int'l wine review- june july 2013 _ the wines of sicily

7/28/2019 Int'l Wine Review- June July 2013 _ the Wines of Sicily

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The International Wine ReviewJune/July 2013

Report #37: The Wines of Sicily

In this Issue

A Brie Wine History .............................................. 3

Geography ........................................................... 4

Improvements in Viticulture and Winemaking ............ 7

The Vineyard .................................................. 7

The Winery .................................................... 9

The Grapes and Wines ........................................ 10

Sicilian Food and Wine Pairing ............................. 12

The Market or Sicilian Wine ................................. 14

Tasting Notes and Ratings ..................................... 16

IntroductionSicily is one othe most excitingwine regions inItaly. In recentdecades, Sicil-ian wines havegreatly improvedin quality. WhileSicily is renownor its outstand-ing dessert wines

such as the world-amous Marsala, today there are agrowing number o wineries throughout Sicily, large andsmall, producing world class premium wines rom uniqueindigenous varieties like Nero dAvola, Nerello Mascalese,Frapatto, Grillo, Caricante, and others.

In our previous 2007 report The Wines o Southern Italy:rom Quantityto Quality, we noted that most o southernItaly including Sicily had a long history o wine productionocused on quantity. Instead o producing wines o qual-ity or the international market, the south o Italy became aproducer o cheap bulk wine, and Sicily was the leadingproducer. Indeed, the structure o the wine industry in Sic-ily was built on the production o cheap wine by coopera-tives, which in turn stied private investment and innova-tion in the wine industry. While Sicilys cooperatives andprivate companies continue producing a vast quantity o

innocuous wine, there are today many outstanding amilyand commercial wineries producing world class winesthat deserve the attention o the trade and serious wineconsumers. These wines are the ocus o this report.

In this report we provide a brie history o Sicilys wineindustry and identiy its major wine growing regions andtheir dierent soils and climate. We then identiy theimprovements which have taken place in the vineyardsand the wineries throughout the island that help explainthe emergence o Sicily as a producer o premium wine.A unique characteristic o Sicilian wine is its indigenousgrapes, so we ocus the next section on the dierent variet-

ies and styles o wines being produced and identiy thebest producers. We also take a close look at the specialcuisine o Sicily and make recommendations on the pairingo Sicilian wines and ood. Lastly, we examine the globalmarket or Sicilian wines and recommend measures orpromotion o Sicilian wines in the United States. In thefnal section we provide tasting notes and ratings on morethan 200 wines tasted or this report. Some o the artisana

wines we review are produced in small quantities and aredifcult to fnd outside Sicily, but the persistent consumerwho seeks out these wines will be amply rewarded.

The current market or Sicilian wines in the US should growin the coming years. The quality o the wines is excellentand the prices are competitive or most wines. The bigchallenge or the Sicilian wine industry and its importersis to educate the public about the quality and uniquenesso Sicilian wines. This is one o the missions o AssoviniSicilia, the trade organization which represents most o thequality wine producers o Sicily in international markets.


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Acknowledgements. The preparation of thisreport was made possible by the generous supportand collaboration of Assovini Sicilia and its memberwineries. We are especially appreciative of theencouragement and support given to us by Antonio Ralloand Alessio Planeta. We also want to thank GiuseppeLongo, Assovinis Director, for his outstanding assistancein organizing our visit to Sicily. We were warmly

welcomed by all of the wineries we visited and wereextended special hospitality by the following: Caruso& Minini, Donnafugata, Planeta, Tasca dAlmerita,COS, Valle dellAcate, Zisola, Setteporte and Tenutadelle Terre Nere. We also appreciate the wine samplesand information provided by the many US importers ofSicilian wines. We also owe a great deal of gratitude toBill Nesto MW and Frances di Savino for their superbbook, The World of Sicilian Wine, which was publishedjust prior to our visit to Sicily. The book is a tour deforce on Sicilian wine and was extremely helpful to usduring our visit to Sicily and in writing our report. Weare most indebted to Bill and Frances. Finally, manythanks to Dana Rubsam Penso, our Italy correspondent,

who contacted wineries on our behalfMike Potashnik and Don Winkler with Joel Butler,Contributing Editor

The i-WineReview is published by the InternationalWine Review, LLC. Our ofce is located at 6625 OldChesterbrook Road, McLean, VA 22101. Our email is:[email protected] Rates or one-year subscriptionsare $69 or the online edition and $89 or the print edi-tion. Combined online and print subscriptions are $99or 1 year. Subscriptions include exclusive access toall online resources o i-winereview.com. Special group

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A Brief Wine HistorySicily has a long and colorul wine history beginning with-ancient times. It acquired worldwide renown in the 19thcentury with the discovery ovino perpetuoby an Englishmerchant, who ortifed the wine and marketed it to theworld as Marsala. The popularity o Marsala eventuallyaded, to be replaced the middle o the last century by the

production o bulk wine by community cooperatives. Buttowards the end o the century, quality growers began bot-tling their own wine, ollowing the viticultural and enologi-cal advice o the Sicilian Wine Research Institute (IRVV)and gaining success in export markets1. Today, theres arenewed emphasis on the indigenous varieties o Sicily ac-companied by continued improvements in growing grapesand making wine.

Ancient Times

The Greeks and Phoenicians were the frst to grow vinesand produce wine in Sicily in the 8th century B.C. Ac-cording to Homer Sicily was a wild yet ertile place and

that with a little industry it could become a land o plenty.In the centuries that ollowed, other outsiders (Romans,Muslims, Normans et al) exploited Sicilys natural wealthbut ailed to create an indigenous wine culture. Underthe Romans, the island became the breadbasket o theRoman Empire, and Sicilys grapes and wines were prizedon the Roman table. The Muslims introduced a varietyo new crops on the island beginning in the 9th centuryand continued the cultivation o wine grapes although notto the same degree as in Greek and Roman times. TheNorman kings brought wealth to Sicily and protected itsnatural resources but contributed little to the developmento the islands wine culture. Indeed, up to the end o the18th century oreign rulers and the landed nobility whicharose with them continued to exploit Sicilys natural wealth

without developing an indigenous culture or wine produc-tion.

The Age of MarsalaSicilys wineindustry beganto emerge in thelate 18th centurywith the inventiono Marsala bythe Englishman,

John Woodhouse.Woodhouse land-

ed on Sicilys westcoast near thecity o Marsala (see map) in 1770, tasted the local winecalled Vino Perpetuo(a wine aged in cask more than 40

years and drawn directly rom cask) and realized he couldortiy the wine to better withstand shipment and make aless costly version o Madeira since both labor and grapes

were plentiul and cheap. The act that in 1805 ThomasJeerson purchased a barrel o Marsala is evidence oWoodhouses success in marketing Marsala. In the ensuing

years other British entrepreneurs ollowed Woodhouse andinvested in vineyard development, winemaking, and trans-port o still wines in and around the town o Marsala.

During the second hal o the 19th century, ollowing theunifcation o Italy under Giuseppe Garibaldi, British inu-

ence in the wine industry waned, and more Siciliansentered the Marsala trade, producing wine or local con-sumption and exporting it to France, England, and othercountries. Indeed, the wine industry ourished duringthis period with vineyard plantings reaching their highestpoint in historyover 321 thousand hectares. The boom,however, did not last; phylloxera hit Italy in 1880 and tooka major toll on vineyards and wine production until themiddle o the 20th century when wine cooperatives cameon the scene and transormed Sicily into a major bulk wineproducer.

The Rise of the Cooperatives

During the second hal o the 20th century, cooperativewineries became the major producers o wine in Sicily.These cooperatives produced grape juice (must) and winein bulk rom grapes purchased rom their memberssmallarmers. Responding to the growth in demand or cheapwine in Europe and aided by avorable EU trade policies,Sicily rapidly became a major producer o bulk wine andits cooperative wineries expanded rapidly. The wineboom o this period also enabled cooperatives to provideessential income to small Sicilian armers, especially thosein the West who had been hard hit with the down turn othe Marsala industry in the 1960s. From 1970 the numbero cooperative wineries in Sicily increased rom 73 to 197by 1980. As o 1987, 78 percent o Sicilian wine was pro-

duced by cooperatives, and 97 percent o that was soldin bulk. One cooperativeSettesolilocated in Menfon Sicilys southwestern coast was exceptional. Formed in1958, it started bottling wine in the mid-1970s under theleadership o Diego Planeta and today is highly successulexporting good quality value wines.

1In 2011 the IRVV was replaced by the IRVOS (Istituto Regionale Vini e Oli diSicilia) to promote Sicilian olive oil in addition to wine.


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The Palmento: Traditional WinemakingPrior to theintroduction omodern enology,winemaking inSicily took placein palmentos.A precursor totodays wineries,the palmentowas a buildingconstructed o

stone where reshly harvested grapes were crushedand where the juice underwent alcoholic ermentation.The walls o the palmento were very thick, to buerrapid temperature changes. Palmentos were requentlybuilt to make use o gravitythe reception area waselevated, and subsequent processes occurred at lowerelevations. Typically, harvesters dumped grape bunch-es into shallow stone basins where a team o crusherstrod the grapes, the juice o which then owed throughstone gutters to stone tanks where it ermented andthen to another level where it was transerred to large

chestnut or oak barrels, like the chestnut barrels thatwe saw in the old palmento preserved at the Baronede Villagrande winery on Mt. Etna (see picture). Theintroduction o modern winemaking equipment andmore hygienic conditions in the cellar have made thetraditional palmentos obsolete or winemaking today.Many sit abandoned, surrounded by the vineyards theyused to serve. However, they are interesting tourist at-tractions.

The Quality Revolution

Beginning in the 1980s a small number o Sicilian wineproducers began producing high quality wine that ulti-mately led to todays quality winemaking revolution. Theseproducers were by no means the frst, as a couple odecades earlier, Giuseppe Tasca and his wie took overmanagement o Tasca dAlmerita and began producingwines o quality as did the team at Duca di Salaparutaunder the leadership o the brilliant Piedmontese consultingwinemaker, Franco Giacosa. Also in 1971, the French-man Hugues Bernard began producing quality wine atthe Rapital winery at Alessandro di Compareale nearPalermo. These early pioneers were ollowed in the 1980sby Giambattista Cilia, Giusto Occhipinti and Cirino Strano,the ounders o COS winery, by the Rallo amily o Donna-ugata, by Salvatore and Vinzia di Gaetano o Firriato, by

Marco De Bartoli, who revitalized the making o qualityMarsala, by Diego Planeta and others. These were just aew o the producers who, with the help o other industryleaders and consultants, would transorm Sicily into a qual-ity wine producer in the decades ahead.

