The Gargano is known for its sea, its white villages and the Umbra Forest. Few people know that inland, between Manfredonia and the villages of the Alta Murgia, there are vineyards producing wines of tremendous character: deep reds like Nero di Troia, fresh and mineral whites like Bombino, small artisan productions that never leave the region and that you have to go and find in person.
This article is for those who come to Manfredonia not only for the sea, but also to understand what is in the glass when they sit down to eat in a local restaurant. And for those who want to take home something authentic that you simply cannot find in wine shops in big cities.
Nero di Troia: the king of the Foggia hinterland
Nero di Troia is the most important native grape variety of the Capitanata, the province of Foggia of which Manfredonia is the largest coastal city. It is a dark-skinned grape, late-ripening, with large bunches whose berries concentrate sugar and polyphenols under the long Puglian summer sun. The wine it produces has an almost impenetrable ruby-red colour, firm but not aggressive tannins, and an aromatic profile ranging from fresh blackberries and plum to dried fruit, with hints of spice and tobacco in the more aged versions.
It is not an easy wine in the sense often meant: it is not round, not soft, not designed to please everyone immediately. It needs food, a substantial dish that can stand up to its structure. With oven-roasted lamb with potatoes, with bombette of meat, with an aged caciocavallo podolico cheese, it becomes something memorable. Many guests staying at Casa e Bottega discover it on their first evening at dinner and spend the rest of their stay hunting for it in the wine shops of the historic centre.
Bombino bianco: the wine of the coast
If Nero di Troia is the wine of the hinterland and meat, Bombino bianco is the wine of the sea and fish. A native variety grown along the Foggian coast and the lower Gargano, it produces a fresh, light white with a saline minerality reminiscent of the nearby sea. It is not a complex wine: it is a direct, honest wine that does what it is supposed to do without overpowering the food.
With spaghetti alle vongole from the restaurant on Manfredonia's harbour, with freshly caught raw seafood, with orecchiette ai ricci di mare: Bombino bianco should be drunk cold, around 8-10 degrees, and consumed young. Older vintages add nothing. It is a summer wine, for lunch at the beach, for a sunset on the promenade with a plate of fried fish in front of you.
The small producers: how to find them
The wine scene in the Gargano and Capitanata is made up largely of small family-run producers: wineries with a few hectares of vineyard, artisan cellars and homemade labels. They have no marketing offices, do not attend major wine fairs and do not send samples to specialist magazines. You find them by word of mouth, by asking the local restaurateur, the wine shop owner, the innkeeper who knows the territory.
Some accept cellar visits by phone appointment. Do not expect tourist facilities with wine bars and structured tastings: you find the producer in overalls, wooden barrels in a workshop, wine poured straight from a demijohn into recycled bottles. The experience is authentic precisely because it is like this. These are the wines that bring the territory into the glass in the most direct way, without mediation.
The areas to explore are the hinterland between Manfredonia and Foggia, the towns of Cerignola and Orta Nova (famous for Nero di Troia) and the Alta Murgia garganica municipalities of Mattinata and Monte Sant'Angelo, where some producers cultivate hillside vineyards with temperature swings that give their wines acidity and freshness.
Wine at the table: pairings with Gargano cuisine
The cuisine of Manfredonia and the Gargano has two distinct souls: the sea and the hinterland. Along the seafront and in the restaurants near the harbour you find the freshest fish, raw seafood, grilled octopus, spaghetti with mussels. Inland the cuisine changes completely: lamb, pork, cheese, pulses, taralli with extra-virgin olive oil. The wines follow this division naturally.
For fish dishes, Bombino bianco is the choice most in keeping with the territory. As an alternative, a Falanghina from the Tavoliere or a Campanian Fiano di Avellino (which reaches this area easily) also work well. For meat dishes and cheeses, Nero di Troia is almost obligatory: try pairing it with a slice of caciocavallo podolico aged at least 12 months and you will understand why this grape variety has survived for centuries in this land.
A note on rosé wines: Puglia is the Italian region with the longest tradition of rosé wines, and the Gargano is no exception. A Nero di Troia rosé, served chilled, is the universal solution that works with fish and light meat dishes alike. Many restaurants in Manfredonia offer it as the house wine.
A winery tour: an itinerary from Manfredonia
If you want to spend half a day exploring the wines of the hinterland, set off from Manfredonia heading towards Foggia along the SS89. After about 20 km the vineyard zone begins: the low bush-trained vines, the traditional Puglian training method that protects the bunches from the excessive heat reflected off the soil. Stop in the villages along the way and ask in a bar or a grocery shop where to buy local wine. Directions will come.
For wineries with organised access, the advice is to contact them at least a few days in advance. Not all of them have fixed opening hours: many producers work in the vineyard in the morning and receive visitors in the late afternoon on their return. The flexibility of hours is one of the advantages of staying in a private holiday home in Manfredonia: you can organise the day however you like, without constraints of check-in or compulsory breakfast.
Where to drink well in Manfredonia
The wine shops in the historic centre of Manfredonia are the most convenient starting point. They select local and Foggian producers, often with a list that includes bottles difficult to find elsewhere. You can ask to taste before buying: in most cases the owner opens the bottle willingly and explains the territory with the same care a producer would. It is the kind of small-scale commerce that survives precisely because it offers something the internet cannot.
In restaurants, do not stop at the printed wine list: ask what is available "off the list", what the restaurateur drinks himself, what he would recommend to a friend. In many cases a bottle with no label arrives, a wine made by someone he knows personally. That bottle tells the story of the Gargano better than any travel guide.
Frequently asked questions
What are the typical grape varieties of the Gargano?
The most representative varieties of the Gargano area are Nero di Troia (a structured red, deep colour, firm tannins), Bombino bianco (a fresh and aromatic white, typical of the Foggian coast), Montepulciano d'Abruzzo also cultivated in northern Puglia, and Primitivo in the hinterland. Nero di Troia is the most characteristic of the Capitanata.
Where can you buy artisan wine near Manfredonia?
The wine shops in the historic centre of Manfredonia select local and Foggian producers, often with bottles difficult to find elsewhere. To buy directly from the winery, the areas to explore are the hinterland between Manfredonia and Foggia and the villages of the Alta Murgia garganica. Some wineries accept visits by appointment.
What does Nero di Troia pair with in local cuisine?
Nero di Troia pairs perfectly with meat dishes from the Gargano hinterland: oven-roasted lamb with potatoes, bombette di carne, wild boar ragù. It also works well with aged local cheeses such as caciocavallo podolico. Serve at 16-18 degrees, not chilled.
Is Bombino bianco easy to find?
Bombino bianco is a grape variety with limited distribution, grown mainly in northern Puglia and Abruzzo. You will not find it in supermarkets, but in specialist wine shops and directly from producers in the Foggia and Gargano area. It is a wine worth seeking out: those who try it often consider it a real discovery.
Is it worth doing a winery tour in the Gargano?
Yes, especially in spring and autumn when producers have more time to welcome visitors. The artisan wineries of the Gargano and Capitanata are small family-run operations: they do not have the tourist infrastructure of large estates, but they offer an authentic experience and much more accessible prices. Contact wineries directly by phone before arriving.