Benanti Etna Bianco DOC
| Vintage: | 2022 |
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| Description: | I remember, back sometime in the mid-1990s, driving from Piemonte to Tucsany with Marco de Grazia, then the instigator, impresario and importer of the ‘ Barolo Boys.' Even with the taste of the last Barolo we had enjoyed together that morning still on our lips, Marco asserted that it was Mount Etna in Sicily, not Piemonte, that was going to be the place to be in the 21 st century, and he would prove it by pushing all his chips onto this very active volcano and developing a property that would eventually become Domaine delle Terre Nere. Not that he was the only one interested in farming Etna, mind you, but he was the first to prove to the old timers on the mountain that truly fine wine could be produced from the patchwork of multi-oriented, wildly heterogenous vineyards that dotted the mountain. The secret, he pointed out to all who would listen, was understanding the ‘ contrade ' or unique vineyard parcels, some over 100 years old, that ranged in every direction and every altitude of this smoldering cinder. He pointed out that where and how the lava has flowed over the centuries has created distinctly different layers of terroir and that the local Carricante and Nerello grapes would respond differently depending on where they were planted. As Terre Nere soon thrived, so then did a new generation of those aforementioned old families like the Benantis and Gracis and, eventually, an onslaught of newcomers, all with a passion to brave the heroic (and potentially lethal) sort of viticultural effort required to grow grapes on a constantly erupting volcano. The Benantis, though, had a pretty good head start. With a history on the mountain going back to the 1880s, it was Giuseppe Benanti who first started bottling the grapes he farmed back in 1988 and, along with De Grazia and a handful of other families, created the quality paradigm for Etna Rosso and Bianco. Run since 2012 by his two sons, quality has done nothing but improve over the past decades and theirs are among the most coveted wines on Etna. With vineyards ranging in age from 20 to over 60 years at a variety of altitudes and exposures, they produce an Etna Bianco that is considered a benchmark for the Doc. Made entirely of the Carricante grape, it's a simply made wine that let's the character of the mountain do the talking. And it has plenty to say. Richly hued, it's a wine defined by its really charming apple-like fruit that might offer up a bit of tropicality too, salinity, and, always in any good Etna wine, its siphoned-through-lava minerality. Medium weight- neither heavy nor light- it's a simple wine with a serious side making it perfect for handling richer, spicier fish, seafood, pasta and poultry dishes while tasting great all on its own. Simply and dangerously delicious! |
| Price: | $ 37.99 |
| Price in original currency: | None |
Available from Prima Vini
| Address: |
1520 North Main Street Walnut Creek, CA 94596 United States |
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| Telephone (toll-free): | 800-707-7462 |
| Fax: | 925-935-0519 |
First added to 1000 Corks on March 28, 2024.