In the late 1980s and 1990s, most o the leaders o Sicilyswine industry looked beyond Sicily or help in developingtheir industry. In 1985, Diego Planeta, head o the Sette-soli cooperative and the new President o Sicilys RegionalInstitute o Vine and Wine (IRRV), unded research to

identiy promising international varieties and supported thetravel and study o young enologists to become acquaintedwith developments in other countries. Also during thisperiod, Giacomo Tachis, one o Italys fnest enologistsrom Tuscany, and a ollower o the amed Emile Peynaudo Bordeaux, became a consultant to the IRRV. For morethan a decade Tachis helped give direction to Sicilys qual-ity revolution, promoting the adoption o Nero dAvola asSicilys red grape, prescribing the growing o international

varieties, introducing techniques to improve the quality oZibibbo (Muscat Alexandria) and Moscato Bianco dessertwines and helping develop barrel ermentation techniquesor Chardonnay and indigenous whites.

In recent decades, producers in Sicily have ocused theirattention on producing high quality wines rom their ownindigenous varieties. Some o the most notable examplesare the group o producers on Mt. Etna in eastern Sic-ily: Marco de Grazia o Tenuta delle Terre Nere, AndreaFranchetti o Passopiscaro, Federico Curtaz o Tenuta diFessina, Alberto Graci, Barone de Villagrande, and oth-ers who are crating stunning wines rom the indigenousgrapes o Nerello Mascalese and Carricante. In Vittoria

in southeastern Sicily, the winemakers at COS, AriannaOcchipinti, and at Gaetana Jaconos Valle delle Acate areproducing exciting Cerasuolo di Vittoria, and Frappato.Indeed, in virtually every growing area o Sicily there hasbeen exciting progress in the quality o Sicilian wine.

GeographySicily is a geographically diverse wine growing regionwith unique soils born rom underwater volcanoes, strongwinds that attack rom the south and the north, and sitessuitable or growing grapes on the coastal plains, the hilly

interior, and the mountains and volcanoes o the island. Inthis section we examine this terroir and how it varies acrossthe major growing regions o the island.

The Island

The largest island in the Mediterranean, Sicily also hasthe tallest (3320 m), active volcano (Mt. Etna) in Europe.Shaped like a triangle, the islands apex is Marsala on thewest, and its base lies to the east, running rom Messinain the north to Siracusa and Noto in the south with Sicilyssecond largest city, Catania, located in between. Thenorthern side o this triangle is mountainous (the Peloritanisas is its southeast corner (the Hyblaeans), while the south-

ern and western coasts are home to seaside plains that riseto the hills that dominate the island. Less than 15 percento the land is classifed as littoral plains.


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Excluding the northern mountains, Sicily was born underwater, the product o underwater volcanoes (like the activevolcano Ferdinandea located 6m under water just west oAgrigento) and the violent clash o continents as the Ari-can plate slid under the Eurasian plate pushing Sicily outo the sea. As a result, much o the islands soil is calcare-ous in nature, with limestone especially prominent in thesoutheast. The absorptive capacity o the soils helps vinessurvive the long, arid summer. Both active volcanoes like

Mt Etna and dormant ones like Monti Iblei in the southeasthave contributed rich basalt to the soils2.

2For a detailed analysis o Sicilian soils, consult Venturella, Giuseppe. Climaticand Pedological Features o Sicily. BOCCONEA (2004).

The Climate

Sicily lies in the middle o the Mediterranean Sea, and itsclimate is warm with rainall concentrated in the wintermonths. Average rainall is about 600 mm but varies con-siderably, as shown in the map. Milo on Mt. Etna receives

about double the average or the island; rainall is alsohigher than average in the mountains south o Palermo. Aswith many parts o the Mediterranean, rainall in Sicily hasdeclined in recent decades3. Average temperatures anddiurnal variations also vary by altitude and proximity to thesea, which serves as a moderating inuence, warming inthe winter and cooling in the summer. Diurnal temperaturevariations are greatest in the interior at high elevations likethe Regaleali estate near Sambuca located northeast oAgrigento.

Strong winds rom every direction buet the island theyear round. The hot, dust-laden sciroccothat comes outo the Sahara can reach speeds as high as 100 km/h andsnap green shoots in the spring and dry out grapes in the

autumn. Its especially persistent and severe on the islando Pantelleria.

3Arnone, E. et.al. (2013) Rainall statistics changes in Sicily, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.Discuss., pp 2323-2352.

The plains, hills, and mountains and their dierent expo-sures create numerous, distinct areas or growing vines. Forpurposes o exposition, we simpliy and divide Sicily intofve principal regionsthe West, the Center, the Northeast,the Southeast, and the Islands.

The West

The West is mostly comprised o the province o Trapani(one o nine in Sicily) and includes two major urban areas,Marsala and Trapani. As with other coastal areas, soilsnear the sea include the mineral salts o ancient lagoons.Many o the soils, both along the coast and on the hills ur-ther inland, are calcareous red clay.The Grillo grape doesespecially well in the hot, dry coastal climate, while Catar-ratto, the most widely planted variety, is mainly grown onthe inland hills, which rise as high as 600 m. The Trapaniarea grows 58 percent o all wine grapes in Sicily and anastounding 70 percent o all white wine grapes. Some oSicilys most prestigious producers have vineyards in theWest, including Caruso & Minini, Firriato and De Bartoli.

The Center

This includes a large area covering the land between theTyrrhenian Sea on the north to the Mediterranean on thesouth and extending rom the Belice River on the west asar east as the Salso River. It corresponds approximatelyto the provinces o Palermo, Agrigento, Caltanissetta, andEnna and has 36 percent o Sicilys grape vines. Themajor wine producing areas are the highlands south o theseaside city o Palermo, the plains and hills near the south-ern coast called the Terre Sicane, and the highlands in thevery center o the island.

Palermo. Much o the Palermo area is hilly with medium-high altitude (400+ m) vineyards o calcareous clay soilsand a benign climate, including moderate average rain-all (600 mm). Both indigenous (Catarratto, Inzolia) andinternational varieties are grown. Wineries with vineyards


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continuing eruptions o ash and pumice and periodic lavaows, the most recent large one occurring in 1991-1993.The soils are, o course, basaltic but o widely varying tex-tures, rom fne sand to basalt rocks the size o potatoes.Since Mt. Etna is active, alling ash and lapilli(small, lightvolcanic pebbles) are not uncommon, especially towardsthe east and southeast, due to prevailing winds, and con-tribute to soil ertility. The soils are loose and well-aerated,allowing the roots o vines to easily penetrate the basalticsubstrata in search o water in the dry-armed vineyards.

The terroir o Etna varies greatly depending on altitudeand vineyard location, with higher rainall, cooler tempera-

tures, greater diurnal variation, and more basaltic soils thehigher the altitude. Below 400m the soils tend to be sandyclay o alluvial and basaltic origins, and the slopes aregentle enough to permit modern, wire-trained vines. Wide-ly diering mixes o basaltic rocks and sand predominateat altitudes between 400 and 900m (essentially, betweentwo parallel roads, the Quota 600 and the Quota Mille,where Nerello Mascalese, Nerello Cappuccio, and otherindigenous red grapes grown alberello(individually stakedbush vines) style, oten on terraced vineyards. Whitegrapes, mostly Carricante, grown best above 900 m, thealtitude helping preserve the grapes natural acidity. Redvarieties dominate Mt. Etna, representing over 90 percento all vines planted, but the white variety Carricante is pre-

dominant on the southeastern slope, especially in Milo.Rainall varies not only by altitude but, also, by location onMt. Etna. Precipitation is greatest (1200 mm, annually) onthe eastern and southeastern slopes, which receive a directhit rom winter storms coming in o the sea. The northernslopes receive less direct rainall but beneft rom runorom the summit that is absorbed by the volcanic substrata.

Numerous wineries are producing high quality wines romEtna. Some o the better known are Barone di Villagrande,

Mt. Etna DOC

in the Palermo highlands include Duca di Salaparuta andRapital.

Terre Sicane. The Terre Sicane is arid and hot and re-quently bueted by the Arican scirocco. The soils aretypically sedimentary and calcareous, and the vineyardsare typically planted at 250-500 meters altitude. Whitegrape varieties (Inzolia, Catarratto, Chardonnay, Viognier)dominate, but French red varieties (Merlot, Cabernet Sau-

vignon, Syrah) have also gained in popularity. Important,large wineries in the Terre Sicane include Donnaugata,Planeta, and Settesoli.

Central Highlands. In the very center o Sicily, one fndsvineyards planted on mountainous hillsides at high altitudes(up to 900m). While days during the growing season canbe hot, especially when the scirocco blows, temperaturesplummet at night, resulting in large diurnal temperaturevariations. Like most the rest o Sicily, even these highlandswere at one time under the sea, reected in the calciumcarbonate content o the sandy and clay soils. Arguablythe most important producer here is Tasca dAlmerita withover 400 ha o vineyards near Vallelunga. Catarratto,

Nero dAvola, Perricone, and Cabernet Sauvignon areamong the varieties grown in the central highlands.

The Southeast

This historic area lies between the Salso River on the westand the Ionian Sea on the east and includes importanturban centers like Vittoria, Ragusa, Noto, and Siracusa. Itis where Franco Giacosa discovered Nero dAvola, andwhere several growers, including the Zonin-owned Principidi Butera, have planted that variety near Butera. Asiderom Butera, the most important wine growing regions arearound the city o Vittoria and south o Noto. The South-east has only about 4 percent o all Sicilian vineyards.

Vittoria. Vittoria is coastal plain o sandy, sedimentarysoils, oten with a calcareous hardpan, and a hot, dryclimate. It is the home o the delicate Frappato grapeand the Cerasuolo di Vittoria blend o Frappato and NerodAvola. Important wineries include COS, Occhipinti, andValle dellAcate.

