An Exploration of the slopes and terroirs of Mt. Etna with the wines of Benanti Viticoltori as guides

I have utilized discussion with, and the writings of, Benjamin North Spencer (New Wines of Mt Etna), the writings of Bill Nesto MW and Frances di Savino (The World of Sicilian Wine), and  discussions with Antonio and Salvino Benanti (Benanti Viticoltori) as inspiration for the construction of a terroir map of Etna DOC.

Given Benanti's coverage of most of the zones identified in the map above, we thought it would be interesting to taste through the Benanti portfolio in order to seek out terroir differences. We felt that the common viticultural and winemaking practices of Benanti would minimize the number of non-terroir differences as opposed to a tasting with multiple vendor representatives across the population of wines. The Benanti Etna DOC coverage is illustrated in the chart below while its product portfolio -- plus relevant information -- is shown in the chart immediately following.

We did include one vintage each of the Gaja/Graci Idda Bianco and Rosso wines in order to allow cross-producer assessments in common growing zones.

Tasting Design

The tasting was held on June 29 at F&D Prime Steakhouse in Lake Mary and the wines were deployed  into the following flights:

Flight 1: Metodo Classico Sparkling Wines

Flight 2: Etna Biancos

Flight 3: Etna Rosato

Flight 4: Etna Rossos

Flight 5: Etna Rosso Riservas

The tasting group is pictured below.

The Tasting

The tasting notes were contributed by the author, Sean and Eric. 

Flight 1: Metodo Classico Sparkling Wines

Wine #1. Benanti Noblesse Brut Carricante 2019 (Carricante (C) from E and S slopes)

Mint, yeast, and spice on the nose. Nice round mouthfeel. Bright, lees, mineral bubbles, salinity, and a lengthy finish. 

Eric saw this as dry, with pineapple notes, minerality, and yeast evident.

Wine #2. Benanti La Morèmio Brut Rosato 2020 (Nerello Mascalese (NM) from S slope)

Faint strawberry and yeast on the nose. Whisper of bubbles on the palate. Bright acidity. Wine-like. 

According to Eric, yeast and a hint of strawberry on the nose. Low bubble content.

Flight 2: Etna Biancos

Wine #1. Benanti Etna Bianco 2021 (C from E and S slopes)
Broad on the nose and palate. Mineral, salinity, and spice. 

For Eric, this wine was meaty on the nose. Dry on the palate with a mild finish.

Sean— Pale golden color. Refreshing. Tart, yet dry. Decent acid on the sides of the tongue. Apples and peaches on the nose and on my palate. Nice pool or beach wine. 

Wine #2. Benanti Contrada Rinazzo Etna Bianco Superiore 2021 (C from E slope)

Herbs and stemminess on the nose. Salinity, acidity, and minerality on the palate.

Eric saw this as having a full to minimal fruit component and a short mineral expression. He thought it would pair well with a seafood medley.

Sean — Floral nose. Bigger taste than the Etna Bianco. Syrupy. May be too young, or needs more time to really enjoy. Citrus.

Wine #3. Benanti Pietra Marina Etna Bianco Superiore 2017 (C from E slope)

Mineral on the nose and palate. Lime skin on the palate.

Eric saw this as having a full fruit component with lime Margarita on the nose. Dry with light to medium minerality.

Sean — Very nice. Favorite thus far. Silky. Good acid. Another good one for food pairings. Mineral. 

Wine #4. Benanti Contrada Cavaliere Etna Bianco 2021 (C from S slope)

Thyme and herbaceousness on the nose. High acid and salinity on the palate.

Eric -- High salinity. Slightly unbalanced. Short finish.

Sean — Golden in color. Florals and tangerine on the nose. Dry. Good acidity. A nice food wine. Nice flavors. Almond paste on the palate. A bit of licorice also. A bit of some salinity, which makes it more interesting. Fav wine.

Wine #5. Gaja IDDA Bianco Sicilia DOP 2021 (C from s slope)

Mint and minerality on the nose. Smooth on the palate with good acidity and a great round mouthfeel. I take back everything bad I have ever said about this label.

