Winemaker Notes
A small island museum in the Marsala lagoon, Mozia is a unique production site. A marine ecosystem that has always been tied to the vineyard, which was fìrst established in the early nineteenth century, when the British reached Marsala and realized its potential. Tue vineyard is organically cultivated in saplings, with natural irrigation. Tue grapes are harvested in crates, then transported on flatbed boats to the Regaleali Estate using thermo-regulated trucks to preserve the aromatic integrity of the grapes. It has a yellow color with greenish notes, and an aroma with hints of Scotch broom, lemongrass, anise, and white pepper spice. It is fresh with a pleasant salty ending.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Hailing from the island of Mozia, this compelling wine opens with enticing scents of white stone fruit, orange blossom, thyme, Mediterranean scrub and citrus. Reflecting the nose, the savory palate delivers Meyer lemon, wild herbs, white pepper and saline set against vibrant acidity. It closes clean, crisp and tangy.
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James Suckling
Buttercups, fresh daffodils, citrus and jasmine. Round and oily, but stony and tight with vibrant acidity. Drink now.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
This is always one of my favorite white wines from Sicily. The 2018 Sicilia Grillo Mozia Fondazione Whitaker is a luminous and clear expression with subtle aromatic intensity that reveals sea salt like the kind that is piled high in little pyramids in the salt flats in nearby Marsala. I am immediately transported to that special panorama each time I bring my nose to the glass. The wine also shows white flower, especially Sicilian star jasmine that grows wild in the sandstone building courtyards of this area. Rating: 91+
Full-bodied and delicately aromatic, Grillo is one of Sicily’s most valued white grape varieties. While it is an important ingredient in Marsala, it also makes a delicious dry white on its own or does well blended. Somm Secret—Grillo is a natural genetic cross of Sicily’s indigenous Catarratto with Muscat of Alexandria and typically grows well in the gobelet system (bush vines).
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.