Wines of Sicily

by Anne Popoff

Having just returned from a paradisiacal two weeks in the southern part of Sicily, I am compelled to write about the wines and some food….forgive me, but I am still suffering withdrawal symptoms from la dolce vita, Sicilian style. Sicilian wines are an up and coming value region on the international wine scene.

Sicily is the second largest wine producing area in Italy, competing closely with Puglia. Surprisingly though, Sicilians themselves consume the least amount of wine per capita in Italy. So you may well wonder where all the grapes go. Raisins are a major Sicilian product and you will find them used in many Sicilian food recipes. The other area is of course, Marsala, the classic Sicilian dessert wine. Marsala deserves a blog unto itself, so stay tuned! But know this; Marsala accounts for over 90% of the total DOC (Denominazione di Origine Controllata) production in Sicily, so there is not in fact that much DOC wine produced in Sicily, but likely a fair bit of bulk and table wine.

Dry, drinking wines

But back to dry, drinking wines. The main red grape is Nero D’Avola – which literally means black from the village of Avola. It is sometimes compared to a Syrah for its flavour. Other important red grape varieties include Frappato and Cerasuola di Vittoria (a blend of Nero d’Avola and Frappato and the only DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita) wine in Sicily). For white local grapes, we have Grillo, Grecanico or Greco, and Insolia. The international varieties such as Chardonnay, Merlot and others also do well in the sunny Sicilian climate.

Spoiled for choice

We are starting to see an improved selection and availability of Sicilian wines in Ontario. In the General List and Vintages section of the LCBO, you will find many well-priced treasures.

One of the best-known Sicilian wineries – Planet produces a wide range of top-quality wines, some of which are available at Vintages and otherwise through their representative in Ontario: Halpern Enterprises. Another great winery is Valle dell’Acate. Their agent in Ontario is Brunello Imports , but as per their website, they do not currently have any of Valle dell’Acate’s wines available. You could likely order their wine by the case from the agency if there is enough volume.

When we visited the winery, Claudio poured us a delicious Insolia, a crisp white, suitable for many occasions, including a pre-lunch aperitif, and a delicious Cerasuola di Vittoria, full of cherries and red fruit flavours which would do justice to grilled meats, pastas and even some fish, such as monkfish or cod.

In Ontario, try some of the wines by Cusumano, they are available at Vintages and in General List and are reasonably priced. Vintages Online also has a nice selection of harder to find Sicilian wines, and you can order them by the bottle

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