Eric got baked pineapple, mint, and tropical fruit skins on the nose. Balanced with base lines of salinity, acidity, and minerality. High palate finish of fruit.

Sean — Good. Apricotish, with maybe apples. Nice acid, so another food wine. Some minerality, which I do enjoy. 

The wines from the different slopes were characterized by salinity, acidity, and minerality with the southwestern slope exhibiting a little more fruit and salinity.

Flight 3: Etna Rosato

Wine #1. Benanti Etna Rosato 2021 (NM from SE slope)

This wine was not tasted at the dinner as it slipped through the hands of the Somm (That's you Al). However, we took it to lunch a few days later. Strawberry and minerality on the nose and these carry through to the palate along with tamarind and salinity. Long, mineral finish.

Flight 4: Etna Rosso

Wine #1. Benanti Etna Rosso 2021 (NM (80 - 85%) and Nerello Cappuccio (NC) (20 - 15%) from N, SE, and SW slopes)

Slate and red fruit on the nose. Tannic on the palate along with tomato flavors and a full round mouthfeel.

Eric posits ripe raspberry, and tomato peel. Slow on the mid-palate. Cioppino would be the ideal pairing.

Sean -- Violet floral notes on the nose, tar on the palate. Not terribly into this one. 

Wine #2. Benanti Contrada Dafara Galluzzo Etna Rosso 2021 (NM from N slope)

Assorted boxed chocolates as it relates to aromas (Eric). Smooth, grippy tannins. Deep, ripe red fruit. Dried cranberry. Fresh, sunny, bright red blend.

Wine #3. Contrada Calderara Sottano Etna Rosso 2021 (NM from N slope)

Black fruits and spices with evident tannins. Long fruity finish.

According to Eric, full body with a velvet smooth finish.  

For Sean: Tannic. Could be good with red meat. Good with food -- something spicy. Dark cherries on the mouth.

                                                                    

Wine #4. Benanti Contrada Monte Serra Etna Rosso 2020 (NM from SE slope)

Eric -- Immediate sweet red licorice , candied cherry, and simple syrup on the nose. Tight, sharp tannins on the palate with lively, "popping" fruit on the finish.

Wine #5. Benanti Contrada Cavaliere Etna Rosso 2021 (NM from SW slope) — Santa Maria di Licodia

Red fruit, herbs, and spice on the nose. Medium-bodied. Ripe tannins and lengthy finish.

Eric -- Cough medicine on the nose

Wine #6. Benanti Nerello Cappuccio Terre Siciliane Rosso 2021 (NC from SW slope) — Santa Maria di Licodia

Dried flowers and cherries on the nose. Medium-bodied with an ephemeral finish.

Eric -- Ripe, pleasant cherry. Short finish with notes of black and red pepper and faded cough syrup.

Wine #7. Gaja IDDA Etna Rosso 2021 (NM from SW slope) — Biancavilla

Violets and black cherry on the nose. Ripe fruit on the palate. Low acidity. Smooth.

Eric -- Wet tobacco on the nose. Moroschino cherry, mint, slate minerality, and faint cough drop on the palate.

Flight 5: Rosso Riserva

Wine #1. Benanti Rovittello Particella No 341 Etna Rosso Riserva 2016 (NM (90%) & NC (10%) from N slope)

Focused, with notes of florality, ripe fruit, and spice on the nose. Concentrated and balanced on the palate. Mineral with a lengthy finish.

Eric -- Rich red fruit. Tannin-dominant.

Wine #2. Benanti Serra Della Contessa Particella No. 587 Etna Rosso Riserva 2016 (NM (85%) & NC (15%) from SE slope)

Elegant. Ripe red fruit and mineral on the nose. Medium-bodied with light tannins and a lengthy finish.

Eric -- Full red fruit with slightly stewed components and spice.

While all slopes exhibited ripe fruit the fruit from the southern slopes seem to evince even riper characters and Eric consistently mentions a sweet medicinal character in those wines.

Attendee Observations

Brian Herbst — I gotta say, the tasting proves me right. The whites are always fantastic. I was trying to follow the reds but it was difficult with placement sometimes but that’s on me. To me the reds need some age. That’s my start. I always will love the whites.

