Hello everyone,
I have a friend that has asked me (as if I know about anything other than Burgundy - which I don’t) about the wines of Sicily. this friend will be traveling to the region quite soon. So, who are some of the must see producers? What makes them so different? Which grapes do they work with? Who are the major personalities? how would you describe the region, the wines, the wine culture? As an aside, any tips on must visit places for food are appreciated as well.
COS is another. I’d also recommend reading Palmento: A Sicilian Wine Odyssey by Robert Camuto. Lots of food tips, history, personalities, etc. A fun book to read.
Hijacking this thread a bit (sorry Ray), but this is a great thread to ask this question. Is there anyone who’s done a Sicily wine tour? Kind of like what Roy Hersh does in Portugal.
Not a Sicily expert by any stretch, but … Passopisciaro’s reds made from Nerello Mascalese are great food wines. High-ish acid and medium-light to medium body.
I buy Cos and Occhipinti and gladly drink Cornelissen when someone else is opening (too much variability for me to buy them myself but the highs are really high).
I hosted a tasting a couple of months ago where we tasted a bunch of the Terre Nerre wines, which Marco de Grazia, the Piemontese negotiant/broker makes. These are lovely wines, with a lot of finesse and only a little oak in most cases (unlike the Barolos he helps to make). The single vineyard bottlings each has quite a distinct personality – of interest to a Burgundian.
Big +1. Have a COS ready to go this weekend. I would drink Cornelissen in Sicily. Those are the AFWE wineries in good sense (maybe less so with Cornelissen).
I have also had good and occasionally bad with Tenuta delle Terre Nere. Other good and more mainstream wines come from Tasca d’Almerita, Valle Dell’Acate and Cusumano.
Based on what I’ve encountered in the U.S., I think there’s a lot of tension between making overly mainstream wines and wines that have some soul. Nero d’Avola can occupy a very similar place to Zin or Cabernet when tarted-up “international style.” Frappatto seems to resist that tension entirely, so I look for producers who work with that grape. Insolia/Ansonica are lovely summer whites. So is Grillo. These should be affordable, and I can’t imagine an oaky version of either grape.
I run screaming from any Chardonnay and typically from reds with Cabernet in the blend (though Cusumano and Tasca d’Almerita play with it).
I hear top Marsala can be shockingly good. Wish I knew…
My best introduction to what Sicily would be like would be reading a few of the Inspector Montalbano books by Andrea Camilleri,
Sicily has a very exciting wine scene right now.
The Etna area is positively bustling with activity, with quite a number of operations making wines of great finesse and complexity that have emerged over the last 10-15 years. Some of my favourites: Tenuta di Fessina, Caciorgna, Calabretta, Benanti, Girolamo Russo, Ciro Biondi. (Also Franchetti’s Passopisciaro and De Grazia’s Terre Nere and Vigne di Eli).
In Faro (a microscopic appellation near Messina) the established name is Palari (again, the wines are -to revert to what is probably one of winespeak’s most overused cliches- quite “Burgundian” ), and Bonavita is an emerging producer (also very fine).
COS and Valle dell’Acate in the Vittoria area.
My favourite Nero d’Avola wines are made by Feudo Montoni (inland location, cca 600 m AMSL). From in or around Pachino (traditionally considered, as I understand, to be Sicily’s prime area for NdA), Curto and Gulfi.
Also, anything made by Salvo Foti.
The couple Cornelissen wines I’ve had have been awesome — very unique, and quite acidic, but awesome. From a couple interviews I’ve read, it seems like Frank would be a really interesting guy to visit, and I also understand that he has some incredibly picturesque vineyard holdings, too.
Not so crazy. Polaner deals in small, high-quality producers. In fact, Doug would be a good person to ask this of.
I will second Calabretta. The owner, Massimiliano Calabretta, is a great guy who speaks English fluently. You or your friend could contact him not only to arrange a visit to him, but for additional suggestions of visits, as well as restaurants, etc.
I second, third, and fourth Arianna Occhipinti. She also has a wine label Tami with her boyfriend (who owns the Tami wine bar in Siracusa) that makes pretty solid value wines with the same grapes. I also agree that COS is an excellent producer. (The O is for Occhipinti’s uncle.) In terms of regions, your friend should check out Mt. Etna. As someone else said, a lot of activity there. I think Sicily is one of the most exciting wine areas today.
Here’s an interesting article about COS: WineLoversPage - Straight talk in plain English about fine wine. They do a lot of amphorae aging, but from my experiences the clay’s contribution doesn’t really hit you over the head, adding instead a refreshing salinity that keeps bringing you back for more and some slight oxidation.
), and Bonavita is an emerging producer (also very fine).