Yet our favorite wines demonstrated potential. They were resonant wines that you’d want to come back to again and again over the course of a meal.

“It’s chicken and egg,” Levi said. “Either the consumer will say, ‘I want more than a simple sipper,’ or the producer needs to say, ‘I want to do something more serious, rather than pandering to the consumer.’ ”

Aside from the two distinct grapes, falanghinas from Campania come in a variety of appellations. Those from a specific hilly area northeast of Naples may be called Falanghina del Sannio, while those from a wider area in the Benevento province are called Beneventano Falanghina (not to be confused with the falanghina beneventana grape, although that name, too, is derived from the province). East of Naples, the wine may be called Irpinia Falanghina, and wines from the coastal area west of Naples may be called Falanghina Campi Flegrei.

Others abound, but perhaps more important is what good values these wines can be. Only one wine in the tasting was more than $25. That was our No. 2 bottle, the 2012 Via del Campo Irpinia Falanghina from Quintodecimo at $45. This wine definitely did not lack for ambition. It was partly fermented in new oak barrels, and the lees were stirred, and while I remain cautious about these techniques, this wine, with its depth, texture and lingering flavors, demonstrated their benefits.

Nonetheless, the simpler $17 2013 Beneventano Falanghina from Vesevo was our favorite: savory, resonant and refreshing with great minerality. It was also our best value. We also very much liked the 2013 Falanghina del Sannio from Mastroberardino, a wine with intensity and staying power that belied its pale color. It’s worth remembering that Mastroberardino was the pioneering winery in Campania that worked to preserve and promote the region’s indigenous grapes decades before anyone else was paying attention.

While those wines stood above the others in the tasting, others worth citing include the 2013 Beneventano Falanghina from Donnachiara, which showed an unusual combination of savory and sweet fruit flavors; the 2013 Sancto Ianni Beneventano Falanghina from Tenuta Ponte, a light-bodied wine full of intriguing mineral flavors; and the 2013 D’Orta & De Conciliis Beneventano Falanghina, a joint project involving the always-interesting Bruno De Conciliis, who is better known for making wines in southern Campania.

While our tasting raised questions, it did not diminish my interest in falanghina. Well-made wines from good producers are absolutely worth seeking out on wine lists and in retail shops. They are great values and for the most part can fill that spot on the bottom of the list that may otherwise go to insipid pinot grigios and the like.