TERRITORY
The vineyards of Azienda Rocca dei Sanniti Winemakers are located in the town of Benevento, more precisely at the district of Santa Colomba, about 6 kilometers from the town center. The altitude of the vineyards is between 350 meters s.l.m. They all lie in a hilly area with rows arranged in compliance with the disciplinary of the DOC Sannio.
The hilly area of the Contrada is surrounded by the hills forming the Benevento Apennines both to the north-west and to the south-west.
This orographic situation plays a decisive role on the microclimatic characteristics of the vineyards of Rocca dei Sanniti Viticoltori.
The annual precipitation is around 700 mm with the most rainy periods concentrated in the months of November, December and January and those dry during the summer. The trend of average monthly temperatures is therefore typical of the hilly areas of the Mediterranean basin and foothills like that of the Samnite area.
From an agronomic point of view, the production site in Santa Colomba is characterized by the presence of intact soils, whose soil retains clayey characteristics and is characterized by precious mineral substances such as potassium, calcium and magnesium.
The Sabato River - which laps the agricultural estate downstream - is born from Colle Finestra on Mount Terminio, on the opposite side from where the Irpino Heat is born. From Altavilla Irpina its course marks for a stretch from south to north the border of the provinces of Benevento and Avellino up to the confluence of the Fratta torrent on the right. It then crosses the Strait of Barba and leaving on the left Ceppaloni and San Leucio del Sannio and on the right Chianche and Sant'Angelo a Cupolo, and flows into the Calore in the locality "Pantano", west of Benevento, about 1 km after the bridge Roman Leproso or Leprous.
With reference to the Strait of Bara, the toponym Barba (Balbae) is mentioned for the first time in a document dated 1132. The reference to the strictum Balbe dates back to 1272. The etymological meaning of the toponym Valva or Balba, which became Barba in the eighteenth century, is clearly attributable to the shells of a shell and this for the appearance of the gorge from the steep rocky walls. Further up, on the left side stood Balba, an ancient village with a castle that dominated the narrow below. An ancient Roman road bordered the Strait of Barba, which led from Benevento to Salerno, passing through Avellino; in the Middle Ages it was called via '' Antiqua Maiore ''. The strait was crossed by the ancient bridge of the Avellino-Benevento Roman aqueduct. In the eighteenth century a wooden bridge leaned on the ancient pylons of the Roman bridge. Today there is a modern bridge on which the state highway 88 of the Due Principati passes.
A version of the legend of the witches of Benevento places near the Strait of Barba the place where was the walnut of Benevento, under which witches practiced their rituals.
According to Piperno, on the other hand, the walnut tree was two miles from Benevento, in fact near the town of Santa Colomba, along the river Sabato. These legends are rooted in the rituals that the Lombards performed under a sacred tree that according to tradition was eradicated by San Barbato, Bishop of Benevento.