A callback to the old school Marsala of days gone by, this is not the more ubiquitous (often dubious quality) sweet export, rather a bone dry expression of Catarratto that has undergone a process one might more likely associate with the Jura's coveted Vin Jaune.
Born from an initial experiment back in 2013 when Fabio celebrated a plentiful vintage, a little of the excess Catarratto that would ordinarily become Gianciabianca he filled a small barrique with and forgot about. Untouched, and without topping up the barrel, a flor of wild yeast began to form on the surface of the wine which was left to develop for five years. This wine was made in exactly the same way, using grapes from 2018, macerated on their skins for three days before being pressed into the barrel, with no additions at any stage. A remarkable, completely natural phenomenon.
Bone dry, the wine is a heady mix of all the complex flavours and textures that oxidation and flor-contact can bring. Fruits give way to woody hazelnut, toasted almond, turmeric and garam masala spice with crystals of salt, plus a little sweet vanilla from the barrel. Remarkably, all these heavy flavours are balanced by a beautifully fresh acidity, that makes the whole thing feel wonderfully alive. A great one to ponder after a big meal, or better still as you tackle some mature cheeses. Bravo Fabio!
From a long-running family of vignaiolo, Fabio Ferracane has lived in Marsala on Sicily’s west coast his whole life. From his father he inherited three hectares, to which he has added a couple more of his own - all of them enjoy being drenched in sun pretty much year-round and are both remote and secluded. We’ve long been seduced by the distinctive wines of this diverse Italian island, so when we met with Fabio we were excited to find he was following the same path as some of the producers of the region we hold in the highest regard, creating wines that express their environment by channelling the sun and the sea.
His parcels of vines are split across two locations; those planted over sandy soils a few steps away from the ocean, looking out over the salt pans to the Stagnone Islands, and those a little further inland, sat in a valley over calcareous clay, amongst a patchwork of rolling hills that are close enough to still feel the effects of the maritime breeze. For the most part he grows the Sicilian workhorse grape, Catarratto, but produces wines that are anything but middling or conventional.
Embracing all manner of ancient techniques, ones which Fabio explains predate the export market for sweet Marsala that exploded in the 1800s, they look back in time to create something that ironically, right now, feels incredibly contemporary. Hazy sparkling wines from tart, early-harvest grapes are fermented in their bottles with no disgorgement. White grapes are given long macerations on their skins and aged in amphorae to create musky, exotic amber wines. There is simple, thirst-quenching rosato, and luscious late-harvest wines, made in the passito style.
It follows that the vineyard work harks back to a time long before chemical farming too - all the plants are tended to organically, with grass and flowers allowed to grow along the rows, punctuated by the occasional ploughing. In the cellar Fabio works with a light hand and the range of wines we have selected to import all have no filtration or sulphur input whatsoever. Calling to mind the landscape of this dusty, remote part of Sicily in both their colour and aromas of wild herbs, stone fruits and flowers, their defining trait is the influence of the ocean and its salty breeze, which finds itself embedded in the character of these charming, evocative wines.