Noto. While Vittoria is near the southern shore and theMediterranean, Noto is nearer the eastern shore and theIonian Sea. Here the highly calcareous, clay soils can bealmost white, which reects the heat and helps keep soilscool. As the hottest part o Sicily, ruit can get very ripe,as we ound in our tastings there. Moscato Bianco andNero dAvola are two important varieties grown here. Well

known wineries include Feudo Maccari and Zisola.

The Northeast

Quantitatively, the Northeast is Sicilys least important wineregion. However, it compensates or its lack o size by pro-ducing some o Sicilys most exciting wines. While grapesare grown on the coastal plain bordering the TyrrhenianSea to the north, the main growing area in the northeastis Mt. Etna, especially its northern and eastern sides. Mt.Etna is one o the most active volcanoes in the world with


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Cornelissen, Graci, Passopisciaro (Andrea Franchettisestate), and Terre Nere (Marc de Grazias estate).

The Islands

Sicily has numer-ous oshoreislands. In termso wine produc-tion, the mostimportant is thelargest island,Pantelleria,which lies direct-ly east o Tunisand just 60 kmrom the Tunisiancoast. With vol-canic soils, highsummer tempera-

tures, almost no ground water, scant precipitation and inthe direct path o the ferce scirocco winds, the island isamous or its Passito di Pantelleria, made rom the Zibibbo

grape. Most vineyards are located near the sea, whichhelps moderate the summer heat and provides essentialhumidity. Vines are head trained (alberello pantescaseephoto) and planted close to the ground in depressions orprotection rom the wind.

Closer to Sicily and just 15 km rom the Trapani coast nearMarsala lie the Egadi Islands, including the largest andmost important, Favignana, where Firriato has an experi-mental vineyard located just meters rom the sea.

The Eolian (Lipari) Islands are a volcanic archipelago thatlies at the opposite end o Sicily just o its northeasternshore. Commercial vineyards can be ound on the largestisland, Lipari, as well as on Salina. The islands receivemoderate rainall and have sandy, volcanic soils. Theprincipal grape variety is Malvasia di Lipari which has tra-ditionally been used to make sweet, passito wines. TascadAlmerita has a 5 ha vineyard on Salina or making apassito style Malvasia. Carlo Hauner and Colosi also areimportant producers o this wine.

Improvements in Viticultureand Winemaking

Sicily has a heavy responsibility to European viticulturalhistory, that o maintaining the sensitivity to history whichis inherent in the islands traditions, o keeping alive therelationship between the universality o myth and localtraditions, where the tangible signs o symbols are oundin those ancient grapes and in those places where theycome alive again. These words by noted ViticulturalProessor Attilio Scienza, rom the Istituto Agrario di SanMichele allAdige, echoed in our minds as we travelledaround the island and inspected the diversity o vineyards.From ancient times until quite recently, Sicily was noted or

the quality o its wines, unique varieties and a variety oterroirs, reecting its strikingly diverse climate and topogra-phy.

There is evidence that Sicilys producers are paying heedto Proessor Scienzas comments. The quality o Sicilianwine has improved immensely over the past two decades,resulting rom numerous changes in the vineyard andthe winery. These changes have had diverse sources

research and experiments carried out by the IRVV, theUniversit di Milano, Universit di Palermo, and orwardthinking growers and wineries; advice rom world-amousItalian enologists; EU regulations and subsidies; and the in-centives provided by higher prices and the critical acclaimand recognition o Sicilys best wines by the wine tradeand consumers.

The Vineyard

The Sicilian vineyard has undergone numerous changes inrecent yearsbetter plant material, dierent planting prac-tices, new vineyard sites, and improved vineyard manage-ment, including increased use o sustainable and organic

practices.

Improved Indigenous Clones

Increasing research into grape improvement via clonal se-lection and identifcation o old, indigenous vines o qualityhas grown strongly in the last 10 years. Since 2003, theRegional Agricultural Assessor or Sicily has carried out alarge-scale project aimed at genetic improvement o theislands ampelographic oundations, in collaboration withthe Universities o Palermo and Milan, along with RomesCRA-PAV (Centro di Ricerca per la Patologia Vegetale).From this research has come the frst organized clonalselections o key varieties like Frappato, Inzolia and Nero

dAvola, along with the identifcation o over 50 indigenousvarieties, many previously unknown. These discoverieshave led producers to replant better vine material accord-ing to site. Simultaneously, producers like Marco Nicolosio Barone di Villagrande continue to replant their vineyardsrom a careul selection o cuttings rom their own vines,thus preserving genetic diversity.

At Donnaugata this desire to increase diversity and qualityled to their planting 33 biotypes o Muscat rom all over attheir large vineyard on Pantelleria, amous or its ancientsun-dried Zibibbo (Muscat Blanc). In a joint eort withGiuseppe Tasca at Regaleali, both properties have plantedsome o the 50 nearly extinct varieties noted above inorder to urther Sicilys stature or quality wine and protecta precious cultural heritage.

Better Vineyards

Growers are searching out better locations or vineyards,partly in response to global warming, partly the result ochanges in consumer preerences, and partly to simply getbetter ruit. Increased temperatures as well as the modernpreerence or delicate and crisp white wines has encour-aged producers to plant at higher elevations, above 600

A Zibibbo Vine on Pantelleria


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meters. The de-mand or reshwhite wines asopposed to theold, oxidizedstyle typical othe Marsalaand Alcamoarea propelled

Cusamano toplant their Pianodegli Albanesivineyard near

Ficuzzi at 700 meters. Likewise, most people consider thebest Etna white wines to come rom around Milo on thevolcanos eastern slopes above 700 meters where there ismore rainall and cooler temperatures (Barone di Villa-grande), or the drier north slopes above 850 meters (TerreNere, Passopisciaro).

The search or better vineyard sites includes the rediscov-ery o old sites. Etna is perhaps the best example o theresuscitation o historic growing areas, but the practice

extends beyond Etna. Planeta has been especially activein developing new vineyards in historic areas like Vittoria,Noto, Mamertino, and, o course, Etna. Old vineyards inEtna and elsewhere are located on what were at one timelarge wine estates called contradas, and some produc-ers (Terre Nere, Passopisciaro) started several years agoputting the names o the contradas on their wine labels.Marco de Grazia advocated identiying and defning thecontradas o Etna, and as a result in 2011 a ministerialdecree established 133 o them and legalized putting thecontradas name on wine labels when the grapes comerom a specifc one.

Vineyards are also being planted more densely than a de-cade ago in order to limit production per vine while main-

taining overall production levels4. The Planeta vineyard inUlmo has increased density rom 3800 to 5000 vines perhectare, while Villagrandes vineyards are planted 7000vines/ha. Andrea Franchetti at Passopisciaro on the highslopes o Mt Etna (above 800 m) has recently plantedCesanese and Petit Verdot vines to 12,000/ha, an inordi-nately high density designed to ocus these vines to betterconcentration considering the marginal, cool climate at thiselevation.

Improved Vineyard Management

For newly planted vineyards, Sicily made the conversionrom the traditional alberello (see box) or pergola style

training to Guyot and and cordon-spur (cordone spero-nato) training several decades ago. Cottanera on Etna,or example, used to be pergola trained but converted to

Villagrandes High Density, High Altitude, MassalePlanted Vineyard at Milo

Guyot when it replanted to international varieties in the1990s. Both trellising systems allow or mechanized har-vesting and drip irrigation, and cordon-spur also permitsmechanized pruning. The high cost o manual labor inSicily requires mechanized viticulture in order to producewine at internationally competitive prices. However, grow-ing numbers o growers are resuscitating old alberellotrained vineyards, especially on Mt Etna, and some (e.g.,Feudi Maccari, Tasca dAlmerita) are even planting new

alberello vineyards. In some cases (e.g., Pantelleria) alber-ello is the only easible system. The high costs o rebuild-ing terraces (on Etna) and maintaining low-yielding, oldalberello vines on tiny plots makes this fnancially easibleonly or high-end wines. Today the distribution o vines bytype o training is: alberello (8%), trellised/spalliera (82%)and pergola/tendone (9%).

Alberello. Trans-lated as little tree,alberello is theage-old traditionalmethod o vine-grow-ing still widely used

in many parts oSicily. Low-growing,oten pruned in agoblet-style, circularorm, alberello vinesare typically low invigor, ideally suitedto warm areas androcky, well-drainedsoils where the leacanopy shades theclusters rom sun-burn, and the porousground allows deep

root penetration. This allows older vines especially to

avoid undue stress as they can take advantage o adeep water level. Older alberello vineyards are espe-cially common where phylloxera cannot survive, like onMt. Etna due to its sandy, low clay content soils. Yet atproperties like Feudi di Maccari near Noto, producershave planted newer vineyards in the traditional manner,citing the benefts above, the less expensive plantingcosts (no ancy trellising), and the sel-limiting vigorachieved as the vines roots go deeper.

Cover cropping is increasingly used by some (Planeta,Donnaugata, Regaleali and others) to divert some energyrom vines so that they do not grow as vigorously, thusachieving lower sugars and hopeully better alignment oavour development. By tilling under these grasses andlegumes, they also maintain a healthier soil and lower theneed or ertilizers.

More recently, producers are returning to more traditionalpre-industrial era vineyard management practices o acentury ago, when everything was armed organically.Sicilys overall dry and benign climate, oten windy,permits a more hands-o approach to arming that produc-ers fnd less capital intensive, more consumer-riendly andquality enhancing. At Regaleali, Giuseppe Tasca said his

4Increased planting density is another way that Sicilian growers are returning tothe past. As Salvo Foti in La Sicilia del Vino (Maimone, 2005) states (JB transla-tion): Fity years ago, the normal vine density in Sicily was about 10,000 vines/ha; today, while there are isolated examples like this, they have become the excep-tion..new types o trellising have so modifed the traditional systems that theyhave cut to 1/10 the number o vines per hectare.

