TN: AFWAC - The Mysterious Mount Etna 26/3/18

[n4sir]

[img]https://i.imgur.com/0pGmuZZ.jpg[/img]

Last month I went to a tasting of wines hosted by importer Christian Canata – it’s been three years since I tried a good selection of wines from the fiery slopes of Mount Etna in one hit, so I had been looking forward to this for a while.

Among Italy’s numerous and vibrant wine regions, Mount Etna in north-eastern Sicily seems an unlikely site for producing any wines let alone quality wines. Mount Etna is an active, fearsome volcano that has erupted from time to time, sometimes savagely, for thousands of years. Nonetheless, it is becoming one of Italy’s hottest wine regions (figuratively as well as literally) with both wine investors and vintners such as Antinori & Angelo Gaia scrambling to secure a piece of the region. As interest and demand have soared in the region in recent years, prices for these rare wines have inevitably mirrored the same giddy rise.

The wines of the Etna region are primarily dry red and white wines but also include a few rosato (rosè) wines. By regulation the Etna Rosso (red) must have a minimum of 80 percent Nerello Mascalese, a little-known indigenous variety that is produced only in the Mount Etna region. Often the junior partner in the red blends is another indigenous red variety, Nerello Cappuccio which must comprise at least 10 but no more than 20 percent of the total with other local red or even, surprisingly, white grapes making up the difference. They are typically lighter bodied and elegant, but can also be quite tannic and structured in the style of say Burgundy or Barolo. The Etna Bianco (white) wines must have a minimum of 60 percent Carricante, a little-known, indigenous white variety that is grown exclusively in the Etna region. While 40 percent of the blend can consist of other authorized local white varieties, some of the best Etna Bianco wines are made entirely of Carricante.

AFWAC meets the last Monday of every month, and anyone interested in future AFWAC events can email the club at: afwac365@gmail.com

Or check out the club's facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AdelaideFineWineAppreciationClub


ETNA BIANCO:

2016 Vigne di Eli Etna Bianco, Sicily (DIAM): 12.5% alc. Very pale straw/green. Opens with typical touch of Etna smoke and sulphur, scorched stone and some cheddar, fine lemon and pear fruit coming through with breathing along with a little paprika. The palate’s tight and crisp, slightly peachy with breathing, finishing with crunchy green apple acidity. This was a great start to the night, and would be perfect with freshly shucked oysters.

2016 Tenuta di Fessina Etna Bianco Erse, Sicily (DIAM): 13% alc. Very pale straw/green. Sweeter than the Vigne di Eli, lemon blossom and honeysuckle, the palate rounder and broader with some tropical/pineapple on the finish. Not bad.

2015 Tenuta di Fessina Etna Bianco A Puddara, Sicily (cork): 13% alc. 100 percent Carricante off 90 year old vines. Very pale straw/green. Opens with smoke and peat, grapefruit, toasted pine nuts; the palate’s slightly cheesy at first, followed by powerful lime and grapefruit, finishing long and chalky with some pink guava. This was easily the most impressive of the three Bianco wines, but not quite as polished as the 2012 vintage I tried three years ago.


ETNA ROSATO:

2015 Graci Etna Rosato, Sicily (DIAM): 13% alc. Very pale onion skin colour. There’s smoke, pineapple and coconut with a splash of vanilla custard, the palate tangy and tropical with crisp, dry acidity on the finish. A bit of a nod to Provence here.

2016 Tenuta di Fessina Etna Rosato Erse, Sicily (DIAM): 12.5% alc. Light salmon pink colour. Musky with rose petals, strawberry and Turkish delight, slightly cheesy and rubbery; more of a tradditional funky Italian Rosato compared to the Graci, but I’m not really a fan.



ETNA ROSSO:

2015 Graci Etna Rosso, Sicily (cork): 14% alc. Light red. Bright and lifted, cherries, tea rose, and raspberries; the palate’s lean and minerally leading to bright red fruits mid-palate, finishing long and grippy with thick but soft tannins. A lovely ripe style that sits somewhere in between a Grenache and Pinot with an excellent texture. The bargain of the night, if there is such a thing as a bargain from Etna (and currently available at a very competitive price from our forum host Gavin!)

2016 Vigne di Eli Etna Rosso, Sicily (DIAM): 14% alc. Just darker than light red. Smoky with very ripe, bordering jammy cherries and obvious old-oak influences, some volatility, dry apple and heat on the finish. This had its fans – I wasn’t one of them.

2015 Tenuta di Fessina Etna Rosso Erse, Sicily (DIAM): 13.5% alc. Light red. This reminds me of the first time I tried the 2012 vintage, my introduction to Etna – an initial whiff of smoke and sulphur gives way to bright cherries, the mid-palate juicy and leading to a long, velvety finish. A wine that’s a baby with a big structure, and despite the complete lack of oak will become much sweeter, complex and meaty with cellaring.

2014 Romeo del Castello Etna Rosso, Sicily (cork): 14.5% alc. Medium red. Riper and funky, kirsch, Morello cherries, bandaids, aniseed and acetone; the palate’s jammy with a yeasty, dirty spirit-like character on the finish. This had its fans, but brett Nazis like me should give it a very wide birth.

