Nerello Mascalese..what a fantastic little grape

WINE TALK
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Stopped by North Berkeley Imports on my way home. I was in the mood for something really different. John convinced me to give this a try, the 2007 Pietradolce Archineri Etna Rosso red wine, made from the Nerello Mascalese grape. When he described it as a “cross between nebbiolo and burgundy”, I was sold. The short story is the grape is grown on Mt Etna in Sicily.

He wasn’t kidding about the analogy he used. It has a perfumy, floral nose with the tar elements you get from nebbiolo. There are some dark & red fruits that have good depth. Sometimes you get hints of orange and raspberry, other times a lingering berry note. Lots of acidity and a similar grip to the tannins as you see in nebbiolo, just not as firm, they are a bit more chewy. I think the crossover comparison to nebbiolo and pinot noir is a good one.

Really a fantastic and fascinatng wine. It has me fired up to see what other treasures Italy has out there.

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Thanks for the note. The neb/burg comparison would sell me on it as well.
What was the price?

I’ve recently tasted a few frappato from Sicily. It is also a floral type of wine, but I’d compare it more to Beaujolais.

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Another good one currently on the market is the 2005 Vini Biondi Etna Outis, similar to the description above with a dash of pepper.

-Al

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$26

Al - thanks for that heads up. I’ll keep a look out for it.

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Tim, I also bought some of these from NBI and thought it was a good description as well. My note is in CT. After the fact I noticed that it was a 2010 Tre Bicchieri FWIW so someone else thought it was noteworthy. A similar wine from Sicily is the 2006 Tenuta delle Terre Nere Etna Il Quadro delle Rose Feudo di Mezzo (long name!) - as good but not as forward and needs some cellar time.

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Passopisciaro

Killer STUFF!

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Yay for autoctonous Italian grapes! [dance-clap.gif] Was so happy to see this post.

Graci is also a great young producer right on Etna that I met, he is also producing Nerello Mascalese, and his white is a Catarrato. Here is a post about it: (edit to put correct link!) http://livefromtuscany.blogspot.com/2009/11/etna-tasting-at-accademia-dei-palati.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

If you like this, look for Ciro from Calabria, made from the Gaglioppo grape, Librandi is a well-exported producer. Unfortunately there are a lot of little known guys that don’t get picked up as much. Magliocco is another Calabrian autoctonous grape that makes lovely full wines, they are starting to plant a lot more of it now.

I wish more wine drinkers would experiment with new grapes, they would expand their palates and maybe the market would be wider.

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Nebbiolo is a better comparison than Burgundy based on the ones that I’ve had - whether it’s the grape or the mountain terroir, the result is certainly much more tannic than pretty much any pinot noir under the sun. But if they can eat up that tannin with bottle age there may be more of a kinship, just as there is with old Barolo.

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Agreed that it is more similar to nebbiolo than burgundy based on my sample of 1.


Michele - Thanks for helping to point out some other treasures of Italy. I had wanted to spend some of this year exploring Cahors and Basque, but this bottle changed my mind on that in a heartbeat. Finding more unique wines like this from Italy is my new goal for the year

[thankyou.gif]

Shannon - I’ll keep an eye out for that one too…if i can remember 1/2 of the name [basic-smile.gif]

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Timely note. Been on a bit of Nerello Mascalese kick myself! We carry several so take this message for what it is worth. Some good ones have been mentioned but here is my master list.

Vini Biondi Etna Outis
Terre Nerre Etna Rosso (Guardiolo especially good)
Graci Terre Nerre
Cantina Corbera Isola d’Oro
Benanti Serra della Contessa
Cottanera Barbazzale Rosso
Palari Rosso del Soprano
Passopisciaro
Pietro Caciorgna N’Anticchia

All good stuff and priced between $10-$50 if you can find 'em! Here’s to volcanic soil and indigenous grapes [thumbs-up.gif]

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Tim; If you like this wine try another version…Passopisciaro; same grape, also grown on Mt. Etna. Very elegant…I think the analogy to a cross of Nebbiolo and Burgundy is quite accurate.

Cheers!
Marshall [wink.gif]

PS: I just noticed this was cross posted and I had responded on the “other” board. I purchased the '05 and '06 from Daniel and enjoyed them both. I tried the the 2007 while actually in Taormina (Sicily) and I will be looking to purchase that one as well.

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I’ve had a few of the 2002 Barone Antonio Etna Rosso – complements olives just amazingly. Alas, it seems that Louis/Dressner is no longer carrying the wine and it is no longer available here in the US. I’ve had a few others as well, including the notoriously instable Contadino (4&5). When it’s on, the Contadino can be very good.

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My favorite red from anywhere in Southern Italy so far lists nerello mascalese first in a list of several varieties: Palari Faro. Jeff, I assume this is a different wine than the Palari you listed, is that right? Anyway, I believe it was the 2006 I had, and it was truly outstanding. Expensive stuff, but worth it for the unique, really pleasant experience. I didn’t write a formal note, but I remember it having some earthy, savory notes along with pronounced herbaceous qualities (in a good way) and just enough fruit to balance things out. Now I just have to figure out how long to wait before drinking the bottle I have. It seems like something that could use a few years, but it’s been hard for me to find any information on aging these wines.

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I’m surprised this stuff is so expensive in the U.S. In terms of the Etna wines I tasted them along with a dinner, did not buy them, but in general the southern italian wines, especially little knowns, are not expensive here.

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Hi Doug, yes, the Faro is Palari’s top bottling and is amazing. The Rosso del Soprano is about half the price.

The pricing for Nerello, in general, is a little higher than you might expect for an unknown quantity (in the States anyway). But the entry level Terre Nerre, Cantina Corbera and Cottanera can all be found for around $15-ish, even lower. It is only when you get to up to the absolute best bottlings like Faro ($75-$80) and the Vini Biondi Etna Outis ($35-$45) that the pricing jumps up. Although considering these are the top of the food chain, not bad, when you stack it up against other regions.

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I’m not seeing any of this stuff at Foundation Plant Services.

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There’s a good bit of Nerello in Calabria too. Yummy, yummy, yummy…

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I’ve always dug nerello too, that reminds me to get some - thanks for the note!

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I’ve had the Benanti entry level Nerello. Really good stuff, like a Pinot or Cab Franc in weight. Something made me think Sangio as well. But clearly none of these–when you come up with so many comparisons, it’s just grasping at straws. Anyway, not a huge or massively structured wine, but unique and filled with character. Great for under $20.