Century Old Pre-Phylloxera NerelloMascalese Alberello Vine in Terre Neres

Don Peppino Vineyard in ContradaCalderara Sottana


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ather started to reduce chemical treatments beginning inthe 1980s, including sulphur treatments. From our yearsago, Tasca no longer uses any copper or sulphur, andis eectively organic. Other growers (Valle dellAcate,Feudo Maccari) are ollowing organic practices, and asmall number o producers (e.g., COS) have converted tobiodynamic arming.

The WineryIn the winery, Sicilian producers are crating wines usingmodern equipment and new techniques introduced sincethe 1990s. Most o the old palmentos have been replacedwith new acilities, and well-trained enologists and consult-ing winemakers are at the helm in many o the top winer-ies. Some noteworthy improvements in winemaking romthe harvest to barrel aging are noted below.

The Harvest

Meticulous vineyardmanagement andsteady ripening ograpes enable Sicilyswineries to harvesthealthy grapes bymachine and by hand.The top wineries likeDonnaugata are pick-ing their grapes oracidity and reshnessand harvesting by handand sorting to remove

debris beore ermentation. Because o high daytimetemperatures, top producers also harvest at night to betterpreserve the aromas o the ruit.

Fermentation

The use o controlled cold ermentation and cyromacera-tion in neutral tanks has contributed to white wines withresher ruit, improved aromatics, stability o taste proper-ties and better overall balance. Carricante, Inzolia, andGrillo have been the main benefciaries. The use o coldmaceration beore alcoholic ermentation is also helpingproduce more concentrated color and soter tannins inSicilian red wines.

Most Sicilian producers are also now doing relativelyshorter and cooler ermentations to avoid overextractingtannins and to retain more ruit. Some, like Marco de

Grazia at Terre Nere, have adopted roto- tanks to do airlyquick macerations to gain color and ruit with little seedtannin extraction. Winemakers are also using gentlerermentation techniques to capture the oral, gamey andred ruit character o delicate varieties such as NerelloMascalese and Frappato. These more controlled methodshave contributed to the development o the unique style owines like Cerasuolo di Vittoria, which exhibits reshnessand delicacy in wines rom producers like COS, Occhipintiand Valle dell Acate. They have also sotened the tanninsin the rossos o Mt. Etna.

Franco Giacosa: Pio-neer of Sicilys NerodAvola. Franco Giaco-sa played a key role in Sic-ilys quality wine revolutionby helping to revive Sicilysindigenous wine varietieslike Nero dAvola. In 1974,

several years ater obtaininga diploma at the School oEnology in Alba, Giacosajoined the winemakingteam o Duca di Salaparutawhere he worked with Italys

amed enologist Ezio Rivella. At Duca di Salaparutahe experimented using 120 small vats ( 100 liters) ormicrovinifcation. This became essential or comparingand understanding the dierent varieties, soils and mi-croclimates o Sicily, which up to that time was knownexclusively or its wine sold in bulk. In the early 1980she started production o a red wine using 100% NerodAvola, which received world wide accolades. Helater incorporated Nero dAvola into the blend o DucaEnrico, which was Sicilys frst varietal Nero dAvola.In 1997 Giacosa let Duca di Salaparuta and becameTechnical Director or Zonin. He encouraged GianniZonin to purchase the 310 ha property that later be-came Feudo Principi di Butera. As technical directorat Zonin, Giacosa continued work on the developmento Italys indigenous grape varieties until he retired in2011.

Maturation

Sicilian producers o quality red wine are using oak bar-rels or maturation, especially small barriques (225L) andslightly larger tonneaux (350-500L). However, many

producers are using less new oak than they did even fveyears ago and are also using only older barrels. Produc-ers like Villagrande and Passopisciaro in Etna are usinglarger oak (even chestnut, the traditional wood or Etna redwines) vessels rom 3 hl to 15 hl or aging their wines.

Producers like Alessio Planeta and Marco de Grazia citetwo reasons or dialing down the oak. As vines have ma-tured the wines have greater ruit and structure and dontneed the crutch o new oak. Also, the increasing impor-tance attached to the expression o terroir dictates that oakinuence be reduced. Perhaps another reason is the deli-cate nature o some o Sicilys best varieties, like Frappatoand Nerello Mascalese, which are easily overwhelmed bytoo much oak.

Cement vats are also being used or ermentation and oraging lighter red varieties like Frappato. Cement vats wereused or aging well beore the introduction o French oak,and they oer several advantages. They breathe like oakand diuse oxygen without adding oak character, andthey retain and exchange heat well, so that rerigeration isusually not needed, although glycol tubing can be embed-ded or precision temperature control.

Harvest at Donnafugata


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Experimentation

Creative wine-making and ex-perimentation inthe cellar are tak-ing place acrossSicily today. TwoSicilian produc-ers are lookingbackwards totheir Roman past.COS is cratingwines ermentedand aged in clayamphora jarswith indigenousyeasts, keptunderground

to moderate heat build-up during maturation and bottledwith little or no added sulphur dioxide. However, onlymodern scientifc knowledge and understanding allowsthis low-tech approach. Franc Cornelissen is using clay

amphorae or producing natural wines. He is an extremenaturalist, avoids any treatments o the soil, either organicor biodynamic, and uses amphorae lined with epoxy resinto reduce volatile acidity in his wines.

Amphora Sunk in Gravel at COS

White Grapes

Grillo. Grillo washistorically the mostimportant variety inquality Marsala. Grownalborello style andharvested late, the

grape gives both goodacidity and the highlevels o alcohol desiredin Marsala. However,in recent times it waslargely orgotten asgrowers replaced it withthe consistently high

yielding Catarratto.Marco De Bartoli rediscovered the variety in the 1980s,producing a cold-ermented, dry wine that today is widelyimitated.

Grillo is grown mostly in the western province o Trapani.It is a spontaneous crossing o two other Sicilian varieties

discussed hereZibibbo and Catarratto. It is requentlyblended with the more aromatic Inzolia grape. TodayGrillo represents about 6 percent o Sicilys planted vines.

Grillo table wines are made in several styles. The mostrequent is ermented in stainless steel and reveals aromasand avors not unlike those o Sauvignon Blanc with goodacidity and reshness. Good examples o this style areoered by Caruso & Minini, Valle dellAcate, and TascadAlmerita. Grillo is also sometimes aged in oak or upto 12 months. The Duca di Salaparuta makes a goodexample o this style. And Grillo is also oten requentlyblended with other grapes, especially the more aromaticInzolia; Firriato makes an excellent example.

Inzolia. An old native variety, Inzolia (also spelled Insolia)is the third most planted grape in Sicily with 6,800 hect-ares mainly in western Sicily. Inzolia is blended into manyother wines and is used with Grillo and Catarratto toproduce Marsala. Light straw in color and low in acidityit was historically blended with Catarratto to make whitewines. Prior to the onset o powdery mildew (to which itis especially susceptible) in the 19th century, this was themost widely planted grape in Sicily and, also, made up thelargest share o the Marsala blend.

Like Grillo, Inzolia is very productive and needs to beplanted in low-ertility soils to lower yields and give qual-ity ruit. Inzolia is mildly aromatic and does best in high

altitudes, which bring out its spicy oral character andincreases its acidity level. Good examples o resh Inzoliamade in stainless steel are oered by Firriato and Caruso& Minini. Cusumano makes an excellent, wood ermented,lees stirred wine. And several producers blend Cattaratowith Inzolia, Grecanico, Cattarato, and even Viognier; rec-ommended producers include Cottanera, COS and Caruso& Minini.

Cataratto. This is the most widely planted o all varieties inSicily (and the second most widely planted in all o Italy),

The Grillo Grape

The Grapes and WinesA large number o both indigenous and internationalgrape varieties are grown in Sicily. However, a relativelysmall number are important or premium wine production.White grape varieties represent 64 percent o the total,with 36 percent o plantings being red varieties. As shownin the graph, indigenous varieties like Catarratta, NerodAvola, and Inzolia are a high percentage o all plantings,with Syrah, Chardonnay, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignontogether representing less than 17 percent o the total.Some o Sicilys most interesting indigenous varietiesNer-ello Mascalese, Carricante, Frappato, Zibibbo, and othersbarely register on a graph o hectares planted.


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representing more than a third o all planted vines. It is ahigh yielding variety that has been written about since the17th century, but it came to the ore in the 20th centurywhen it replaced Grillo or the production o Marsala. Itaccounts or 34% o total plantings in Sicily with 38,000hectares. It makes subtly avored wines o moderate al-cohol and high acidity, especially when grown in the hillyinterior. As a dry wine, it is requently blended with Inzo-lia, which contributes both alcohol and ragrance. There

are three phenotypes o CatarrattoComune, Lucido, andExtralucido. Comune is the most widely planted and yieldsthe highest sugar and lowest acidity o the three.

Carricante. Almost all o the Carricante in Sicily (just 146ha) is ound on Mt. Etna. At high altitudes (1000 m) Car-ricante seems to be a sponge or the minerals o Etna, andits wines are invariably described as subtle, chalky andmineral-like with high acidity that gives them long lie inbottle. Its the principal grape in Etna Bianco (at least 60%o the blend) and Etna Bianco Superiore (at least 80% othe blend). Etna Bianco Superiore is only produced in thecommune o Milo near Catania. Barone de Villagranemakes an excellent example o this wine.

Carricante is ermented in stainless steel to preserve itsaromatic qualities and is usually blended with other variet-ies, although Tenuta di Fessina makes an outstanding,oak-aged, 100 percent Carricante. Firriato and Gracimake excellent blends o Carricante and Catarratto, whilePlaneta blends Carricante with Riesling, and Terre Nereblends it with Inzolia.

Zibibbo. This exotic sounding grape is none other thanthe amiliar Muscat o Alexandria. Its name is derived romthe Arabic zabib or dried grape, and became the nameor this grape variety when the island o Pantelleria wasunder Arabic control. Originally rom Northern Arica,the Muscat o Alexandria is one o the oldest genetically

unmodifed grapes in existence and is the base o many othe worlds special sweet wines: Beaume de Venise in theRhne, Vinho Moscatel in Portugals Setbal region, Hane-poot in South Arica, etc. Indeed, the Vitas InternationalVariety Catalogue lists 199 dierent names or this grape.

