| If you are looking for fine Italian wine and food, | | | | Catarratto, Grecanico, Inzolia, and Grillo. The first three |
| consider the Sicily region of southern Italy. You may | | | | of these varieties are blended in the wine reviewed |
| find a bargain, and I hope that you'll have fun on this | | | | below. |
| fact-filled wine education tour. | | | | Widely grown international red grape varieties include |
| Sicily is the football kicked by the Italian boot. It is an | | | | Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot. The |
| island in the Mediterranean Sea located off the | | | | best-known strictly Italian red varieties are Nero |
| southwest tip of Italy. Sicily was first inhabited about | | | | d'Avola, Frappato, and Nerello Mascalese. |
| ten thousand years ago. Agriculture and animal raising | | | | Before reviewing the Sicilian wine and cheese that we |
| date back well over four thousand years. Its rulers | | | | were lucky enough to purchase at a local wine store |
| have included the Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Normans, | | | | and a local Italian food store, here are a few |
| Germans, and Spaniards, among others. This | | | | suggestions of what to eat with indigenous wines |
| mountainous region is prone to volcanoes and | | | | when touring this beautiful region. |
| earthquakes; in 1908 an earthquake and subsequent | | | | Start with Insalata di Finocchi, Arance Sanguigne de |
| tidal wave killed eighty thousand people in the coastal | | | | Olive; Fennel, Blood Orange, and Olive Salad. |
| city of Messina. Sicily's population is about five million, | | | | As a second course try Pollo con Prosciutto e |
| with an additional ten million people of Sicilian descent | | | | Melanzane Fritte; Braised Chicken with Proscuitto and |
| around the world. | | | | Fried Eggplants. |
| Agricultural products include wheat, barley, corn, olives, | | | | For dessert indulge yourself with Cassata; Candied |
| citrus fruit, almonds, and, of course, grapes. Tomatoes, | | | | Fruit and Chocolate on Sponge Cake. |
| eggplants, and peppers are prominent in local cuisine. | | | | OUR WINE REVIEW POLICY While we have |
| Sicily is Italy's second region for organic food. Many | | | | communicated with well over a thousand Italian wine |
| think that the Arabs introduced pasta to Sicily, which | | | | producers and merchants to help prepare these |
| subsequently introduced it to the rest of Italy. Cattle, | | | | articles, our policy is clear. All wines that we taste and |
| mules, donkeys, and sheep are raised. Sicily claims to | | | | review are purchased at the full retail price. |
| have invented meatballs, The seas surrounding Sicily | | | | Wine Reviewed |
| are bountiful, favorites include sardines, tuna, and | | | | Tasca d'Almerita 'Regaleali' Blanco 2005 IGT Sicilia |
| swordfish. Sicily is famous for desserts, including | | | | 12.5% alcohol about $13 |
| frozen treats made with snow from Mount Etna. | | | | We'll start by quoting the marketing materials. "Made |
| Sicilian heavy industry includes petro-chemicals, | | | | with the local grapes Inzolia, Greciano, and Catarratto, |
| chemicals, mining, and electronics. Tourism is a major | | | | this wine is matured only in stainless steel and is not |
| factor in the Sicilian economy. Did you know that the | | | | put through acid-softening malolactic fermentation. The |
| Valle dei Templi in Agrigento on the Mediterranean | | | | producer chooses this approach to retain the bright |
| Sea has some of the finest Greek ruins on earth? | | | | fruitiness and racy crispness of the wine. Enjoy with |
| Palermo, arguably the world's most conquered city, is | | | | steamed mussels, chicken or summer salads." And |
| Sicily's capital with a population of a little under seven | | | | now for my thoughts on the wine. |
| hundred thousand. It is a definite tourist destination, with | | | | I first tasted this wine with broiled chicken burgers |
| its numerous historical churches, museums, theaters, | | | | accompanied by a hot pepper relish, and red peppers. |
| and Italy's largest botanical garden. Another urban | | | | The wine was light, perhaps a bit intimidated by the |
| tourist destination is Syracuse, dating back to Ancient | | | | relish. It was delicate, but not weak. When I finished my |
| Greece. The Greek writer Cicero described it as "The | | | | glass with the red peppers, the wine was quite fruity |
| greatest Greek city and the most beautiful of them all." | | | | and sweet. |
| Both earthquakes and World War II caused heavy | | | | I next tried this wine with fillet of sole poached in an |
| damage, but many of the most interesting sites have | | | | onion sauce, accompanied by brown rice and okra in a |
| been reconstructed. | | | | tomato sauce. The wine tasted light and citrusy in the |
| Sicily devotes about a third of a million acres to | | | | presence of the fish, and was more powerful when |
| grapevines, it ranks first among the 20 Italian regions. Its | | | | facing the rice and the okra. I finished that meal with |
| total annual wine production is about 213 million gallons, | | | | fresh pomegranate. The wine became sweet and |
| also giving it first place. If Sicily were an independent | | | | acidic, but did not take on new flavors. |
| country, it would rank seventh in the world for wine | | | | Isola is a Sicilian fresh cheese made from sheep's milk. |
| production. About 54% of its wine production is red or | | | | The Isola cheese was powerful, strong smelling and |
| rosé (only a bit of rosé), leaving 46% | | | | strong tasting, especially when you crunched into a |
| for white. The region produces 19 DOC wines. DOC | | | | peppercorn. Unfortunately, the cheese overpowered |
| stands for Denominazione di Origine Controllata, which | | | | this relatively light wine. In contrast, when paired with an |
| may be translated as Denomination of Controlled | | | | Asiago cheese from northern Italy, the wine became |
| Origin, presumably a high-quality wine. Only a little more | | | | quite full bodied and fruity. Sometimes rules such as |
| than 2% of Sicilian wine carries the DOC designation. | | | | local wines with local cheeses are meant to be broken. |
| Sicily is home to over three dozen major and | | | | I had a bit of wine left over and finished the bottle with |
| secondary grape varieties, with more white than red | | | | out-of-season strawberries. They brought out the |
| varieties. | | | | wine's complexity and softness. |
| Widely grown international white grape varieties include | | | | Final verdict, in spite of its low official rating, I found the |
| Malvasia and to a lesser extent, Chardonnay. The | | | | wine pretty good. I would buy it again, but avoid pairing |
| best-known strictly Italian white varieties are | | | | it with strong-tasting food. |