ABOUT GURRIERI:
Giovanni Gurrieri’s introduction to his estate, in his own words:
‘The history of Gurrieri, in the panorama of Sicilian viticulture, stems from a family passion. Giovanni and Angela, born and raised with the agricultural and peasant passion of father Vincenzo and mother Graziella who have been producing grapes for fifty years, decided to continue the family tradition and produce grapes, wine, and oil in Sicily, near the little town of Chiaramonte Gulfi, in the province of Ragusa. The dream of making a Sicilian wine which represents the identity of its territory began with the first bottling in 2010.
We are in the countryside of the Iblei Mountains, in the fertile Val di Noto, in the area of the only Sicilian DOCG, that of Cerasuolo di Vittoria. Giovanni cultivates his family's 3.2 hectares of land in the Chiaramonte Gulfi and Mazzarrone countryside and also rents about 3 hectares, in Chiaramonte Gulfi. Soils of calcareous origin give richness and complexity. The breezy Mediterranean climate, here characterized by important temperature variation between day and night, gives the wines strength, vigor, aromas and unique flavors. For each label, small quantities are produced: about 3000 bottles.
The family cultivates organically, growing native vines such as Nero d’Avola, Frappato, and Grillo. Nero d'Avola, also known as Calabrese, is an ancient Sicilian grape variety. Frappato, a vine native to the Vittoria area, is grown on the farm with measured yields so as to offer particularly sweet and fine tannins. The Frappato vinified in purity gives a wine of great persuasiveness, with intensely fruity aromas. In the classic Cerasuolo di Vittoria DOCG blend of Nero d’Avola and Frappato, Nero d’Avola adds strength and complexity to this harmonious blend.
The wines are born from the meticulous selection of grapes, grown without the use of synthetic chemicals, harvested by hand in two passes to obtain the best result from different maturations, transported in small boxes to avoid mistreating the grapes, chilled, softly crushed and vinified (with long maceration for the reds) in temperature controlled tanks. After the malolactic fermentation, the wine is decanted into wooden barrels or steel tanks where it matures; after bottling, there is a period of aging in the bottle, necessary to fully express the potential.'
Cerasuolo di Vittoria is one of Sicily’s best-known wines. It is grown and made near Ragusa, in south-east Sicily, a blend of the local varieties Nero d’Avola and Frappato, both of which are also bottled individually. Frappato is a slightly aromatic red grape, very distinctive in aroma and flavor, whereas Nero d’Avola is a more conventional red variety, sometimes compared to Syrah. I love varietal Frappato for its spicy, aromatic verve, medium weight, and pomegranate character, but the blend with Nero d’Avola is also very successful, taming the wildness of the Frappato a bit. The Gurrieri family produces excellent examples of these classic Sicilian wines, and a varietal Grillo that is very good too. The climate is baking hot (Ragusa is further south than the northern tip of Tunisia) but all the wines are fresh, a testament to the local grape varieties they use and the great care in the vineyard.
