Barile, Maschito, Ginestra, San Costantino Albanese e San Paolo Albanese. Not a mere sequence of municipalities but a group of small centers in the province of Potenza that share a part of their history.
They are some of the towns in southern Italy where the presence of Albanians fleeing their own land, just as happens today, is still evident in the customs and traditions of the people. A contamination that has experienced the unstoppable passage of time but not the erasure of traditions still deeply rooted in the language and memories.
Barile, Maschito and Ginestra are three nearby centers located in one of the richest areas of Basilicata. It is here, in the Vulture area, that one of the most important wines of the Italian tradition comes to life: the Aglianico del Vulture.
In this area of Basilicata, characterized by gentle hills often drawn by rows of grapes and olive trees, the three small centers represent a true attraction for their “albereshe” past (from Alber-Arber) and for their cellars carved into the rock almost to symbolize the true bond between man and nature.
On the other side of the small region, south towards Calabria and in the heart of the Pollino park, there is the presence of two other small centers of Albanian ethnicity: San Costantino and San Paolo Albanese. Even here, although the morphology of the terrain has better preserved external influences since this is a more internal area, the people welcome the curious tourist with a greeting in the ancient Albanian language.
