Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This is perfumed with notes of citrus blossom and citrus leaf as well as white peaches and chalky soil. Beautiful texture with a medium body and vivid acidity cutting through. Sleek and delicious with a refreshing, minty finish. Drink or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Nerina is one of my favorite whites from Etna, especially when consumed young and fresh. The Girolamo Russo 2022 Etna Bianca Nerina is especially crisp and bright with a polished, glossy feel. Aromas of citrus, white peach and honey rise to the top. Honestly, I've never been able to hold onto a bottle long enough to trace its evolution.
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Vinous
The 2022 Etna Bianco Nerina is lifted and floral, with a spicy tinge of ginger giving way to white flowers and hints of chlorophyll. This is soft-textured and round, with ripe apple and pear accentuated by sweet spices over a core of juicy acidity. It leaves a caking of minerality, cleaning up remarkably well, with slowly fading candied citrus tones. This warm-vintage Nerina maintains a lovely balance.
With hundreds of white grape varieties to choose from, winemakers have the freedom to create a virtually endless assortment of blended white wines. In many European regions, strict laws are in place determining the set of varieties that may be used in white wine blends, but in the New World, experimentation is permitted and encouraged. Blending can be utilized to enhance balance or create complexity, lending different layers of flavors and aromas. For example, a variety that creates a soft and full-bodied white wine blend, like Chardonnay, would do well combined with one that is more fragrant and naturally high in acidity. Sometimes small amounts of a particular variety are added to boost color or aromatics. Blending can take place before or after fermentation, with the latter, more popular option giving more control to the winemaker over the final qualities of the wine.
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.