Alberto Graci has some very old plots of Nerello Mascalese growing between 600-1000m. This is his “basic” cuvee, made from younger fruit, although there’s nothing basic about the wine. The fruit is superbly fresh and vivid, with a slightly feral, herbaceous aroma. Etna Rosso often has a small percentage of Nerello Capuccio added, but this is unadorned Nerello Mascalese, and seems very focused for it, with black cherries, blueberries and redcurrants. Quite a “hot” finish, freshened up by the tannins.
Score Range: 91-95
2010 Tenuta di Fessina Erse IGT Sicilia, Etna, Sicily
( £18, 13.5%, FortyFive10º )It’s rare to see a completely unoaked Nerello Mascalese (Although most producers are using large, old oak vessels these days). This shows just how charming Mascalese’s fruit can be. Red cherries and redcurrants are balanced with a floral and slightly herbaceous note, in a style that’s not a million miles away from younthful village Burgundies. Erse is the goddess of dew, which seems appropriate for this fresh, youthful yet intense wine.
2011 Bellingham The Bernard Series Old Vine Chenin blanc, Western Cape
( £9.59, 14.5%, Majestic )You can really taste the old vine concentration is this ripe, textured, tropical fruity Cape Chenin. The flavours coat the palate: honey, pineapple and cinnamon spice, some vanilla sweetness from oak ageing and crisp, appley acidity. Weighty, concentrated and full of flavour, this has impressive length and freshness too.
2007 I Vigneri Aetneus Etna Rosso, Etna, Sicily
( £20, 14.5%, Contact the winery for details )This wine isn’t currently available in the UK – a great shame. But it’s so good that I had to include it. Made by Salvo Foti’s cooperative “I Vigneri”, using very low-intervention (wild yeasts, no sulphur, no filtering, organically grown fruit), this is a superbly focussed, elegant expression of Nerello Mascalese. Dominated by fresh red cranberry fruit, smoky minerality and piercing acidity, the wine is underpinned by extremely refined tannins and feels effortlessly balanced – no mean feat given the high alcohol.
2008 Tenuta di Fessina Musmeci Etna Rosso, Etna, Sicily
( £36, 13.5%, FortyFive10º )Tenuta di Fessina’s winemaker Federico Curtaz is from Piedmont, and there’s definitely a nod to Nebbiolo in this wine. 15 months in French barriques has created a serious, age-worthy Etna Rosso, with smoky dark fruit, but plenty of freshness and the typical saline/mineral finish that defines good Etna Rosso. Above all, this is elegant and balanced, in the manner of a top-quality Barolo or a Nuits-San-Georges.
2008 Sciarakè Etna Rosso, Etna, Sicily
( N/A, 13.5%, N/A UK (Available from the winery) )I loved the concentrated and slightly dusty fruit in this Etna Rosso. This is a very approachable style, with fine tannins and an iodine tang at the end. Further proof that Nerello Mascalese can produce wines of considerable complexity without the need for any oak aging.
2010 Passopischiaro Porcaria Etna Rosso, Etna, Sicily
( N/A, 14%, N/A UK (Available from the winery) )Passopischiaro make no less than four single vineyard Nerello Mascaleses, and the range of flavour and character just goes to show how sensitive this variety is to the varying terroir in different parts of the Etna region. Porcaria is a vineyard at 650m, with a thin layer of lava on the topsoil. This is a monolithic, smoky and tannic wine, which nonetheless remains fresh and herbaceous – there’s a pronounced note of sage.
2011 Crozes-Hermitage, Alain Graillot, Crozes-Hermitage, Rhône Valley
( £19.25, 12.5%, Yapp Brothers )Alain Graillot and his son, Maxime, make some of the best value wines in the northern Rhône Valley, often on a par with more expensive fare from nearby Hermitage. This blend of mostly Marsanne with 20% Roussanne is a stunner: aromatic, mealy and very complex, with notes of brown toast, fresh flowers, oatmeal, peach and citrus fruit. The oak is very subtle, while the finish is long and staisfying. It will age nicely too under screwcap.
2011 Blind River Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough
( £9.99, 13%, Majestic )There’s so much mediocre Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc around (bland, sweet, overcropped and sometimes all three) that it’s a pleasure to recommend one that has real personality. This comes from the cooler Awatere Valley and is beautifuly taut and refined: a focused, almost minerally white with one foot in the Loire Valley, stylistically speaking. Fresh, crisp and tangy with notes of elderflower, wet stones and kiwi fruit, it lingers tantalisingly on the palate.
2009 Paul Misset, Clos de Vougeot, Burgundy
( £72, 13.5%, Yapp Brothers )The bottle is ludicrously heavy, but the wine inside is very good indeed. Mid garnet/red in colour, complex, perfumed nose of red fruits, some Asian spices and a beautifully balanced, elegant palate with the stuffing to age. The wine is everything that the ponderous bottle isn’t. Impressive stuff from a lesser known name.
2009 Louis Latour, Clos de Vougeot, Burgundy
( ££££, 13.5%, Fine + Rare )Another winery that is in the running for my heavy bottle Burgundy award. Mid garnet/red in colour. The palate shows sweet oak, reasonable concentration, some raspeberry coulis notes and good acidity, with appealing balance. It’s more of a village level wine than a Grand Cru, but it’s still a decent Pinot.
2009 Henri de Villamont, Clos de Vougeot, Burgundy
( ££££, 13.5%, Fine + Rare )Very, very pale, almost transparent Pinot. Delicate and very subtle with red fruits, a hint of forest floor and wild mushrooms. Long and refined with grainy, sculpted tannins, refreshing acidity and a long finish. The wine needs a little more concentration perhaps.