Passopisciaro (Vini Franchetti)
Contrada G 2024
| Denomination | IGT Terre Siciliane |
|---|---|
| Size | 0,75 l |
| Alcohol content | 14.5% by volume |
| Area | Sicily (Italy) |
| Grape varieties | 100% Nerello Mascalese |
| Aging | In large oak casks for approximately 18 months. |
- Grape variety: 100% Nerello Mascalese, still red wine IGT Terre Siciliane
- Terroir: Contrada Guardiola at 800-1,000m, volcanic soils from the 1947 lava flow
- Vinification process: 15 days in steel followed by 18 months in large oak casks
- Tasting notes: Bright ruby, notes of red fruits, spices, minerality and a herbaceous finish
- Awards and service: 96 Suckling points. Serve at 16-18°C with 1 hour of decanting
Description
Style of wine
Contrada G by Passopisciaro is a still red wine that expresses the identity of pure Nerello Mascalese, produced in the Terre Siciliane region. Aged in large oak casks, it presents a bright ruby red colour and a bouquet of red fruits and mineral notes. On the palate, it is fleshy, with well-integrated tannins leading towards an herbaceous finish. Thanks to its complex aromatic profile, it balances structured meat dishes, white fish preparations, and matured cheeses.
Origin
This Passopisciaro cru is born on the northern slope of Mount Etna, in the territory of Castiglione di Sicilia. The roots of the century-old vines sink into the historic Contrada Guardiola, between 800 and 1,000 metres above sea level. The terroir is characterised by volcanic soils located on the edge of a 1947 lava flow. Agricultural management follows a traceable ecological approach, excluding the use of synthetic fertilisers and using exclusively natural treatments such as propolis, clays, and grapefruit seed extracts.
Production process
Production begins with a meticulous manual harvest of the bunches, carried out between late October and the first days of November. In the cellar, the must undergoes fermentation in stainless steel for about fifteen days. Subsequently, the wine completes malolactic fermentation during an ageing period in large oak casks lasting eighteen months. This careful process ensures a harmonious development of taste, enriching the glass with warm spicy notes and preserving the mineral expression of the terroir intact.
History and curiosities
Originating from the northern slopes of Mount Etna, on the edge of the 1947 lava flow, Contrada G expresses the authentic soul of Castiglione di Sicilia. This prestigious cru is born exclusively from ancient centenarian vines, rooted between 800 and 1,000 metres in altitude. First produced in 2011, the wine follows the natural rhythms of the land and is strictly bottled during the waning moon. A rare excellence, produced in just 3,739 bottles, capable of translating the energy of the volcanic terroir into pure elegance.
Tasting notes
Perfume
Color
Taste
Serve at:
14 -16 °C
Longevity:
10 - 15 years
Decanting time:
1 hour
- Start up year: 2000
- Oenologist: Andrea Franchetti
- Bottles produced: 90.000
- Hectares: 27
At the top of the steep Passopisciaro property looms a hump of black gravel. It’s where the lava spill from a big eruption in 1947 had stopped, caking up just before it could submerge whole terraces below it, vines, walls, and buildings: on Etna you can lose it all.
Here, it’s always very cold at night, even in August. During the day in the vineyards the lava powder penetrates in the skin and you get intoxicated, tired. The first wine I made was pale and meager, and I was discouraged. I planted other grapes; whatever is planted there the wine always tastes of citrus and camphor, without that generous body that you like earth to lend right away to a wine.
There’s no mold, no moss; the ground sparkles black like the night; the wine slowly becomes very elegant and strange. During the day a soft light penetrates everything and then there are starry nights; Etna has enormous poetry. Making wine, you have access to it. There isn’t Mother Nature here. You are conducting your viticulture on stuff that comes out of the terrible below." (Andrea Franchetti) Read more
| Name | Passopisciaro Contrada G 2024 |
|---|---|
| Type | Red green still |
| Denomination | Terre Siciliane IGT |
| Vintage | 2024 |
| Size | 0,75 l |
| Alcohol content | 14.5% by volume |
| Grape varieties | 100% Nerello Mascalese |
| Country | Italy |
| Region | Sicily |
| Vendor | Passopisciaro (Vini Franchetti) |
| Story | History and curiosities Originating from the northern slopes of Mount Etna, on the edge of the 1947 lava flow, Contrada G expresses the authentic soul of Castiglione di Sicilia. This prestigious cru is born exclusively from ancient centenarian vines, rooted between 800 and 1,000 metres in altitude. First produced in 2011, the wine follows the natural rhythms of the land and is strictly bottled during the waning moon. A rare excellence, produced in just 3,739 bottles, capable of translating the energy of the volcanic terroir into pure elegance. |
| Origin | Mount Etna, northern slope (Castiglione di Sicilia, CT) |
| Climate | Altitude: 800 m above sea level |
| Soil composition | Volcanic soils at the edge of the 1947 lava flow |
| Plants per hectare | 8,000 plants per hectare |
| Yield per hectare | 55 quintals of grapes per hectare |
| Harvest | Autumn (late October–early November; 23 October) |
| Fermentation | Approximately 15 days |
| Production technique | Fermentation in stainless steel tanks for approximately 15 days, with malolactic fermentation and ageing in large oak casks for approximately 18 months. |
| Wine making | Fermentation in stainless steel tanks for approximately 15 days; malolactic fermentation takes place during ageing in large oak casks. |
| Aging | In large oak casks for approximately 18 months. |
| Allergens | Contains sulphites |