Only 2 percent o Sicilys vineyards are planted to Zibibbo,but it is ar and away the most important variety plantedon the island o Pantelleria. While Zibibbo is best knownas the variety used to make the late harvest Moscato diPantelleria and the sweet Passito di Pantelleria, todaymany producers also make dry and sparkling Zibibbo romgrapes grown both on Pantelleria and on Sicily itsel.

Chardonnay. Several international white varieties are

planted in Sicily. The most important is Chardonnay,which was widely planted on the island beginning in thelate 1980s and early 1990s. Today it is the most plantedinternational variety and occupies fve thousand hectaresor more than 4 percent o all plantings. Tasca dAlmeritaproduced the frst varietal Chardonnay and Planetareleased its outstanding ripe, barrel-ermented Chardon-nay in the mid-1990s. Today, 98% o all Chardonnay inSicily is planted in the provinces o Trapani, Agrigento andPalermo. Other producers o excellent Chardonnay-basedwines include Cusumano, Donnaugata, Firriato, andRapital.

Red Grapes

Nero dAvola. This is Sicilysmost important red grape with16 percent o total plant-ings. While grown all overthe island., it is the domi-nant grape in the southeastvineyards o Butera and Notoand in much o the provinceo Caltanissetta in the centralhighlands where it represents63 percent o total plantings.Because o the wide variety ogrowing conditions and dier-ences in wine making Nerod Avola takes on a variety oguises.

The most common characteristics o Nero dAvola are darkruit aromas, hints o herbs and rich earthy avors. Thesecharacteristics are ound among grapes grown along thecoast and anywhere else that grapes are allowed to ripen

longer. Good examples o this ripe style are Princip diButera, Cusumano, Tasca dAlmerita, Duca Salaparuta,Duca Enrica and Feudo Maccari.

Since Nero dAvola ripens relatively early growers need totake care to avoid over-ripe, high sugar grapes. Wheregrown at higher elevations with cooler growing conditionsin the middle o the island, Nero dAvola yields redder,resh ruit. However, at 500 meters, it has difculty ripen-ing and produces light, astringent wines. The top produc-ers o well-balanced, spicy dark red ruited Nero dAvolainclude Tasca dAlmerita, Planeta, Caruso & Minini, Ducadi Salaparuta, Valle dellAcate, Occhipinti, COS, Morgan-te and Principi di Butera.

Nero dAvola is requently blended with international vari-eties such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Cusumano,Donnaugata, and Mazzei blend with Bordeaux varieties,while Valle dellAcate blends with Syrah.

Frappato. Grown almost exclusively in the southeast,Frappato has only 1 percent o total plantings in Sicily.However, its popularity is increasing due to its unique rosepetal and red berry ragrance and delicacy. In Vittoria itplays a key role with Nero dAvola in the blend Cerasuolodi Vittoria, one o Sicilys fnest wines, which is now pro-duced by about 20 wineries. Frappato is mainly grownin sandy soils, and its bunches are tight and compact.Fermentation is usually done in stainless steel quickly and

gently at low temperatures to preserve aromatics and ruitavors. Frappato easily oxidizes and is usually over-whelmed by barrel ermentation and aging, so concretevats and Slavonian botti are more commonly used. WhileFrappato lacks anthocyanins and is light in color, it is a-vorul with red berry and pomegranate ruit avors. Frap-pato is clearly not or cellaring and should be consumedwithin two to three years, akin to fne Cru Beaujolais.

The percentage o Frappato in Cerasuolo di Vittoria variesbetween 30 and 40 percent. Top producers include COS,Planeta, and Valle dellAcate. Excellent, single varietal

The Nero dAvola Grape


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Frappatos are made by COS, Occhipinti, and ValledellAcate.

Nerello Mascalese. Nerello Mascalese is the prizedgrape o Mt. Etna, producing some o Sicilys most authen-tic and unique wines. It is primarily grown on Etnas northslopes, but is also planted on the east and south slopes.Nerello Mascalese is a late ripening grape, usually har-vested in mid-October, with large clusters and berries and

thick skins. Like Pinot Noir, the grape is highly sensitive toits terroir and in the case o Etna reveals the unique charac-teristics o the dierent contradas (crus) where it is grown.It is oten blended with another important variety indig-enous to Mt. Etna, Nerello Cappuccio. Neither variety iswidely planted outside o Mt. Etna, although the tiny FaroDOC that overlooks the strait o Messina also uses thesevarieties. Plantings o Nerello Mascalese are just over 3percent o all Sicilian plantings, while Nerello Cappucciois under 1 percent. There are many fne producers o EtnaRosso including Girolamo Russo, Le Vigne, Passopiscaro,Pietradolce, Tenuta delle Terre Nere, Tenuta di Fessina,and Graci.

Perricone. One o Sicilys oldest grapes, Perricone used to

be important in western Sicily, but today only occupies lessthan 400 hectares in all o Sicily. It almost became extinctater phylloxera devastated Sicily in the early 1900s.Perricone is a vigorous vine and needs green harvestingto achieve a balance between the oliage and the ruit.Depending upon where it is grown, Perricone can be deepin color and bitter or light in color and less astringent. Amajority o producers use oak to erment and age Perri-cone, but some like Caruso & Minini use stainless steel andproduce lighter style wines.

Perricone is used both as a blending grape and a singlevarietal. It is requently blended in small amounts withNero dAvola to increase palate texture and reduce highacidity. Both Firriato and Tasca dAlmerita blend Perricone

with Nero dAvola. Excellent single varietal Perricone ismade by Caruso & Minini and Firriato.

Syrah. Like other international varieties, Syrah was onlyintroduced into Sicily in the mid-1980s. Since its introduc-tion it has become the second most planted red varietyin Sicily ater Nero dAvola and currently accounts or 5percent o all plantings. Because o its adaptability towarm climates and sandy soils, most o it is grown in west-ern Sicily. Stylistically, Sicilan Syrah has been consideredsimilar to Australian Shiraz with ripe, dense, and alcoholictraits. Top producers o Syrah include Caruso & Minini,Cottanera, Principi di Butera, Rapital, Valle dellAcate,Planeta and Passopisciaro.

Bordeaux Varieties. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, andother Bordeaux varieties are also planted in Sicily. Likethe other international varieties in Sicily they were activelypromoted or use by the IRVV in the mid-1980s and early1990s. Both Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot are mainlyblended with Nero dAvola to add color or structure. Theyare also combined with each other to produce Bordeauxblends. Excellent examples o Nero dAvola and Bordeauxvariety blends are made by Ceuso, Cusumano, and Don-naugata. Planeta makes an interesting blend o Bordeauxvarieties only.

Sicilian Food and WinePairing

Sicilian cuisine is just as exciting as its wines. It is exoticand bears the imprint o the dierent peoples that have

occupied the island over the centuries: Greeks, Romans,Normans, Spanish, Arabs, French and northern Italians.Homers Odysseydescribes the islands bounty o reshapples, pomegranates and grapes. The Normans intro-duced fsh curing with salt, while the Spaniards broughttomatoes, peppers and other vegetables. But it was theintroduction by the Arabs o almonds, eggplant, couscous,saron and sugar cane that defned much o Sicilian cook-ing as it is today. During our visit to Sicily we had thegood ortune to taste a wide variety o dishes at lunchesand dinners around the island.

In this section, we identiy many o the key dishes o Sicilyrom antipasti to desserts and oer suggestions on pair-

ing them with wine. Sicilian dishes are usually simpleand savory, and Sicilians value resh ingredients. Theyalso like to roll and stu dierent oods. Rolled meats likeFarssumagru, rolled fsh like Involtiniand, o course, Can-noli. Sicilians also like ried oods, stued ried dough,ritters, and Arancine, o course.

Antipasti

Sicilian appetizersare a wonderulprelude to the mainmeal, but can alsobe a meal all by

themselves. Mari-nated mushrooms,prosciutto di parma,Sicilian olives,carciof (marinatedartichoke hearts),peperoni ripieni(baked yellow and redpeppers) rittata, omelets o all kinds, carmelised onions,cheesy arancinette(miniature rice ball croquettes) andpolpette di melanzane(ried and braised eggplant ritters)

Antipasti


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are among the appetizers we enjoyed or antipasti duringour travels in Sicily.

Wines: Red and white wines pair well with most antipasti.For most o our meals in Sicily we drank both reds andwhites or starters. Fuller bodied whites work well withspicy olives and marinated vegetables. Light-bodied redsare ideal or just about all antipasti, especially ried oodslike arancinetteor dried cured meats like proscuitto.

Fish and Seafood

Fish and seaoodare widely avail-able in Sicily. Oneo the most popularfsh dishes is In-voltini di PesceSpada, swordfshroll-ups stued withpine nuts, raisins,bread crumbs, andanchovies. Sicilians

also love the tasteo anchovies. Freshand canned anchovies are eatured in local dishes such asSpaghetti con Acciughe e Mollica Rossa (spaghetti withanchovy, resh tomato sauce, and toasted breadcrumbs).Fresh sardines are also very popular and are usually riedor grilled but can also be stued and baked or eaturedin the popular pasta dish Pasta con le Sarde. Fresh tunais plentiul in late spring and is cut into thin steaks, grilledand served with resh tomatoes or other vegetables. Tunais also preserved as in Tonno SottOlioand eaten sparinglyas an antipasti or in salads.

Wines: Sicily produces a variety o white wines that are

ideal or pairing with fsh and seaood. Young, unoakedInzolia, Grillo, Catarratto, and Carricante are all goodchoices or simple fsh dishes and seaood. For richer fshand seaood dishes, anchovies and tuna, we recommendblends o these traditional grapes with Chardonnay, Sau-vignon Blanc, and perhaps Viognier. Other good choiceswould be barrel ermented single varietals like Chardonnayand Inzolia and barrel ermented blends o these wines orred ruit orward wines such as Frappato or darker morecomplex wines such as Cerusolo di Vittoria.

