VINOUS.COM - Welcome to the Revolution

"Welcome to the Revolution" is the title of Eric Guido's (vinous.com) current Sicily report, and we are pleased to present you with excerpts from it. As always, you will find the new vintages, some of which are highly rated, in this section.

"Sicily has suffered a lot throughout history, as producers have had to fight tooth and nail to overcome the global stereotypes of a region with huge cooperatives, low quality, overproduction, mass wine, high alcohol content, corruption and state control. For decades I have been following this process with excitement, waiting for the day when I can experience the wines we all somehow knew Sicily could produce but simply did not. In the mid-2000s, rumours of Etna's potential began to spread internationally. A new wave of wines came onto the market that suggested the potential, but there was still a large majority that put the entire island in the "southern Italy" category. Successively, Etna won the hearts of readers and critics with Nerello Mascalese and Carricante - Sicily's answer to red and white Burgundy. Interest was thus aroused, and fortunately the work of several of the island's top producers, not only on Etna, was noticed again. Terroir gained in importance. And do you know what happened? Sicily largely turned its wine industry around and is now one of the top regions in all of Italy.

Sicily really does have something for everyone, from the most drinkable reds and whites to the more significant wines that include both international and indigenous grape varieties, as well as some truly sophisticated examples. Sicily also offers the perfect growing conditions - the grapes ripen in an environment that is ideal for them.

My eyes were opened years ago when I started tasting Chardonnay from winemakers like Planeta and Tasca D'Almerita. These wines are neither quite Old World nor New World in style, but find a happy balance between the two. Excellent examples of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot can be found in the clayey soils of the northwest of the island, while Syrah thrives alongside Nero d'Avola in the dry and sandy southeast. But as much as international grape varieties have played a major role in Sicily's modern success, it is the autochthonous grape varieties that reflect the region's true identity.

Together with Nerello Mascalese, Nero d'Avola is at the top of the red varieties. Nero d'Avola is well suited to the sandy, chalky and clayey soils of the south-eastern coast, where it likes to blend with Frappato to make Cerasuolo di Vittoria, one of Sicily's most traditional wines and the only DOCG wine. However, the future of the variety depends more on the success of single varietal wines, especially further west on the coast around Noto. The fresh, floral and mineral tones of Frappato go well with the power and acidity of Nero d'Avola.

Located in the Peloritani hills in the easternmost corner of Sicily, Faro DOC is a site that I expect to gain much more popularity over time. The grapes used at Faro are Nerello Mascalese (45-60%), Nerello Cappuccio (15-30%) and Nocera (5-10%), along with a 15% blend of Galioppo, Nero d'Avola or Sangiovese. The higher altitudes here and the cooling influences of the north coast make an ideal site for these grape varieties, which are unfortunately only grown on 15 hectares in the DOC. Think Etna Rosso with a little more meat on the bone. The traditional Nocera grape, which can also be found on the Capo di Milazzo peninsula, where it produces Mamertino, or on the island of Salina, has gained a good reputation among winemakers and it is not uncommon to see more and more varietal forms of this grape produced under the all-encompassing Terre Siciliane IGT designation. Among the red grape varieties, mention should be made of Perricone, which is often used for blending but can also produce deep, earthy, red-fruited wines on its own.

As for white varieties, outside of Carricante, the island excels in the production of wild-fresh, sometimes exotic and often eye-catching dry wines made from varieties such as Grillo, Ansonica (Inzolia), Zibibbo (Moscato) and Catarratto. The latter used to be one of the overproduced and undervalued grape varieties, but today it is experiencing a renaissance. And Malvasia, which is often found on the island of Salina in the northeast, is a grape that seems to be most transparent to the terroir and is able to show its expression clearly. Malvasia and Zibibbo (Moscato) are used to make many of Sicily's great dessert wines, such as Malvasia delle Lipari in the northwest and, in the east on the island of Pantelleria, Passito di Pantelleria and Marsala. I am not telling you anything new when I say that these are some of the best dessert wines in the world.

And then there is Etna ... the run began in the early 2000s and continues today. Thanks to the forward thinking of wineries like Benanti, Frank Cornelissen, Passopisciaro and Tenuta delle Terre Nere, Etna is now as popular and appreciated as, for example, the regions of Montalcino and Barolo. In this context, we also encounter names such as Giuseppe Russo (Girolamo Russo), Alberto Graci and Salvo Foti (i Vigneri). Tasca D'Almerita, Planeta, Donnafugata and even Gaja have also settled on this still active volcano. Today the list is endless, and every year new names are introduced to me, because everyone wants a piece of the wild terroir of Etna.

Three things attracted the early pioneers to this place. First, the cooler climate, a mix of altitudes up to 1,000 metres (many growers are now pushing even higher), especially on the northern slope, but also sloping down to the east like a crescent moon. The other is the vines, their age and their history: Nerello Mascalese, Nerello Cappuccio and Carricante, as well as a number of often forgotten varieties planted long ago. The fact is that Etna was not discovered, but rediscovered. Just two decades ago, a winemaker could literally discover a forgotten vineyard planted over 100 years ago, along with stone palmenti whose wooden presses were still intact. Reaching these sites, reviving the vines and rebuilding the terraces was a job that deterred many winemakers - today, these lands can safely be dubbed "sacred ground".

Finally, the volcano itself, which is still active and has an ominous presence with its lava flows and explosions recorded since 1500 BC (but going back much further). These explosions have produced a diverse mix of soil types on the surface and around the volcano, allowing for a veritable system of "crus" or contrada (a term more commonly translated as "quarters" but interchangeable here). The differences are so great that a contrada can be a mixture of ash and stones, but also an island of terroir where volcanic sand mixes with pumice and basalt. This real analogy can be traced in the Contrada Bocca d'Orzo, with a five-hectare plot that was not touched by a lava flow in 1981 and is therefore of much older origin. There are currently 133 recognised contrade, 88 of which are on the north slope. It is clear why this is now the hottest site in Sicily, if not all of Italy, and has created a rush of producers eager to make a profit.

The good news is that the classics are still performing above average and that much of the new blood is willing to learn and experiment. It was a pleasure to taste the powerful but fresh 2019s and the extremely elegant 2020s. Judging by the trend, Carricante will receive more attention in the future and some producers believe that it will one day be recognised as the true star among Etna's grape varieties.

(...) 2019 seemed to be a year of the gods after the rainy vintage of 2018. The year started cold and wet, but with a healthy and timely budbreak in spring. The summer was hot but even tempered and was balanced by the build up of water reserves from the previous months. In September and the first half of October the weather cooled down, accompanied by timely rainfall, so that the harvest went according to plan. Tasting the red and white wines of the 2019 vintage is a real pleasure. They are lively, supple, fruit-driven, concentrated and ideal for medium-term storage.

The 2020 grape harvest was a nail-biter for Sicilian producers, but it produced fantastic results. Ultimately, 2020 can be described as a moderately warm and dry year across the island, with the exception of Etna and Salina, where it was slightly cooler. On Etna, comparisons are already being made with 2014 and 2016, which were slightly cooler. Expect elegant wines with vibrant fruit profiles, but also a balance of sweet tannins and high acidity, promising a steady and long evolution." Vinous

As always, we hope you enjoy browsing, discovering and enjoying.

Cheers and have a good weekend!