Winemaker Notes
A bright ruby red color, Vrucara is intense and persistent on the nose with earthy aromas, notes of red plum and dark berries, which are in harmony with notes of red rose petal, wormwood, balsamic, eucalyptus and licorice. Soft and velvety on the palate, with a delicate acidity and well-balanced and soft tannins. Vrucara has a prolonged aromatic persistence on the finish.
Blend: 100% Nero d'Avola
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The organic Feudo Montoni 2021 Sicilia Nero d'Avola Riserva Vrucara now carries the word “Riserva” on the back label, along with a reference to the Principato di Villanova, the historic principality where the estate’s baglio was built. The wine opens to cola and bright cherry in a pretty, lifted bouquet. It is precise and crisp, with terrific fruit delineation that carries seamlessly from the nose to the palate. The mouthfeel is smooth and soft yet supported by good underlying structure.
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Vinous
Intense from the first tilt of the glass, the 2021 Nero d'Avola Vrucara smolders up with a beguiling blend of crushed blackberry and cherry complicated by cedar shavings, incense and mint. The palate is silken in feel, with weighty textures offset by a core of zesty acidity as ripe red and blue fruit cascade throughout. The 2021 possesses notable energy and verve, finishing structured and long yet still fresh, leaving a hint of tart raspberry and spice to linger. A fantastic, powerful rendition of Feudo Montoni's Vrucara.
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Wine Enthusiast
The layered nose is sophisticated and intense without being overwhelming, as aromas of tobacco leaf and teak kick things off, followed by Luxardo cherry and pomegranate syrup, before concluding with a hint of gunpowder and crushed rocks. The palate dusts bitter cocoa and chili over ripe blackberries and black cherries, before substantial yet fluid tannins carry you to a finish which smolders with a quiet heat. A sleeper hit that should get more attention, like the down album track that surpasses the single.
Cellar Selection -
James Suckling
This wine shows fresh aromas of red cherries, violets, jam and savory anchovies. Smooth and full-bodied on the palate, it’s silky with density and weight, velvety tannins and jammy flavors not without freshness. Savory, rich and smoky. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold.
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Wine Spectator
Savory green olive and herb notes transition to flavors of baked and dried cherry, strawberry and plum fruit in this plush and creamy red. Finely meshed, integrating supple tannins and lightly juicy acidity. Long on the finish, with enticing lavender, blood orange peel, warm spice, mocha and mineral details. Drink now through 2035.
Feudo Montoni has been producing top-quality wines on its historic grounds since 1469, and is currently overseen by Fabio Sireci, the third generation of a family dedicated to producing the most refined expressions of this long-cultivated terroir.
Today, the certified organic winery produces many of Italy’s most celebrated 100% indigenous varietals—Perricone, Nerello Mascalese, Catarratto, Grillo, Inzolia and Passito—in addition to the purest expression of Nero d’Avola.
Sireci is particularly proud of the organic farming methods, artisanal cellar practices and renewable energy sources he’s implemented and maintained, which he says preserves the grapes’ natural flavors and nuances. “We keep the vines rustic, so the foliage is free to express itself,” he says. “The vineyards are not fertilized—we condition the land by sowing broad beans and peas, and we do not use any chemical products.”
All operations in the vineyard are undertaken completely by hand, and the results speak for themselves: thanks to the Sireci family’s dedication and the vineyards’ high altitude, fluctuating temperatures, plentiful rainfall and neighboring olive and wheat plots, Feudo Montoni wines have staked their claim among the finest in the region.
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.