“Contrada Cottanera” Bianco Etna DOC 2021

Cottanera | Sicily
Cottanera S.r.l. Agricola | Via XVII Luglio 34 | IT 98100 Messina

19230421 · 0,75 l · 118,67 €/l · Price (DE) incl. VAT, excl. Shippingavailable immediately

Carricante is the white soul of Etna. While Nerello Mascalese attracts the attention of the world, Carricante works quietly and consistently – a grape variety that develops deep minerality on volcanic lava sand and an acidity structure that can last for decades. On the northern Etna slope, in the Contrada Cottanera, lies the vineyard to which this estate has given its name and to which it now dedicates its purest white wine. Hand-picked with careful grape selection. What follows is a conscious decision: 5 to 6 hours of maceration in the press – longer than most producers would risk with Carricante, and yet it is not a so-called orange wine. The skin contact gives texture, depth and a phenolic structure that supports the subsequent ageing. Fermentation in concrete vats at 14 to 22 °C – the material that breathes without overlaying. Then 24 months in concrete, 24 more in the bottle. A full four years from the vineyard to the glass.

2021 was a balanced year on the northern Etna slope – good temperature fluctuations, no extreme heat, even ripeness. For Carricante with this storage time, this means: a wine that is only now beginning to show what it is. Golden straw yellow in colour, bright and deep. Citrus peel, white peach, camomile, flint, salt air and a hint of beeswax on the nose – complex, mineral, of great stillness. Dense and structured on the palate, with lively acidity, a creamy texture from ageing and a long, salty-mineral final that inevitably brings the volcano to mind. A white wine that rewards the patience it has brought with it. SUPERIORE.DE