Lapio Guide

Lapio is a small town in the province of Avellino, in Campania, southern Italy, and it sits among the green, largely mountainous hills of Irpinia. Nobody comes here for a long list of sights. You come for the vineyards, the quiet, and the feeling of standing in the middle of working wine country.

The first thing you notice around Lapio is the bees. They are a common sight in the Fiano vineyards, drawn by the sugary pulp of the grapes, so a walk between the rows is rarely a solitary one. Some of the best-known Fiano plantings around Avellino stand among hazelnut trees, which means the view is a patchwork of vines and orchards rather than one uniform field.

The one landmark that Lapio is pictured with is the Ponte Principe bridge. Give it a short stop and a few photographs, but treat it as a pin on your wander rather than a destination in its own right. The village itself is compact and calm, and you will spend more time looking out over the hills than looking at monuments.

Lapio is ringed by other comuni: Candida, Chiusano di San Domenico, Luogosano, Montefalcione, Montemiletto, Parolise, San Mango sul Calore and Taurasi. Taurasi gives its name to one of the DOCG wines of the area, so the names around you start to sound familiar once you open the local bottles.

Go a little further and Irpinia opens up. Its name comes from the Oscan word hirpus, wolf, and the wolf is still the symbol of the district. Sant'Angelo dei Lombardi is a medieval small town among the green hills, Calitri in Upper Irpinia is known for its characteristic cuisine, and Ariano Irpino, the largest town of the area, is known for its ancient majolica.

Water runs through this country as well. The Calore Irpino rises at Colle Finestra in the Monti Picentini, flows through the province of Avellino and then Benevento, and finally joins the Volturno. San Mango sul Calore, a neighbour of Lapio, carries the river's name, so you are never far from that valley while you drift between villages.