Al Archibald — I actually liked the whites more than I did the reds… the whites were just elegant ..  they had some hints of stone fruit and not as much lemon and lime as does a Sauvignon Blanc.. also way more refreshing. The acidity is not overpowering but enough for a good finish. The whites were actually more balanced than I thought they would be. The sparkling wines were actually good. I definitely need to drink more.

Now the reds were good, calling a Pinot Noir to mind. Red fruit and medium alcohol, which made it delightful to drink — and even better with food. The complexity increased with oxygenation. You actually taste everything you smell on the palate.

Richard Cohen — I was pleasantly surprised by the quality. I thought the sparkling wines were ordinary. The whites were very balanced and enjoyable. All but two of the reds were great. They were balanced and food friendly, begging to have something with a red sauce or a spicy Cioppino. I may be crazy but I thought I got a hit of cranberry in them.  I don’t think these wines are meant to age. Have to find a local merchant that carries them. Thank you for the opportunity. I really enjoyed. 

Sean Hall — Well this go around I fear I was too distracted by Matt’s constant banter. I think I only really focused on the whites, and then Matt poured one of his massive Cali cabs, which destroyed my palate. 

©Wine -- Mise en abyme

Muscat of Hamburg: Doing double duty as a table grape and a wine grape

Muscat of Hamburg (also known as Golden Hamburg, Black Hamburg, and Muscat de Hamburg, among 100 other synonyms) is the weakest of the muscats, in terms of aromas and flavor profile, and its origins are somewhat murky, but that has not prevented this black-skinned variety from gaining traction around the world as both a table and a wine grape.

The characteristics of the cultivar are as follows:

• Vine
• High-yielding
• Bunches
• Medium-to-large
• Conical
• Well-filled
• Berries
• Blue-black
• Medium-to-large
• Oval shaped
• Shiny
• Seeded
• Firm skin
• Soft and juicy pulp with strong muscat flavor
• Sweet
• Medium-ripening
• Wines
• Ruby colored
• Low alcohol.

Muscat of Hamburg

DNA analysis has shown that the variety is the result of a cross between Schiava Grossa (Trollinger) and Muscat of Alexandria. One origin story has the crossing as the handiwork of one R. Snow who operated greenhouses in Bedfordshire, England in the mid-1800s. An alternative history has the crossing occurring in Hamburg (Germany) with the variety cultivated therein from the mid-1830s and from whence it made its way to England around 1850. In England, large quantities were grown in greenhouses by Snow and a colleague named Venn. England was the launch point for the crossing's journey around the world.

In France, Muscat of Hamburg is used both as a table grape and a wine grape. In the Vaucluse department (southern Rhone) there is a table grape AOC called Muscat du Ventoux. There are a total of 2325 ha of the vines planted in the country. 

In Eastern Europe, the crossing is used to make light, dry red wines. Two hundred and fifty-four ha of vines are planted in Moldova, 350 in North Macedonia, 624 ha in Serbia, 180 ha in Russia, and 12 ha in Hungary.

In Germany the wine grape is called Muscat-Trollinger and its cultivation can be traced all the way back to 1850. A total of 113 ha is planted of which 109 can be found in the Würtemberg area. Other European countries have distributions as follows: Italy, 22 ha; Greece, 2288 ha; Spain, 125 ha; and Switzerland, 0.1 ha.

China and Japan use the grape for table wine blends while the USA (113 ha, primarily in CA but with representation from VA, OR, TX, NY (Ice wine), and Washington), Canada (Vancouver Island), Uruguay (1267 ha), and Australia (35 ha) round out the "New World" contribution.

Muscat of Hamburg shows deeply colored skin but that color does not transfer to wines made from the grapes. Wines are generally a light blush or rosé style lacking in both acidity and character. Some dessert wines have been made from overripe grapes while some producers have used long hang time to tease out a more aromatic wine.

Muscat of Hamburg grapes have been used in some Greek PGI wines and I will explore those in future posts.

©Wine -- Mise en abyme

The PDO Muscat wines of Greece

In this series I have been delving into the Muscat cultivar. With my most recent post on the Muscats of Patras and Rio Patras, I have completed coverage of the Greek instances of the cultivar and I have summarized the wines in the below chart.

