Etna Rosso
Appellation: Etna Rosso DOC
Type: Red, dry
Varietal: Nerello Mascalese – indigenous to the Etna area
Certified Organic
Wine Details:
Tasting Notes:
Color: Clear red with hints of purple.
Bouquet: Dried cherries, sweet herbs and dried flowers.
Taste: Pretty and clean (no oak), wild cherries, earth, and herbal notes.
Food Pairings: Roast pork, grilled meats, baked stuffed sardines, tuna and tomato, barbecue short ribs, swordfish with tomatoes and capers, steak, sweet and sour pork, smoked eggplant, Thai style eggplant, pecorino, caciocavallo (sicilian mozzarella), provolone, and fresh ricotta.
Vinyard Notes:
Production area: The north-eastern slope of Etna at Passopisciaro - Castiglione di Sicilia, Province of Catania.
Altitude: 600-700 meters (2,000-2,300 feet) a.s.l.
Vine Density: Between 6,000 and 10,000 plants per hectare.
Soil: Dark brown in colour, volcanic in origin, well-drained – almost sandy in some parts, neutral pH, not calcareous, mostly very rich in iron and nitrogen.
Yield: 30 hectolitres per hectare - 3 or 4 bunches per vine.
Winemaking Notes:
Harvest: Mid-October.
Fermentation: In cement tanks with 12 days maceration on the skins.
Aging: 12 months in cement and large wood barrels, during which Malolactic Fermentation occurred naturally.
Reviews:
2012 Etna Rosso – 92 Points – James Suckling (Oct 2014)
"Super silky and refined red with plum, cocoa, mineral and walnut character. Full body, integrated tannins and a chewy finish. Better in 2016 but beautiful now."
2012 Etna Rosso – 88 Points – Wine Spectator (Aug 2014)
"Ripe and creamy black cherry and wild strawberry fruit is layered with chewy tannins and subtle accents of violet, tarry mineral and anise in this mouthwatering, medium-bodied red." ~ A.N.
2012 Etna Rosso – 91 Points – Robert Parker Wine Advocate (#212 May 2014)
"A pure expression of Nerello Mascalese, the 2012 Etna Rosso shows a gorgeous garnet hue with brilliant ruby highlights. The color is healthy and saturated. Elegant and integrated aromas of dark fruit, ash, tobacco and spice are present in equal measure. Its texture is thickly woven and velvety in feel with firm, but well-managed tannins. A few more years in the bottle will soften up the fabric of this wine." ~ M.L.
"Super silky and refined red with plum, cocoa, mineral and walnut character. Full body, integrated tannins and a chewy finish. Better in 2016 but beautiful now."
2012 Etna Rosso – 88 Points – Wine Spectator (Aug 2014)
"Ripe and creamy black cherry and wild strawberry fruit is layered with chewy tannins and subtle accents of violet, tarry mineral and anise in this mouthwatering, medium-bodied red." ~ A.N.
2012 Etna Rosso – 91 Points – Robert Parker Wine Advocate (#212 May 2014)
"A pure expression of Nerello Mascalese, the 2012 Etna Rosso shows a gorgeous garnet hue with brilliant ruby highlights. The color is healthy and saturated. Elegant and integrated aromas of dark fruit, ash, tobacco and spice are present in equal measure. Its texture is thickly woven and velvety in feel with firm, but well-managed tannins. A few more years in the bottle will soften up the fabric of this wine." ~ M.L.