Events

En primeur in Sicily
"Vinnaya Karta" №5(75) May 2006

Several years ago Assovini Sicilia, an association of Sicilian wine producers, dared to organize a tasting in the manner of Bordeaux en primeur.

The format worked, and now every March Palermo gathers international critics and experts who come to evaluate wines of the latest vintage. Our correspondent reports from the last event.

Sicily of today cannot be compared to what it was like ten and even five years ago. Trying to shake off the image of a cheap source of bulk wines, Sicilian estates are on the mission to create a serious brand of ’made in Sicily’ wines. The island produces 7,3 mln. hectolitres, or half the volume of all Australian wine. Seventeen percent of it is bottled. Although, at the first glance, the figure seems small, it is a witness of dramatic changes which have taken place in the Sicilian wine industry since the 21st century. Only five years ago 5% of Sicilian wine was bottled. Today the number of companies with own production facilities and bottling lines has risen to 450. Their total turnover amounts to 600 mln. euros, or 20% of the Sicilian GDP.

- We are observing a international trend reversal towards Sicily, — Vicenzo Morgante, chief editor of RAI Sicilia TV, stated during the press conference. — If before people wanted to talk only about mafia and migration of the Sicilians to other countries, now there is real interest to geography, culture and wines of the island.

The 2005 will be remembered as a special year by Sicilian winemakers. Firstly, the export reached unprecedented heights, having grown by 60% in 12 months. Secondly, 2005 vintage gave an excellent quality of grapes.

- The vintage is one of the best we had in 30 years, — said Franco Pisa, Assovini Sicilia director. — The weather was very favourable. Thanks to plentiful rain and a perfect rotation between cool nights and warm, never torrid days, the grapes came out ripe and perfectly whole.

Sicily’s great advantage is that it can offer the world products for all tastes. It makes quality wines from popular international varieties — Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah. Yet it keeps an arsenal of serious autochthonous grapes — Nero d’Avola, Nerello, Frappato, Inzolia — which differentiate Sicily from other winemaking regions.

This year Sicilia en primeur featured wines from 27 producers. It should be noted that although white grapes dominate in Sicily, the accent of the tasting was made on red wines. Nero d’Avola was the ultimate leader. It is capable of producing great wines of Sicily. The wines have true depth, strong tannic structure and wonderful concentration of black fruit. Both varietal wines and blends with local or international grapes are made from Nero d’Avola. Among the former Abbazia Santa Anastasia, Cusumano Sagano, Fazio, Feudo Montoni Vrucara, Feudo Principi di Butera, Planeta Santa Cecilia, Tasca d’Almerita Rosso del Conte stood out at the tasting. Exciting blends of Nero d’Avola with other varieties were shown in Benanti Majora (with Petit Verdot and Tannat), Caruso & Minini (50% of Cabernet Sauvignon), Cusumano Noa (with Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon), Fenech (with Nerello Mascalese and Corinto), Planeta Cerasuolo di Vittoria (40% of Frappato), Tarucco Peralta (with Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah).

International varieties get worthy interpretations in Sicily. It was proved by such wines as Tasca d’Almerita Cabernet Sauvignon (100% Cabernet Sauvignon), Miceli Nia Maro (Merlot), Baglio di Pianetto Chianu Carduni (Petit Verdot), Feudo Principi di Butera, Miceli, Rapitala Solinero (All Syrah).

White wines also offer great diversity of grapes and styles. At the tasting the range of grapes varied from Catarratto and Grillo to Chardonnay and Viognier, the character of wines — from elegant and restrained to bold and powerful. Yet, Sicilian winemakers should be applauded for their ability to create products with refreshing acidity and good aromatics. The leaders of the white tasting were Agareno Galici (Fiano/Catarratto), Calatrasi Accademia del Sole (Viognier), Caruso & Minini Caruso Inzolia (Inzolia), Cusumano Cubia (Inzolia), Donnafugata Lighea (Zibibbo/Inzolia/Catarratto), Firriato Altavilla della Corte (Grillo), Masseria Feudo Grottarossa Haermosa (Chardonnay), Planeta Cometa (Fiano), Rapitala Grand Cru (Chardonnay), Settesoli Furetta (Chardonnay/Fiano), Spadafora Schietto (Chardonnay).

Ian d’Agata, leading Italian expert and director of the International Wine Academy in Rome, summed up the results of the tasting and the perspectives of the Sicilian wine industry:

- The 2005 is an extremely promising vintage for Sicily, it may well be one of the very best vintages of the century. Both the whites and the reds are very promising. Sicily is undoubtedly one of Italy’s regions with the greatest winemaking potential. Sicily’s regional government has invested large sums of money in the research and study of its grape varieties and sub-zones, much more so than other famous Italian wine producing areas that really haven’t wanted to do so because they fear alienating some of their more important producers (whose vineyards, in fact, may not be located in the best sub-zones). Sicily is one of the few regions that has paid for genetic research into its varieties and is still going ahead with further and further.

If there is a problem with its wines, it may be that many, especially the reds, are still a little too rustic and always tannic and alcoholic. There is a tendency to add too much Syrah or Merlot to native grape varieties such as Nero d’Avola to make it more immediately appealing and international. Fortunately, the best producers are now doing this less and less. They concentrate on studying and improving their Nero d’Avola, as well as rediscovering other natives such as Perricone and Nerello Cappuccio.