Some observations re the wines:

• With two exceptions (Muscats of Patras and Rio Patras), the wines are all sourced from grapes grown in island environments
• With the exception of Lemnos, the wines are all from the Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains cultivar
• The wines are mostly sweet wines either made from sun-dried grapes or are fortified. PDO Lemnos is a dry Muscat.
• The wines are all 100% Muscats except in the case of the Cretan wines where the Muscat can be a minor contributor in the blend
• Within the various PDO regions, the muscats are known by a variety of names: Moschoudi, Muscat of Cephalonia, Moschato Spinas, Muscat of Rhodes, Moschato Aspro, and Moschato Alexandrias (Muscat of Alexandria from Lemnos).

I will continue the review of the variety with a look at the Muscats of Italy going forward.

©Wine -- Mise en abyme

The sweet white wines of the Achaia PGI (Greece): PDO Muscats of Patras and Rio Patras

I have, in this series, covered all of the Greek Muscat wines with the exception of the Muscats of Patras and Rio Patras. I address that shortcoming in this post.

Achaia is one of the largest wine producing regions in Greece, with vineyards stretching over 27,000 ha. As shown in the map below, the region includes four PDOs within its borders in addition to the Vineyards of Egialia. Most of Achaia's territory lie on the slopes of three steep mountains and these act as barriers to the hot winds blowing from the south.

Apart from some coastal areas, the only low lying part of the region is found in the western part of the prefecture and the vineyards here are influenced  by the proximity to the sea. These vineyards are at the door-step of the mountain ranges and they are influenced by the cooler aromatic winds coming from the mountains as well as sea breezes during the summer. However, this is the parcel with the richest, most fertile, soils, as well as the warmest mesoclimates. The flat part of Achaia is the "work-horse" of Achaia's grape output, capable of producing everyday wines of good quality and great value, as well as some of the best sweet wines made in Greece (winesofwesterngreece.com).

The map below further zooms in on the Achaia PGI in order to provide more expansive views of the Muscat of Patras and Muscat of Rio Patras PDOs.

Muscat of Patras and Muscat of Rio Patras PDOs
(Source: delongwine.com)

The climate is Mediterranean, with long, dry summers and short rainy winters modified by the Gulf of Patras to the northwest and the Gulf of Corinth to the northeast.

The geography of Patras varies from the seaside in the north to high mountain peaks in the south, with a largely rugged mountainous interior. Vineyards are planted from the coastal areas to higher altitudes in the mountains to the south. Vineyards above 900 m enjoy a cooler growing season with higher diurnal temperature variation. 

Muscat grapes (called Moschoudi in this PGI) prefer the warmer environments closer to the shores and are used in Patras in the production of sweet white wines from sun-dried grapes (vin naturellement doux) as well as through termination of fermentation using grape alcohol (vin deux naturel (vin de liqueur)).

The PDO of Rio Patras is a smaller overlapping appellation which covers the coastal areas to the east. The warmer environemnt allows for riper, sweeter  grapes than in Patras and, as a result, wines that are more "fruit-forward."

Achea Claus, the oldest winery in the region (1861) produces both a sun-dried and a fortified wine. I will use their production processes as a proxy for the region's. 

For the wine made from sun-dried grapes, the grapes are exposed to the sun for about 3 to 4 days. They become dehydrated and acquire additional sugar content and aromas. The grapes are then subjected to a white wine vinification.

For the fortified wine, grape alcohol is added to the must prior to the start of alcoholic fermentation. The wine thus preserves all of the grape sugars and the varietal aromas.

Achaia Claus describes its Muscat of Patras thusly: "Light golden color with green hues with honey and lemon scents composing a highly aromatic bouquet. Its lively acidity level binds the flavors and boosts the basic flavor and structures of this great sweet wine. The finish is long with a prevailing taste of honey."

The Muscat of Rio Patras is limited in its production and is lauded for its aromatic depth, persistence, acidity, and complexity. Aromas and flavors revolve around dried apricots, pears, and orange notes.

©Wine -- Mise en abyme