"Rosa fresca aulentissima ch' appari inver' la state, le donne ti disiano, pulzell' e maritate." are the first lines of "Contrasto", an opera by Cielo Dalcamo a poet who lived in the 13th century at Frederick II's court at Palermo, which tells of the mutual courtship between a lover and his lady.
Description
The grapes: Sauvignon - Catarratto. The vineyard: the grapes are grown in a little vineyard at the entrance to the Tenuta Rapitalà at 300 metres above sea level. The vinification: the grapes are left to dry on the vine until they reach a perfect concentration of sugars. They are late-harvested, in November, and vinified separately. The partial formation of noble rot (botrytis cinerea) on the sauvignon gives the product even more character. There follows the vinification by the white wine method by way of a gentle pressing and cold settling. The must begins a very slow fermentation (which lasts even up to 4 weeks) due to the high concentration of sugars, takes place in small 10 hl steel containers at a controlled temperature. The ageing: the resulting wine has more than 20° potential alcohol of which 13.5° are actual; the rest ends up as part of the residual sugar which is about 120g/l. It is put into French barriques where it stays to mature for 10/11 months. The wine: wine of great character which at once evokes the Sicilian landscape and expresses its heart, its power and its range. The colour is that of limestone rocks in autumn, when nature recovers from the tiring heat of summer and the morning dew highlights the intense ochre of the clay. The flavour is warm, full and deep as only grapes exposed for a long time to the sun of the Sicilian autumn -more benevolent than the aggressive sun of the summer- can produce. Analytical details: 13,5% alcohol; 6.50 g/l total acidity; 3.86 pH; 120 g/l residual sugar. Food matches: choice cheeses with mustard pickles and fruit conserves, great Sicilian desserts, pastries with dried fruits and almond paste
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