Carricante-Based wines from the eastern and southern slopes of Mt. Etna at Contrada dell'Etna

Our going-in strategy for this year's Contrada dell'Etna was to drink only the white wines from Etna's east and southeast flanks in order to imprint the characteristics of those wines on our senses. Our tasting team included Brandon Tokash, Lidia Rizzo, Sue Tolson, Parlo, and me.  The map below shows the coverage area of interest.

Climate in the area of interest
As shown on the below chart, growing conditions in the east and southeast differs from the conditions in the north and southwest.

Derived from Nesto and di Savino

The southeast and eastern slopes are unprotected from the autumn and winter rains but the combination of rapid runoff and early morning sun contribute to their attractiveness as growing regions (especially for whites).

The volcano's southeast flank experiences markedly different climatic conditions than north-slope-resident wineries. First, it is warmer in the southeast than in the north; 4 to 7 degrees warmer, as a matter of fact.

Second, with no protective layer of mountains, the region bears the full brunt of the wind and rain coming in off the Ionian Sea. In the fall and spring, dry winds form over North Africa, pick up moisture over the Mediterranean, and barrel into the Sicilian coast at upwards of 50 miles an hour. These winds are called Scirocco and an event can last from 1/2 day to several days. The wind makes it easier to farm organically as it helps to keep mold at bay.

Third, the southeast is unprotected from the autumn and winter rains but the combination of rapid runoff and early morning sun contribute to its attractiveness as a growing region 9especially for whites).

Tasting the Wines
Contrada dell'Etna day was bright and sunny and the crowds took full advantage of the conditions.

The organizers had divided the participating wineries into the broad categories shown below.The wines of interest fell into the Sud-Est category which included producers in the east, southeast, and southwest. The wines that we tasted are indicated by stars next to the producer names.

The stars indicate the producer wines tasted as
part of this exercise

The first producer that we visited was Monterosso. The grapes for this producer's wines are sourced from a 5-ha vineyard on the southeast flank of the mountain. The soil here is composed of alternating layers of sand and pumice stone. It has a reddish color -- a result of its high iron content -- and is light, airy, and porous. It is also rich in potassium, phosphorous, and magnesium.

We tasted two wines from this producer: a 2017 Etna Bianco DOC (90% Carricante, 10% Catarratto) and Crater (100% Carricante. The former is from 700 m elevation while the latter is at 600 m. The Etna Bianco was big on the nose with sulfur, minerality, and white peaches and a florality. Acid and salinity on the palate. Dry finish. The Crater was more refined, almost austere. Greater minerality and less salinity.

Aurelio Marconi of Monterosso

Feudo Cavalieri is located on the southwest flank of the mountain with its Carricante grapes drawn from vineyards (ungrafted old plus newly planted) located between 950 and 990 m on the slope. The "land is composed of volcanic sands and 'ripiddu,' rich in minerals that tend to be acidic, well exposed and ventilated."

Its Etna Bianco 2016 was still on the lees (the wines are normally kept on the lees for 2 years). It was aromatic, with minerality, salinity, and citrus fruit dominant. The Etna Bianco 2017 was a tank sample and reminded me of dank charcoal. Less balanced in terms of salinity and minerality. The Millimetri 2014 was mineral, herbaceous, oily and chalky on the nose and those characteristics followed through to the palate.

La Gelsomina is located on the northeastern flank of the mountain. Its Bianca dell Contea is 97% Carricante and 3% Catarratto made from grapes grown at 550m. The soil is loose, of a volcanic nature, and rich in potassium. The 2016 Bianca dell Contea showed minerality and herbs on the nose and was all minerality on the palate. Salinity and acidity less than all wines tasted previously. Conversely, the most mineral wine tasted up to this point. Short, drying finish. The 2017 was very floral, with stone fruit and perfumed citrus. Mineral.

The Ciro Biondi grapes for its white wines are grown in Contrada Ronzini in the Municipality of Trecastagni on the southeast flank of the mountain. The soil here is volcanic with red pumice and elevation ranges between 640 and 700 m. The grapes for the Outis and Pianta wines are grown at 650 m.

Outis and Pianta are field blends of Carricante, Catarratto, and Minella with the latter vinified in wood and the former in stainless steel. The Outis showed white peach, white flowers, citrus, and minerality while the Pianto showed minerality and lime and appeared somewhat thin.