2014 Vini Franchetti Passopisciaro Contrada Chiappemacine IGT, Sicily (cork): 15% alc. 100% Nerello Mascalese selected from an 80 year old vineyard at an altitude of 550m, matured 18 months in large, neutral oak barrels. Light to medium bright red. A huge step up from everything before it, smoke, boysenberry, talc and mineral on the nose, the palate full of sweet cherry, graphite and quartz, long, grippy and massive in scale. Yes it's ripe, but there's absolutely no alcohol warmth. Unfortunately lost in the last top trio of wines, this was very unlucky not to get a vote.

2014 Vini Franchetti Passopisciaro Contrada Porcaria IGT, Sicily (cork): 15.5% alc. 100% Nerello Mascalese selected from an 80 year old vineyard at an altitude of 650m, matured 18 months in large, neutral oak barrels. Maraschino cherries, peppermint, tea roses and game with a touch of candied orange peel; the palate is huge and grippy, even bigger than the Chiappemacine, finishing with creamy vanilla. Like the Chiappemacine, no alcohol heat; if there was an Etna equivalent of an old-school, circa late 1990s Hardy’s Tintara Shiraz this would be it. In this crowd, unsurprisingly WOTN by a very large margin.

2011 Tenuta di Fessina Etna Rosso Il Musmeci, Sicily (cork): 14% alc. 100% Nerello Mascalese from vines that predate the Phylloxera scourge of Europe, surviving because of the unique geology of Etna that facilitates the drowning of the little bugs before they can establish themselves. Light to medium garnet. The additional bottle age shows with wonderful complexity, cedar, meaty tea smoked duck, truffle, sandalwood, spearmint and roast coffee, the palate gamey, minty and long with a grippy, graphite finish. In the end this got my WOTN vote for now, but those two Passopisciaro wines are ones to watch.


The overall group votes for Bianco or Rosato of the night:

1st - 9 votes: 2015 Tenuta di Fessina Etna Bianco A Puddara
2nd - 7 votes: 2015 Tenuta di Fessina Etna Rosato Erse
3rd - 2 votes: 2016 Vigne di Eli Etna Bianco
4th - 1 vote: 2015 Graci Etna Rosato

The overall group votes for Rosso of the night:

1st - 13 votes: 2014 Vini Franchetti Passopisciaro Contrada Porcaria
2nd - 5 votes: 2011 Tenuta di Fessina Etna Rosso Il Musmeci
3rd - 1 vote: 2015 Tenuta di Fessina Etna Rosso Erse


Cheers,
Ian

[Ozzie W]

Thanks for the great write-up, Ian. A wine region very close to my heart. To me the wines of Etna are almost like a cross between Burgundy and Barolo, which probably goes a long way to explaining why I love them so much. Still really great value too.

...Nerello Mascalese, a little-known indigenous variety that is produced only in the Mount Etna region.

There's one exception to this. On the north-eastern tip of Sicily lies the tiny DOC called Faro. Nerello Mascalese is also grown there. Very similar in style to the Nerello from Etna. I've presented Faro wines blind and people more often than not mistake them for Etna.

[winetastic]

Thanks for the write up Ian.

There's one exception to this. On the north-eastern tip of Sicily lies the tiny DOC called Faro. Nerello Mascalese is also grown there. Very similar in style to the Nerello from Etna. I've presented Faro wines blind and people more often than not mistake them for Etna.

Any examples currently available locally?

[Ozzie W]

Thanks for the write up Ian.

There's one exception to this. On the north-eastern tip of Sicily lies the tiny DOC called Faro. Nerello Mascalese is also grown there. Very similar in style to the Nerello from Etna. I've presented Faro wines blind and people more often than not mistake them for Etna.

Any examples currently available locally?

Le Casematte Faro.
2014 vintage available now and some 2013 still floating around.
I haven't tried the 2014 but I've had the 2013 a few times. Such a moreish wine.

[via collins]

loved this little factoid Ian - did not know this:

100% Nerello Mascalese from vines that predate the Phylloxera scourge of Europe, surviving because of the unique geology of Etna that facilitates the drowning of the little bugs before they can establish themselves.

[Ozzie W]

Thanks for the write up Ian.

There's one exception to this. On the north-eastern tip of Sicily lies the tiny DOC called Faro. Nerello Mascalese is also grown there. Very similar in style to the Nerello from Etna. I've presented Faro wines blind and people more often than not mistake them for Etna.

Any examples currently available locally?

Le Casematte Faro.
2014 vintage available now and some 2013 still floating around.
I haven't tried the 2014 but I've had the 2013 a few times. Such a moreish wine.

Since my post I've discovered another one available locally -- 2014 Bonavita Faro Superiore Rosso. It's a blend of Nerello Mascalese, Nerello Cappuccio, and Nocera.

[winetastic]

Since my post I've discovered another one available locally -- 2014 Bonavita Faro Superiore Rosso. It's a blend of Nerello Mascalese, Nerello Cappuccio, and Nocera.

Cant find this one anywhere in retail land... Gavin?