Wine from this remote Sicilian satellite island is always something to get excited about, offering a distinct sense of place with little to compare to. Here we have some real nectar; 100% Zibibbo from 60 year-old bush vines fermented on the skins in amphora buried in the sandy volcanic soils of the vineyard to harness the heat of the earth to trigger fermentation. The grapes are de-stemmed and macerate for between 8 and 15 days in these vessels before being gently pressed and then fed back in with a portion of the skins to rest for 6 to 8 months before bottling. It's a primitive, elemental sort of process - nothing is added at any stage and the process is nothing short of alchemic.
Given some time to develop in our cellar a couple of years after the bottling date, the wine has evolved so much and is drinking well. The concentration of the wine is impressive, glowing a sandy gold in the glass and generously textured. The aromatic potential of the grape is dialled right up with this ancient style of vinification; heady floral notes, ripe tropical fruits and exotic spices leap from the glass. On the palate the wine mixes this brightness with earthy tones, salinity and a tightly-wound acidity; the finish is impossibly long. An otherworldly delight.
Please note, due to the unfiltered nature of this wine, we recommend leaving the bottle for at least 2 or 3 weeks before opening, to allow its sediment to come to rest again after the disturbance of shipping it to you.
Established in 2020, Bbirbiciù is the project of a young group of conscientious growers, led by Davide Genovese, who are looking deep into the past for their inspiration. Based on the remote, windswept volcanic island of Pantelleria, south of Sicily (in fact closer to Tunisia), the group are seeking to revive and preserve the ancient ways of the vignaioli of old, both in the respectful way the vines are tended and the hands-off methods used to vinify the fruit in the cantina.
Their 3.5 hectare surface sits between 2-300m altitude on the plain of Bukkuram, the land that rolls off the base of Montagna Grande in the center of the island; historically the most fertile and productive agricultural land to be found here. 80% of the planting is Zibibbo, the highly aromatic Sicilian strain of Muscat of Alexandria, with the remaining 20% given over to Catarratto and Pignatello. They are all head-trained bush vines at around 60 years old; a traditional method of viticulture that, paired with the cover provided by the shadow of the mountain, protects from the year-round bluster of the Sirocco wind and the blistering heat of the Mediterranean sun. They sit over deep, mineral-rich volcanic soils made up of sandy, decomposed lava rock, known locally as ‘soki soki’. This land has never seen chemical herbicides or pesticides; in the past it was farmed organically, now Davide has begun to introduce biodynamic principles and even treatment of copper is only deployed when absolutely necessary.
Vinifications take place completely in amphora; a series of these clay vessels sized between 320-1600 litres are buried in a 40 square meter ‘amphoraia’ amongst the vines. The grapes are de-stemmed and, channeling the heat of the earth, conditions are correct to cause a spontaneous fermentation within these sealed pots, where the resulting wine sits in contact with the skins for between 6 and 8 months. The wines are then racked and bottled in the spring with no additions at all.
The results are wild, vivid expressions that offer unique taste of both a land and time far, far away. Heady with musky aromatics of wild herbs, spice and salty ocean surf, complex and multilayered in texture and with an irresistible vitality. When we talk about that elusive ‘sense of place’ in wine it is hard to think of a better example; Bbirbiciù is all about the translation of this singular landscape, intervening only as much as is required to capture its essence and put it in the glass.
