Arianna Occhipinti Siccagno Nero d'Avola 2019
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James
Suckling
Product Details
Winemaker Notes
Siccagno is Nero d’Avola, born from those concentrated grapes which they precisely call Siccagna. Nero relates mostly Sicily, that it is wild, but it is also fresh and elegant and it is red fruit flavored. That it has something noble and aristocratic, but it is also melancholic as a poet or a philosopher. That it is passionate, full of warmth and contrasts. The Nero which is the grape of their fathers and unites Sicily from corner to corner and it better gathers the spirit for centuries. A wine which they deeply love and since the first year it has always been with me.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Aromas of leather, dried fruit and flowers. Medium-bodied with gentle tannins. Linear on the palate, with the dried-floral character taking charge. Tangy, with some orange peel.
In addition to the monovarietal wines, Arianna makes a blend of Nero and Frappato called SP68. Named for the road going past her house, the wine is made like a Cerasuolo but is labelled as IGT Sicilia as Arianna does not always want to age the wine for the minimum 18 months in barrel required by the authorities.
Boldly opulent and robust, Nero d’Avola is Sicily’s most widely planted red grape. Nero d’Avola performs well both as a single varietal bottling and in blends. It loves hot, arid climates and Sicily's old vines are aptly head-trained close to the ground, making them resistant to strong winds. A few pioneering producers in California as well as Australia farm Nero d’Avola in the same way. Somm Secret—Nero d’Avola's other name, Calabrese, suggests origins from the mainland region of Calabria.
A large, geographically and climatically diverse island, just off the toe of Italy, Sicily has long been recognized for its fortified Marsala wines. But it is also a wonderful source of diverse, high quality red and white wines. Steadily increasing in popularity over the past few decades, Italy’s fourth largest wine-producing region is finally receiving the accolades it deserves and shining in today's global market.
Though most think of the climate here as simply hot and dry, variations on this sun-drenched island range from cool Mediterranean along the coastlines to more extreme in its inland zones. Of particular note are the various microclimates of Europe's largest volcano, Mount Etna, where vineyards grow on drastically steep hillsides and varying aspects to the Ionian Sea. The more noteworthy red and white Sicilian wines that come from the volcanic soils of Mount Etna include Nerello Mascalese and Nerello Cappuccio (reds) and Carricante (whites). All share a racy streak of minerality and, at their best, bear resemblance to their respective red and white Burgundies.
Nero d’Avola is the most widely planted red variety, and is great either as single varietal bottling or in blends with other indigenous varieties or even with international ones. For example, Nero d'Avola is blended with the lighter and floral, Frappato grape, to create the elegant, Cerasuolo di Vittoria, one of the more traditional and respected Sicilian wines of the island.
Grillo and Inzolia, the grapes of Marsala, are also used to produce aromatic, crisp dry Sicilian white. Pantelleria, a subtropical island belonging to the province of Sicily, specializes in Moscato di Pantelleria, made from the variety locally known as Zibibbo.