2008 Is Sicily's Best Vintage In Ten Years

Regione Sicilia, Italy - There is an excited buzz on the island of Sicily. The weather in 2008 was ideal for wine growing and, with the harvest now in, both the red and white wines are proving to be of exceptional quality. The last couple of years have seen warmer temperatures and a little more rain than is typical for the island. While the wines from these vintages showed great quality, creating a heightened interest around the globe for Sicily's table wines, the 2008 harvest was gifted with superb weather causing less stress among the island's winegrowers and wine makers.

Wineries such as Carlos Pellegrino, Donnafugata, Tasca d'Almerita, Donna Franca and Feudo Arancio are all reporting on their better than average harvest this year. They are thrilled with the traditional warm to hot temperatures and generally dry weather. Rainfall was just under the island's usual, but with the varietals on Sicily being fully acclimated to its Mediterranean climate, this did not cause the vines undue stress.

Initially, the hot, dry weather of 2008 had Gaetana Jacono of Valle dell Acate winery worried about the harvest. "I took one look at my father's face, which is normally grim at harvest, and he had a good smile on his face-and his hair was ok and not like a punk." Jacono explained, "I understood then that all was ok." Jacono's father, the owner of Valle dell'Acate, further surprised her by announcing, in the middle of harvest, "Tomorrow, I am not coming into the winery; I prefer to stay on the beach." Jacono laughs, "It was then that I understood that all was not only ok, but very, very good."

Harvest Begins : The Whites

Harvest began the first week of August for many wineries. Feudo Arancio started by picking their Pinot grigio, followed by Chardonnay. Arancio's Grillo, a white grape native to the island, was picked a month later. The Grillo grape produces a popular white wine on the island made in a crisp, fruity style. Arancio's head winemaker, Matteo Covazzi, noted the high quality in each of the white wines made in 2008.

"These first white wines are elegant, fruity and full-bodied, with a vibrant bouquet that shows no signs of sun overexposure or loss of aromas in the winemaking process," Covazzi explained.

The Donna Franca winery also started by harvesting their Pinot grigio and Chardonnay, with Grillo following a month later. Later still was the winery's Carricante grapes from the cooler Mount Etna region on the northeastern tip of the island. Carricante is another indigenous grape to Sicily, with plantings concentrated on the slopes of Mount Etna. The Carricante grape produces crisply delicious dry white wines with lots of intriguing minerality.

The Reds

Feudo Arancio's first reds to be harvested were Pinot noir and Merlot. "This year's red vintage seems to be exceptional thanks to ideal ripeness without any kind of stress from hot weather," Covazzi explains. Syrah came next, followed by Cabernet sauvignon. The island's star grape, the native Nero d'Avola (called Calabrese on the island), came in even after the famously late Cabernet sauvignon. Nero d'Avola wines have been winning fans across the world with its deep color, body and aging potential.

Old Traditions New Again

The Donnafugata winery noted that its indigenous varietals thrived during the 2008, having long ago adapted to the island's climate. Nero d'Avola, Ansonica, Catarratto, and Zibibbo are a few of the varietals mentioned as doing particularly well in 2008. The winery has been night harvesting its grapes for the past ten years. "It is traditional to pick grapes at night, but we fell away from this practice for a time, only to pick it back up in 1998," notes Alessia Panzeca from the Donnafugata winery. Panzeca explained "We do this in order to prevent unwanted fermentation while transporting the grapes from the vineyard to the cellar, but at the same time it conserves 70% of the energy it takes to cool the grapes down prior to pressing." Night harvesting photos can be viewed on their website at www.donnafugata.it.

When asked about the most promising varietals from the 2008 harvest, wineries from all over the island responded with a long and seemingly comprehensive list of all of the varietals planted on this 9,926 square mile stretch of land : Grillo, Chardonnay, Insolia, Cataratto, Frappato, Nero d'Avola, Moscato, Zibibbo, Perricone, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, among many others.

For further information on the Wines of Sicily, please contact Paul Wagner at Balzac Communications, pwagner@balzac.com, 707 255 7667.