Pietro Caciorgna Guardoilvento Etna Rosso 2016
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James
Suckling
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Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
The Guardoilvento Etna Rosso shows aromas and flavors of wild Mediterranean spice, wild strawberries and cherries, and a finish with fine tea leaf sensations.
Guardoilvento goes very well with meat, pork, veal, and poultry dishes. Other excellent pairings can be vegetables, such as cabbage and spinach, mushrooms, carpaccio, various types of appetizers and pasta dishes and even light dishes based on fish
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
The nose here is quite unlike anything else — exuberant dried-cherry kernels, ash and sweet tobacco lead, before Christmas pudding and leather take center stage. The full-bodied palate has Barolo-like richness with structured tannins and a colorful spectrum of dried fruit.
Other Vintages
2020-
James
Suckling
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James
Suckling
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James
Suckling
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James
Suckling
Early on it did not seem as if any of Pietro Caciorgna’s children would take up his passion for running the modest farm, but renowned enologist, Paolo Caciogna, returned recently to his home turf as a now famous winemaker with international experience, and built a small jewel of a winery. This new Tuscan estate in the lesser known Casole DOC appellation, established by Paolo Caciorgna himself, is named after his father, Pietro Caciorgna, an immigrant from the Marche in the 1950’s. Paolo’s passion is two fold – he also owns a small vineyard operation on the slopes of the Etna in Sicily. Two wines are made here from 80+ year old vines, and these wines show Paolo’s ability to embrace the world, not only the family traditions.
Extending across the variable volcanic soils of the slopes of Mt. Etna at some of the highest vineyard altitudes in all of Europe—up to 3,300 feet—Nerello Mascalese is one of Sicily’s most noble red varieties. It makes a beautifully aromatic, firm, cellar-worthy but pale-hued red often comparable to a fine Burgundy or Barbaresco. Somm Secret—Nerello Mascalese takes its name from the black color of its grapes, nerello, and the Mascali plain between Mt. Etna and the coast where it is believed to have originated.
A large, geographically and climatically diverse island, just off the toe of Italy, Sicily has long been recognized for its fortified Marsala wines. But it is also a wonderful source of diverse, high quality red and white wines. Steadily increasing in popularity over the past few decades, Italy’s fourth largest wine-producing region is finally receiving the accolades it deserves and shining in today's global market.
Though most think of the climate here as simply hot and dry, variations on this sun-drenched island range from cool Mediterranean along the coastlines to more extreme in its inland zones. Of particular note are the various microclimates of Europe's largest volcano, Mount Etna, where vineyards grow on drastically steep hillsides and varying aspects to the Ionian Sea. The more noteworthy red and white Sicilian wines that come from the volcanic soils of Mount Etna include Nerello Mascalese and Nerello Cappuccio (reds) and Carricante (whites). All share a racy streak of minerality and, at their best, bear resemblance to their respective red and white Burgundies.
Nero d’Avola is the most widely planted red variety, and is great either as single varietal bottling or in blends with other indigenous varieties or even with international ones. For example, Nero d'Avola is blended with the lighter and floral, Frappato grape, to create the elegant, Cerasuolo di Vittoria, one of the more traditional and respected Sicilian wines of the island.
Grillo and Inzolia, the grapes of Marsala, are also used to produce aromatic, crisp dry Sicilian white. Pantelleria, a subtropical island belonging to the province of Sicily, specializes in Moscato di Pantelleria, made from the variety locally known as Zibibbo.