Planata (our host for three nights)
They have 6 vineyards all around Sicily with 400 hectors in total. They gained their notoriety from their Chardonnay they first started producing in 1995. For the Reds they produce many, but some of the stand outs are the blend (Burdese), Cerasuolo di Vittoria and the Etna rosso.
Donnafugata
Family owned and operated thru three generations and has three estates. A uniqueness is they grow grapes on an island off the coast of Marsala. The winds are so strong the vines grow really low to the ground. We enjoyed a food and wine pairing given by a wonderful young man who told us about his year traveling around the world. We bought their desert wine, Passito, called Ben Rye.
Firratto
Like Donnafugata they also experiment with island grown wine, on the island of Favigna. After trying several grape varieties they were able to find a grape that could withstand the salt from the sea, Calamoni. We bought this white wine, Favinia, for its unique salt flavor in the wine. We also enjoyed a food pairing and came to know of the tuna fishing off the sea of Trapani. They make a Spumante wine, meaning it fermentes in the bottle, from grapes from Etna (very nice). They also have a line of organic wines and an olive oil. They are one of only four producers who make a wine from the Perricone grape, which we enjoyed and bought.
Zisola
This was probably my favorite wine of our tastings. We had lunch in a lovely setting. The Reds were wonderful. The owners are from Tuscany, the Mazzei family, and spend some of their time on the estate while renting it out the rest. I enjoyed the Doppiozeta, which is a blend of Nero d'Avola and Syrah. We ended up buying the Effe Emme for its uniqueness, 100% Petit Verdot, which is typically a blending grape. This is a bold wine which will age well.
Gulfi
We drove here on a whim as it was close to the olive oil tasting. We ended up having lunch and a tasting. Their chef happened to be in Santa Monica at the time doing a special dinner at Valentio's.
Arianna Ochipincci
She has many unique techniques. First it is an all organic winery, but they don't promote it on their bottles. It is also located in the only DOCG of all of Sicily,Cerasuolo di Vittoria, which they produce one DOCG red wine. She has only been making wine for the last decade since completing her schooling. She makes a 100% frappoli grape wine, which has typically been used for blending till now. She also uses barrels from Austria and Slovenia which are not toasted but steamed to make them round. This then allows the wine to have more natural flavors of the grape versus taking on the oak and toast characteristics of the barrel. She was almost sold out of all her previous vintages, as she only produces 120,000 bottles, and seems to have quite the following in the U.S.
Planeta
Donnafugata
Firriato
Zisola
Gulfi
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