BC and became, first, a prefecture, and later, a colony and a municipality. The barbarian invasions, which followed the decline of the Roman Empire, brought with them destruction and plunder. But Atina managed to flourish again in the Middle Ages, only to be raised to the ground in a tremendous earthquake in 1349. After the earthquake, the city was reconstructed by the Cantelmo family.
Today Atina is a peaceful town with several points of interest, including the remains of an ancient polygonal wall dating back to the 5th and 4th centuries B.C., the magnificent Palazzo Ducale and a the 18th-century Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta.
In spite of its ancient history, Atina is rather new to winemaking. It was in the 19th century that Pasquale Visocchi, a local agronomist who had learned the secrets of the trade in France, had the intuition to plant Cabernet and Merlot vines in the alluvial marls surrounding Atina. The results were excellent right from the start and Atina has since been blessed with great wine vintage after vintage. In the past ten years or so, increasing attention has been paid to vinification and ageing techniques, allowing the wine of Atina to gain recognition in the domestic market and win the D.O.C. appellation.
This page was written by Stefano Milioni. Background image and most photos in this section courtesy of Giuliano Bugialli, all right reserved (see Copyright and Credits).
his wine is called after the ancient city of Atina, the farthermost and probably most imposing of Samnite bastions. Atina was first mentioned by Virgil, who included it among the five Latium cities that were allies of Turno against Aeneas. The Latin poet called the city Atina Potens. Atina was conquered by the Romans in the 3rd century BC and became, first, a prefecture, and later, a colony and a municipality. The barbarian invasions, which followed the decline of the Roman Empire, brought with them destruction and plunder. But Atina managed to flourish again in the Middle Ages, only to be raised to the ground in a tremendous earthquake in 1349. After the earthquake, the city was reconstructed by the Cantelmo family.