Pasta

There are many distinctive pasta dishes served throughout

Sicily. Pasta con le Sarde (pasta with sardines) is oneo Sicilys most amous pasta dishes. It is made all overSicily, but the traditional recipe o Palermo is reputedlythe best. Spaghetti alla Siracusana is another heavenlysauce o crunchy breadcrumbs, sardines, and parmesancheese served with plain olive oil. An equally popularand delicious pasta dish is Pasta alla norma, which weate at small restaurant in Etna. It consists o slowly cookedeggplant chunks with spices tossed into a basic tomatosauce and then tossed with ricotta and pasta. Pasta isoten blended with vegetables such as Pasta con Broccoli

Involitini de Pesce Spada

e Zacca (green cauliower and squash) or Spaghetti conVerdure di Campo e Ricotta (Spaghetti with Wild Greensand Ricotta) This simple and delicious dish in the creationo Anna Tasca o the amed amily o Tasca dAlmeritaWinery.

Wines: Because o the wide variety o pasta sauces inSicily, pairing them with wine requires attention to the mainingredients. Red wines are usually paired quite success-

ully with pasta with tomato sauces. While visiting Etna weound the high acidity and resh avors o Etna Rosso pairmagnifcently with resh tomato sauces. Big reds work welwith more complex and earthy pasta sauces.

Meats

In our travels in Italy we seldom ate meat. However, thereare some wonderul meat dishesin the Sicilian culinary repertoire.Farsumagru (rolled steak, stuedsicilian style) is perhaps the mostcelebrated meat dish in Sicily.It is a steak stued with meats,

cheese, eggs and vegetables andthen rolled to look like a roast.Other tasty meat dishes are rolledup Braciole alla Sicilian, vealcutlets or scaloppini flled witholives and capers and grilled overcoals, and Involtini di Carne, ematroll-ups stued with ham, cheeseand pistachios. Spezzatino diAgnello con Patate(lamb stew withpotatoes) is one o many savorystews served in Sicily. Another is Spezzatino di Vitello, orveal stew made with onions, tomato paste and vegetables.

Wines: Big, avorul reds are ideal or pairing with meatdishes such as steak and lamb. Nero dAvola is an excel-lent choice or most meat dishes, especially the darkerriper styles that oer blackberry and earth avors. However, blends o Nero dAvola with Cabernet Sauvignon andSyrah also work well. Syrah by itsel also usually pairswell with bee and lamb dishes. We couldnt resist order-ing veal Marsala at a fne restaurant in the city o Marsalaand enjoyed it with a red-ruited Nero dAvola.

Doci (Desserts)

Sicilian meals always eature a sweet ending. Dessertsmade with resh ricotta cheese are regularly served at

lunches and din-ners and are otenthe high point o ameal. Cannoli conCrema di Ricotta isvery popular in Sicily,and during our visit,we tried many dier-ent recipes. The bestones have crisp shellsand are flled withreshly made ricotta

Farsumagru

Cannoli con Crema de Ricotta


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cream. Cassata is Sicilys magnifcent Arabian -inspiredsponge cake with sweetened ricotta cream, marzipan andcandied ruits. It is a specialty o western Sicily, espe-cially Trapani, but is a big production to make at home.Casatelle are ricotta-flled, ried turnovers stued withsweetened ricotta. These decadent sweet pastries are alsocommon in Trapani and served with coee in the morningor as a dessert. Tarts o almonds, fgs and other ruitsare also popular desserts and are usually made with Pasta

Frolla, a aky pastry dough sweetened with sugar andgrated zest o lemon. Sicilians also oten have plain ruitor dessert, and there are wonderul choices like yellowmelons, fgs, persimmons, blood oranges, kiwi ruit anddates. There are also mild local cheeses like caciocavallo,a semisot cows milk cheese.

Wines: Sicilys sweet wines, known as Passitos, pairbeautiully with desserts. So long as they are sweeter thanthe desserts themselves and have adequate acidity, pas-sitos are excellent accompaniments to many o the dessertslisted here. Marsala also pairs well with some dessertslike cannoli and cheeses like Pecorino. A bold tastingParmesano will go best with a bold Nero dAvola.

The Market for SicilianWine

Sicily has made signifcant improvements in the qualityo the wines it produces and exports. As a result, oreigndemand has increased, and exports o bottled wine morethan doubled between 1999 and 2009. As shown in thegraph, the most important market is the UK, ollowed byGermany, and the US. Other major importers o Sicilian

wine are Switzerland, Sweden, Canada, and the Nether-lands.

While exports have increased, they are still a smallpercentage (about 10 percent) o total (bottled plus bulk)wine production, which was 4.8 million hectoliters in 2011.However, exports are mostly bottled wine, and exports obottled wine are about 28 percent o the total 1.5 millionhectoliters o bottled wine produced in 2011. Furthermore,the producers o especially high quality wine export amuch higher percentage o their production: Firriato

(45%), Carlos & Menini (85%), Feudo Principi di Butera(60%), Valle dellAcate (70%), Cottanera (40%), and Bar-one di Villagrande (55%).

In 2011 Sicily produced 4.8 million hectoliters o juicerom grapes, o which 1.5 million hectoliters, or 31% othe total, was bottled in one orm or another on the islanditsel. While the percentages vary year by year, about 65percent o Sicilian wine is sold in bulk or as table wine, 30

percent is sold with an IGT appellation, and 5 percent issold with a DOC or DOCG appellation. Total exports (in2009) are 460 thousand hectoliters, 74 percent o which isbottled. In the decade 1999-2009, bulk wine exports plummeted while exports o bottled wine more than doubled.

Sicilys Appellations. Today, there are 24 Sicilianwine appellations (23 DOCs, 1 DOCG (Cerasuolo diVittoria), and IGT), o which the most widely used isSicilia IGT (indicazione geografca tipica), which wascreated in 1995. The exibility the Sicilia IGT allowsproducers, including higher yields than DOC appella-tions, permitting the variety name on the label, sourcingruit rom anywhere on the island, and bottling outside

Sicily, quickly made it the most popular o all appella-tions. However, as o the 2012 vintage, the Sicilia IGTappellation ceased to exist and is instead replaced bytwo other appellationsTerre Sicilia IGT and SiciliaDOC, both o which allow ruit to be sourced romanywhere on the island and the wine to be bott ledoutside Sicily. It will be challenging to clearly explainto consumers what these appellations mean, aside romgrapes grown in Sicily. Meanwhile, only a ew o theother 23 appellations are commonly used, mostly orwines that already have a clear identity, like Pantelleria,Etna and Cerasuolo di Vittoria. Given that the genericclassifcations Terre Sicilia IGT and Sicilia DOC arelikely to be the appellations most consumers will fnd onbottle labels, its important that quality producers begin

putting more detailed technical inormation on back la-bels as to the grape sources, production methods, andlocations o processing acilities so that interested wineconsumers can begin learning more about the diverseterroir o Sicily and its impact on wine quality.

Export Promotion

The current market or Sicilian wines in the US should growin the coming years. The quality o the wines is excellent,and prices are competitive or most wines. One challengeor the Sicilian wine industry is to educate consumers andthe trade about the improvements made in the quality oSicilian wine in recent years. Another is to use the appella

tion system and improved wine labeling to market Sicilianwine more eectively (see box).

Marketing organizations like Assovini Sicilia are playingan important role in promoting Sicilian wine exports. SinceAssovinis 67 members produce 80 percent o the winesactually bottled on the island (as opposed to Sicilian winesbottled on mainland Italy, mostly by larger, more com-mercially oriented producers), it is in a unique position topromote the Sicilian wine industry in international markets.Assovini organizes an en Primeur, which since 2004 has


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presented the new vintages to the Italian and internationalpress, but it needs to compliment this with other educa-tional activities and industry tastings in key internationalmarkets.

Export promotion activities in the U.S. should include me-dia and education campaigns in major US wine marketsand tastings or the trade and consumers. The media andeducational campaigns should be done in both print and

online with target groups identifed with the assistance othe Institute or Foreign Trade, the Italian Embassy, and keyimporters. Sicily has exciting wines to promote in the U.S.market and a good story to tell. Wine enthusiasts wouldbe keen to learn about the authentic, indigenous winesthat are being produced in Sicily. Furthermore, the USwine media, including bloggers, need to be encouragedto write more about Sicilian wines, and the Sicilian wineindustry itsel needs to use social media such as Facebookand Twitter more eectively in generating excitement aboutSicilian wines.

Lastly, wine industry leaders need to take action to clariySicilys appellation system so that its fne wines are betterunderstood and appreciated by consumers and the trade.Presently only a ew o Sicilys appellations are commonlyused on labels and in the marketing o wines. Theseinclude Cerasuolo di Vittoria, Etna, Malvasia delle Lipari,Marsala, and Pantelleria. Each o these reers to specifcgrape varieties and unique terroir, which conveys valuableinormation to consumers, but in total they account or justa tiny percentage o Sicilys total production. The recentministerial decree allowing Etna producers to put the nameo the contrada rom which grapes were sourced on thebottle label is a useul step orward in helping consumersidentiy high quality wines. Hopeully, other DOCs in Sic-ily will soon ollow suit in speciying the grape sources andproduction methods that account or their quality.


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Tasting Notes and Ratings

The wine reviews and ratings or this report include more

than 200 Sicilian wines. They consist o both indigenousand international varieties and blends grown throughoutSicily. Although Sicilian wines are increasingly popular inthe US market, many o the wines we tasted in Sicily arestill not available in the US. This is especially true o someo the lesser known indigenous varieties and o Marsala.Notwithstanding the ame o Marsala, very ew o the bet-ter wines such as the Marsala Vergine are being imported,which is most unortunate. Hopeully, in time, when Sicil-ian wines are better known and appreciated, restaurantsand consumers will have greater access to the ull range opremium wines being produced in the country.

Our program o tastings was organized by Assovini Sicilia

and other partners in Sicily. Most o the wines reviewedhere were tasted during our visit to Sicily in May 2013.Wines we couldnt taste during our visit because o timeconstraints, we tasted at our ofces in McLean VA andWashington, DC. We provide tasting notes, ratings andprices or virtually all the wines tasted. Those not import-ed in the US, with some exceptions, are listed under OtherWines Tasted; tasting notes or these wines are provided inour Tasting Notes Archive watww.i-winereview.com

The International Wine Review rates wines using the 100point system. We do not write up wines that receive a rat-ing below 85 points. The ratings are:

95 and above A wine o distinction

91-94 A wine o outstanding or superior quality89-90 A wine o very good to excellent quality87-88 A wine o good quality85-86 A wine o air or acceptable quality84 and below Not recommended

We commonly add a + to a point score to indicate ourjudgment that a wine is deemed to be o higher qualitythan its point score but is not at the next quality level. Thatsaid, we urge our readers to look at our comments thathelp explain our ratings and provide more useul inorma-

tion about a wine than a simple number. We do not ratewines tasted in barrel and oten do not give fnal ratings owines that are newly bottled. We mark these wines with a?

