Sicily

• Mt. Etna

This is made from 100% Frappato grapes.  The winemaker at Planeta, Patricia Toth, has been at Planeta since 2005.  This wine is a beauty.  Ruby in color with some purple hues, clear and bright.  The nose has cherries, salinity and wild Thyme.  With air, just a hint of smoke.  Full bodied.  Medium tannins.  Light acidity.  On the palate, cherries, minerals, slight balsamic with a slight candied finish.  There is some depth.  This drinks nicely on its own, but would be even better with food.  It would be awesome with a Vegetarian Lasagna.  Drink over the next three to five years.  

Great showing for this wine.  it is made from the Nero d'Avola grape.  Garnet in color, darker at the core, mostly clear and bright.  The nose has black cherries, cherries, sandalwood, nutmeg, and slight dark chocolate notes.  It is tight at first but opens after an hour or so.  Medium bodied.  Medium tannins.  Nice acidity.  On the palate, this is delivering right away.  Black cherries, sour cherries, and ash.  Complex and deep.  Delicious.  Long finish.  At age 9, this is in a great spot and should be at or close to peak.  It is great on its own, but should work well with meat or fowl.  A

A fifth generation family winery in Sicily that gets the whole family on board.  From Aurelio and Barbara Di Giovanna, Gunther Di Giovanna, Gunther Di Giovanna, and Klaus Di Giovanna, the co-owners to Melissa Di Giovanna, the Sales and Marketing Manager.  The winemaker is Gianfranco Zito.

An almost shy wine, this flagship red from Donnafugata does not announce itself with overt fruit. The wine needs some time to coax out the subtle flavors and the tight tannins at the outset tell you to wait a while before it opens up. When it does plum, muted strawberry, pomegranate, baked cherry and rose water dominate the opening. Comprised of Nero d’Avola, Petit Verdot, and Syrah, the tannins and acidity support the judicious use of oak. Aged 14 months in small French oak barrels it then spent 20 months in bottle rest. The result is a lovely wine that will work with a variety of foods.

Outside of Italy, Nero d’Avola sees little production elsewhere. But in the hands of the right winemaker, Nero can be a beautifully complex wine, as is the case here. On the nose, it is fruit-forward with notes of rhubarb, pepper, tobacco, and nutmeg, which makes this a sultry wine to indulge in. Lively tannins and supple softness blend together to a harmonious whole. An intense wine that shows a little of its age, it drinks like a beautiful layered wine.

This is a Rose wine from Sicily made from Nero Mascalese grapes.  Pink/orange in color, clear and bright.  Fresh nose with cherries, slight cranberries, char and salinity.  Light to medium bodied.  On the palate, this has nice lively acidity.  Cherries, cherry juice and char.  Long finish.  This drinks very easily and it is also quite food friendly.  From Salmon to a Steak, this will pair nicely.  Drink over the next two to three years.  

This is Carricante from Sicily but made by California winery owner Kevin Harvery (Rhys).  Light golden in color, some darker gold swirls, clear and bright.  The nose is intriguing with minerality, some char, lemons, almonds and salinity.  Lovely, slightly viscous texture.  Light tannins.  On the palate, loads of minerality, some lemons and slight smoke.  Great acidity.  Long finish.  This drinks great on its own, but would be better with food such as a Lemon Pasta.  Drink over the next ten years.  

Fortunately for all of us Grillo is becoming a more popular wine. Best known in Italy, (there is some belief it originated here, but that is not conclusive) imports to the US are up and that makes for a great new wine to discover if you’re not familiar with wines from the Sicily region of Italy. This wine offers soft lemon-lime resin, lychee, light papaya, with back and supporting notes of stone fruit, melon and mineralogy.

A native grape to the island of Sicily, this Grillo is light and delicate, with notes of butterscotch, honeysuckle, guava, white peach, lemon-lime, and a hint of grapefruit and summer wildflowers. Like all good Italian wines there is a proper acidity to work with food, which is always the goal. This is a soft wine with a smooth viscosity and its success is that it doesn’t steal the show but enables food to complement the wine, a balancing act that makes for a terrific dining experience. ORIGIN: Sicily, Italy. ALCOHOL: 12%