All tasting notes and ratings or this report also appearin the i-WineReviews Tasting Notes Archive at www.i-winereview.com. Subscribers may use the i-WineReviewSearch unction to locate all reviews o individual produc-ers and their wines. Our tasting notes also include profleso the producers who may be unamiliar to our readers.

Abraxas is a small companylocated on the island o Pantel-leria. The company was oundedin 1999 by ormer AgriculturalMinister, Calogero Mamini andAttilio Tripodi. Abraxas has 26hectares o vines armed organi-

cally in vineyards at 120mt and 400mt. It produces

80,000 bottles o outstanding passito and unique redwines o very good quality annually. Two reds are re-viewed here. Importer:Wine Emporium, Brooklyn, NY

Abraxas 2009 Rosso Sidereus Sicily ($15) 89 A blend oCabernet Franc and Nero dAvola, the Sidereus is a rusticwine revealing aromas o dark and spicy red berry ruitwith high acidity. It has good structure, youthul frm tan-nins and a pleasant fnish. Sourced rom a 360m vine-

yard. Abraxas 2008 Kuddia del Moro Sicily ($30) 91 Amore substantial wine than the Sidereus, this Nero dAvolaexhibits an attractive dark ruby color and aromas o plumand black cherry. It is a big rustic somewhat earthy winealthough sot on the palate with dark spicy ruit avors and

tannic grip on the fnish. Planted at 836m on volcanic soilat the oot o the Montagna Grande on Pantelleria.

Barone de Villagrande Thisestate, one o the very ew locatedon the eastern slopes o Mt. Etnaat Milo, is situated at an altitude o700m above sea level. It is am-ily owned and operated; co-ownerMarco Nicolosi Asmundo serves aswinemaker. The wines produced byBarone de Villagrande are virtuallyall o indigenous grapes sourcedrom their Mt. Etna vineyards, whichrange rom 15 to 75 years in age.

Over the past 10 years the company has also beenmanaging a project on the island o Salina to producepassito rom sun-dried grapes o Malvasia delle Lipari.The quality o Barone de Villagrande wines is veryhigh. Unortunately only two wines o this producerare currently imported. Importer: Ominiwines, Flush-ing, NY

Barone de Villagrande 2011 Etna Bianco Superiore Sicily91 Yellow-green gold color. Herbal-olive and slightly nuttybouquet reects some lees contact and a cool site. Very


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good acidity, bright and less heavy than most Carricante.The 5-8 months sur lie aging provides excellent depth andgood body to support the fne acidic structure resh ruitand real pretty, even oral character o the wine. A verylong fne-boned wine. Barone de Villagrande 2010 Etna

Bianco Legno de Conzo Sicily 91+ The name o this wine re-ers to the lengthy, lever beam o a Roman-style press. Fullgold-green color. Rich, leesy aromas with overt herbal, nutand white peach scents. Quite resh, lively avors, evenwith the evident oak. Distinguished, balanced and richerin texture than the above wine, i a trace less elegant.Barone de Villagrande 2008 Etna Rosso Lenza di Man-nera Sicily 92 Unique because it was aged in traditionalmanner (chestnut barrels) or two years. Ruby-garnet color.Rich, black cherry, with slightly roasted plum and coeearomas. Medium ull bodied, with rich sweet, yet frm a-vor reecting some oak tannin. Quite harmonious, earthyand nuanced avors, with a hint o balsamic. Very stylish,long and lightly herbal fnish. Barone de Villagrande2011 Fiore Sicily 90+ Fiore is a blend o 90% Carricante

and 10% Chardonnay that is ermented and aged inFrench oak or 10 to 12 months.. Medium straw, it revealsaromas o orchard ruit, herbs, minerals and toast. Theseare mirrored on a ull-bodied palate with a. crisp fnish.

Other Wines Tasted: Baronet de Villa Grande 2008 CiaraSicily 91 Baronet de Villagrande 2010 Passito Malvasiadi Lipar Sicily 91, Barone de Villagrande 2011 Etna RossoSicily ($20) 89

Calcagno The vineyards o Calcagno are located inPassopisciaro in Mt. Etna and are planted on ancientlava ows. The winery produces wines rom NerelloMascalese and Carricante. Marco de Grazia assists

with the winemaking and the quality is very good.Importer: unknown

Calcagno 2011 Arcuria Sicily 88 This is a pleasant tastingrosso o Nerello Mascalese, sourced rom Mt. Etna. It re-veals aromas o red strawberries and plum with a sot andruity attack, a avorul palate, with frm tannins and a dryfnish. Calcagno 2010 Arcuria Sicily 89 The medium-rubycolored 2010 Arcuria is a step up rom the 2011 vintage.It is light and elegant on the palate with red berry ruit anda touch o earth and vanilla. It is more avorul than the2011 vintage and fnishes dry with a bitter note.

Cantine Colosi Since 1987Cantine Colosi has been produc-

ing indigenous Sicilian wines onthe small island o Salina in theAeolian archipelago. Its vineyardsconsist o about 10 ha situated onvolcanic soils. Colosi wines areproduced by enologist, Piero Colosi

in collaboration with his ather Pietro. Importer: ViasImports, New York, NY

Cantine Colosi 2012 Dry White Sicily ($12) 87 Very palestraw, this wine is a blend o three indigenous white

grapes: Inzolia, Catarratto and Grillo. It is ruity with anose o white peach and Muscat. The palate is o-dry andclean with a hint o bitterness on the fnish. Colosi 2012Nero dAvola Sicily ($16) 87 Medium dark ruby. Bright,ruit orward with a Beaujolais-like nose. Medium-body,

resh, red ruited showing plum and raspberry on thepalate. A pleasant and very drinkable style. Colosi 2010Rosso Sicily ($16) 88 Medium-red ruby. Red raspberryand cherry aromas on the nose. Very quaable and ruitorward, with good avor concentration and frm tannins.A good pizza wine.

Caruso & Minini Locatedin the City o Marsala,Caruso & Minini owns 120hectares in the hills betweenMarsala and Salemi at350 meters in elevation.The operation is owned byMario Minini who managed

a winery in northern Italy and Steano Caruso whoseamily had been growing grapes and selling them tomerchants or the past 100 years. The winery is lo-cated in a late19th century baglio in the heart o thetraditional wine-cellar area o Marsala. The wines arewell-made, o excellent quality, and oered at bargainprices. Importer: Viniera Imports, Ronkonkoma, NY

Caruso & Minini 2012 Inzolia Terre di Giumara Sicily ($15)88 The 2012 Inzolia has a medium straw hue and resharomas o pear and melon. It is ull and round on thepalate, resh, riendly and un-complicated. Caruso &Minini 2012 Grillo Timpune Sicily ($16) 90 Timpune meanssummit in Sicilian dialect; the top both in altitude (here

400m) and also best o class. Pure, strong, lemon andoral (broom) nose. Not too ruity, but with a fne chalkytexture, medium ull body and somewhat similar to goodGreco di Tuo, but with less fnesse. This is a very goodand resh wine, with more length than many. Caruso &Mini Insula 2012 Sicily ($18) 89 This is an attractive blendo 50% Inzolia, 15% Catarratto and 35% Grecanico. It isermented in stainless steel and in Acacia and oak bar-rels and kept on the lees or 6 weeks. It is very ragrantwith aromas o owers and passion ruit and avors osweet light peach with a hint o almond. Caruso & Minini2011 Cutaja Nero dAvola Sicily ($15) 90 Deep rubypurple. A lovely style o wine, with nutty-toasty aromas(but not oaky), dark red plum and black cherry ruits,with a touch o balsamic adding spice tones. Sappy,

spicy avors with good acidity and well-defned tanninsshowcase medium body. Caruso & Minini 2009 SachiaPerricone Sicily ($18) 91 The traditional black grape othe Marsala region. Sourced rom a two hectare plot, thewine shows a fne dark ruby color and vivid oral, blackcherry aromas accented by anise and herbal scents with atouch o earthiness. Firm acidity, not too tannic comparedto Nero dAvola, and no oak. Fine, elegant and lightlygrippy avors with oral and spice notes. Caruso & Minini2011 Nero dAvola Terre di Giumara ($15) 89 This NerodAvola is a delicious ruit orward wine oering notes o


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wild weeds and earth on the nose with a hint o huckleber-ry. It has an attractive earthiness on the palate with sotgentle tannins. 1/3 o the wine gets just a bit o oak agingin 3 year old barrels. Great value.

Other Wines Tasted: Caruso & Minini 2009 Syrah RiservaDelia Nivolelli ($24) 89 Caruso & Minini NV MarsalaSuperiore Riserva Secco Sicily 90, Caruso & Minini 2011Tagos Grillo Vedemmia Tardiva Sicilia IGT 90+

This winery owned by the Meliabrothers began operations in the early1990s as garagistes. Today, thewinery operates out o a restoredbaglio near the amous temple oSegesta in western Sicily. It producesour wines rom 50 ha o vineyardsand the quality is excellent.

Importer:Vias Imports, New York, NY

Ceuso 2011 Scurati Nero dAvola Sicily ($15) 89 This NerodAvola has a dark ruby color and youthul aromas oripe plum, blackberry and earth. On the palate it is ruitorward with a hint o smoke, sot round tannins, goodbalance and a long fnish. Aged or 8 months in cementvats and three months in bottle. Ceuso 2010 Fastaia Sicily($27) 88 Fastaia is a blend o 50% Cabernet Sauvignon,40% Merlot and 10% Petit Verdot. It has a dark ruby colorand aromas o ripe black prunish ruit, smoke, herbs andlicorice. Aged in old cement vats or 18 months and inbottle or 4 months beore release, it reveals a ripe moutheel, frm round tannins, good structure and a long fn-ish. Ceuso 2008 Ceuso ($38) 91 A blend o 50% NerodAvola, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Merlot.Opaque ruby. Black and dark red berry aromas ollowedby concentrated and earthy black ruit and roasted avorson the palate. Lush with sot ull mouth eel, round frm tan-nins and a lingering fnish.

The Corvo Wineryis one oSicilys oldest and best knownwineries. Originally ounded in1824 by Giuseppe Alliata, dukeo Salaparuta, Corvo becameone o the best -selling Italianwines in the US in the 1970s

and 1980s. It is currently owned and operated byILLVA di Saronno, a northern Italian drinks companywhich also owns Duca di Salaparuta and Florio. One

o the largest wineries in Sicily today, Corvo purchasesgrapes rom growers all over the island and producesclose to a 1 million cases o good quality low-budgetwine annually.

Corvo 2011 Bianco Sicily ($12) 88 The Corvo Bianco is aneasy drinking wine made o Inzolia and Grecanico. Fer-mented in stainless steel, it shows good acidity and resh-ness on the palate and on the fnish. Corvo 2011 Rosso($12) 88 The Corvo Rosso is a blend o Nero dAvola andNerello Mascalese. It is a delicious light and avorul

wine or everyday drinking ofng attractive cherry a-vors that are also Pinot Noir-like in character. Corvo 2012Irmana Grillo Sicily. ($12) 88+ This Grillo oer resh citrusaromas with a light banana note. It is ull and round onthe palate with light avors and a mineral edge. Pleasant

and rereshing. Corvo 2012 Irmana Nero dAvola & Frap-pato Sicily ($12) 89 This wine is a blend o 80% NerodAvola and 20% Frappato. Fresh red plum and cherryon the nose, it is big and sot on the attack with reshnessprovided by Frappato. The wine oers bright red ruit onthe palate and is very easy to drink and is not unlike agood Cru Beaujolais.

COS Founded by threeschool riends, Giambattis-ta (Titta) Cilia, Giusto Oc-chipinti and Cirino (Rino)Strano in 1980, COS isa natural winery in theVittoria region that started

o with three hectares andtoday owns 30. The name derives rom the frst letter otheir last names. Fascinated by ancient wine methods,they work with 400 liter clay amphorae jars calledPithos, similar to those used by the ancient Greeks tomake wine . They make nine dierent wines, includinga sweet moscato. The COS wines are innovative andout standing. Importer:Domaine Select, New York, NY

COS 2011 Ram Sicily ($30) 90 A 50-50 blend o Inzoliaand Grecanico, co- ermented in concrete vats with 10days skin contact, Ram has a deep gold color, withstrong acacia and dried herbs bouquet. Low yields con-tribute to a rich, nutty mid-palate accented by ull, driedruit avors and a chalky texture. Distinctive and ull a-vored, made in an earthy style, there is good acidity anddeep character which suggests keeping a couple o yearswill reveal more detail. COS 2010 Cerasuolo di VittoriaDOCG Sicily ($35) 92 Made using co-ermentation whichhelps to fx a deeper color, (dark ruby-violet), the wineshowcases a deep lovely black cherry, lightly gamy anddefnite raspberry-resh bouquet. Chalky, rich texture, reshbut earthy avors and good length highlight this denserthan usual Cerasuolo. While a bit oaky on the fnish, thereis excellent reshness with fne tannins and length. COS2007 Contrada Sicily ($85) 92+ A pure Nero dAvola agedtwo years in large oak botti (large casks usually 10 to 40hl) and rom a 60 year old vineyard. Contrada has amedium dark ruby-garnet color, indicating some maturity.

Intense aromas o plum, black licorice, dark berry andsome gaminess are ramed by medium plus body and fnetannins. Solid yet with some elegant acidity on fnish. De-licious and multi-layered. COS 2012 Frappato Sicily ($30)92 Medium ruby-violet; the color o cru Beaujolais!. Livelycherry, raspberry and oral aromas lead to medium bod-ied lovely deep berry avors. Elegant and nervy with fnetannins and resh fnish, there is real length to this wine,and good dry fnish. COS 2011 Nero di Lupo Sicily ($30)90 This 100% Nero dAvola is ermented or 12 months incement tank and no wood. It is dark and spicy, peppery


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and elegant. Medium weight. Round tannins. Young vines.COS 2011 Pithos Bianco Sicily ($40) 93 100% Grecanico.Made in the ancient style using amphorae, Pithos Biancohas a ull gold color, and a rich dried apricot, apple-skinand nutty nose and avor. Dry, with a sherry-like hint o

savory nuts and vanilla, but not oxidized, it reveals el-egant, just slightly tannic avors which coner uller textureand length and suggest the wine can age a ew yearstoo. A very distinctive complex wine. COS 2011 PithosRosso Sicily ($40) 91 A 60-40 blend o Nero dAvola andFrappato crushed into, ermented and aged 8 months inamphorae. Medium ruby color. The bouquet is lovely,with hints o cedarwood, mineral/graphite, and black ruit.The palate shows fne but frm tannins, good acidity andenough dry extract to buer the other components. Lovely

yet dierent with defnite gamy notes, there is still prettystrawberry/clove and black pepper avors on the fnish.One o the best ancient wines being made today.

The Cottanera company

was started in the early1990s by GuglielmoCambria (deceased) andhis brother Enzo. Locatedon the northern slope oMt. Etna in Castiglione di

Sicilia, the estate, consists o 55 ha planted to vine-yards at 700 mts. Initially planted with internationalvarieties, the vineyards now include native grapes likeNerello Mascalese, Nerello Cappuccio and Carricante.Enzo runs the company with children o Guglielmo. Thewines are well-made and stylish. Importer:Banville &

Jones Wine Merchants, New York, NY

Cottanera 2012 Barbazzale Bianco Sicily ($16) 90+ Floral,slightly lemony aromas with orange accents. Very pretty,bright avors with good minerality accenting the resh fn-ish. Quite lively Viognier adds some weight and tropicalnotes, while the high acidity, resh and somewhat salty-mineral tang on fnish may be the Inzolia s contribution tothis delicious blend. Great Value. Cottanera 2009 Barba-zzale Rosso Sicily ($16) 90 Medium violet-ruby color. Fora reshly bottled wine, already very expressive with reshoral (rose), wild cherry and slight toasty accent rom oakaging. Pretty, delicate avors with light tannins, classy,nicely ocused mid-palate black cherry and anise ruit witha hint o mineral-earthiness. Very good especially at price,and so easy to drink already! Cottanera 2009 Etna RossoSicily ($50) 91 Medium ruby with just a hint o garnet.

. More roasted cherry and less oral, though a touch oviolet, than the Barbazzale. The avors are also more min-erally, with frmer tannins. Very good length; elegant, solidand resh with a lovely cherry fnish. Cottanera 2009Fatagione Sicily ($32) 89 The Fatagione is a blend o 85%Nerello Mascalese and 15% Merlot and Syrah. Fermentedin stainless steel and aged or 10 months in French bar-riques, 40% new, it displays a dark concentrated red andblack ruit character with an earthy, spicy nose. It has arefned palate with silky tannins on the fnish.

Other Wines Tasted: Cottanera 2012 Etna Bianco Sicily 88Cottanera 2009 Sole di Sesta Syrah Sicily 90 Cottanera2008 Nume Sicily 89

Cusumano is one o the

larger amily owned andoperated wineries inSicily. It has a diverseportolio o wines romindigenous and interna-tional grape varieties.Its vineyards consisto: Ficuzza a 189 haproperty at 700-800 m

in the district o Palermo used mainly or the productiono its white wines; San Giacomo, a 140 ha vineyard inButera used or its agship Nero dAvola; and Presti ePegni, a 70 ha estate in Alcamo used or its red blends,No and Benuara. Brothers Diego and Alberto Cu-sumano manage the operation. The wines produced

here are generally o a very high quality. Importer:Vin Divino, Chicago, IL

Cusumano 2012 Alcamo Sicily ($12) 89 The 2012 Alcamois a blend o 60% Catarratto, 30% Grecanico and 10% ar-omatic grapes. It has light ragrant aromas and a creamypalate o orchard ruit and melon. It spends 4 months onlees in stainless steel and shows notes o light pepper andbitter almond on the fnish. Cusumano 2012 Insolia ($12) 89The Insolia reveals aromas o ripe orchard ruit with a hinto banana.. It is sot on the attack contact with the skins.Cusumano 2012 Nero dAvola Sicily ($12) 88 This darkruby Nero dAvola is resh and easy drink with avorso red berries and plum. 20% whole clusters, it is aged instainless steel with good ruitiness on the mid palate andbig tannins on the fnish. Cusumano 2012 Cuba Sicily($21) 90 This 100% Insolia is ermented in 20 hectoliterbarrels and spends 6 months on the lees and 8 months inbarrel. It exhibits a golden yellow color with ripe tropicalruit on the note with a hint o banana and mango andoak. It has a silky texture on the palate with excellent acidity and reshness on the fnish Cusumano 2011 Jal Sicily($30) 89 This 100% barrel ermented Chardonnay is richand creamy with aromas o tropical ruit, hazelnut andtoasted oak. It reveals lots o coconut and tropical ruit onthe palate with good acidity and a crisp fnish Cusumano2011 Benuara Sicily ($17) 91 A delicious blend o NerodAvola and Syrah which complement each other well,the color is solid ruby. The bouquet reveals ripe black

berry, with licorice accents. Very round and easy to drinkalready, the avors show good richness, fne tannin anda hint o graphite minerality with real length. Cusumano2010 Sgana Sicily ($35) 91 This 100% Nero dAvola isa delicious wine. It has a dark ruby color and aromas oblackberry ruit. Fermented in stainless steel and agedin used oak barrels, it maintains it ruit avors with lots oearthy mineral nuances . It is tightly structured and eleganon the palate with frm round tannins on the fnish thatneed time to resolve. Cusumano 2009 No Sicily ($42)92 No is a blend o 40% Nero dAvola, 30% Merlot


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and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon. Dark ruby almost opaquein color it oers black ruit with earthy aromas and ahint o licorice. Sot and elegant on the palate, it spends12 months in French oak barriques and has round frmtannins and a very long fnish. Cusumano 2012 Ang

int'l wine review- june july 2013 _ the wines of sicily

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