The Federico Curtaz Gamma is made from 100% Carricante grapes sourced from Milo on the eastern flank. I tasted both the 2016 and 2017 versions of this wine and was left wanting. The 2016 showed salinity and citrus but seemed light-bodied while the 2017 showed lemon and minerality.

Vini Eudes is located in Trecastagni on the southeast flank of the mountain. The winery produces an 80% Carricante wine called Bianco di Monte and a 100% Carricante. The former had a perfumed nose with traces of salinity, minerality, and lime skin. Precise and focused, a food-loving wine. Lemony lime on palate giving away to a mineral, saline finish.

The Carricante wine showed a limestone minerality, sulfur, creaminess, and salinity on the nose. Not as impressive on the palate. Short finish.

Like Feudo Cavaliere, Azienda Falcone is located on the southwest flank of the mountain in the town of Santa Maria di Licodia. The wine is 90% Carricante with the source grapes being grown at 900m. The wine had a stony minerality, creaminess, salinity, and citrus notes. Clean on the palate. A fair wine.

As is the case for the Santorini Assyrtikos, Carricante-based wines from the east to south flanks of Etna are characterized by salinity, minerality, and acidity and, at its optimum, these characteristics meld extremely well. These characteristics also allow the wines to age well (based on my experiences drinking aged Benanti Pietra Marina wines). While the characteristics of the wines are consistent, the quality of individual wines will vary based on winemaking practices, elevation, soil composition, and other related factors.

I love Assyrtiko. I also love well made Carricante-based wines from the east and southeast slopes of Mt. Etna. I will undertake a comprehensive review of the whites from the northern slope at some point in the future.

©Wine -- Mise en abyme

Landscapes and soils of the Mt Etna grape-growing region

"All Etna soil rests on, or directly derives from, lava that flowed and hardened for thousands of years, along with ejected pumice, lapilli, and windblown volcanic ash" (Nesto and di Savino). I explore the origins, composition and deployment of the region's soils in this post.

Historically, eruptive events at Mt Etna have been of the Strombolian style but occasional Hawaiian-style eruptions generate considerable lapilli fall on the flanks (The Strombolian and Hawaiian styles are described in the table below.). Large active volcanoes with the Etna eruptive style present some of the most complex soil-forming environments on earth (James, et al.).

Source: http://www.geology.sdsu.edu/how_volcanoes_work

Factors such as diversity in age and characteristics of volcanic materials, land surface morphology, local climate, vegetation, and land-use history all contribute to complex soil spatial patterns. In the profile dimension, complex soils result from intermittent tephra deposition, anthropogenic disturbance (in the case of Mt Etna, over 70% of the vineyards are terraced), erosion and subsequent deposition. According to James, et al., "soil profiles may reflect the amount and frequency of tephra deposition as much as 'normal' profile-forming soil processes operating on stable surfaces."

Landscape Formation
Volcanism in the Etna region began during the middle Pleistocene, at around 600 ka. The peak today stands at 3350 m elevation and the base is 40 km across. At elevations below 1100 m, lava varies in age from the 2014/2015 flow to the 500,000-year-old tholeitic basalts of a small area on the lower part of the southern flank (James, et al.). The terrain of historical (12th century to today) flows, as well as some pre-historic flows, is dominated by aa lava (basaltic lava with a rough surface, pahoehoe (basaltic lava with a smooth or billowy surface), and toothpaste (transition between aa and pahoehoe) morphology (James, et al.).

On Etna, depositive explosive activity from the summit crater is frequent with less frequent eruptions, often with higher effusive rates, from the flank vents and Strombolian activity from vents high on the volcano. The tephra varies in deposition rate and particle size with distance and direction from the source and accumulates unevenly on rugged lava surfaces. As an example, areas on the western and northwestern slopes of Mt Etna are barren rockscapes due to insufficient topsoil for significant vineyard development.

Soil Formation
As described above, volcanic activity of Mt Etna is both effusive (lava flows) and explosive (airborne ejection of pyroclastics). According to Nesto and di Savino, the lava flows create a patchwork of terroirs that is pertinent to any discussion of Etna contradas. Initial flows are barren rock pasteurized by heat which, after cooling, require hundreds of years to erode into soil and develop hummus, and, in so doing, become suitable for vines. The erosion product is sand rich in potassium and other minerals. Organic matter, created initially by the growth of micro-organisms (and later by plants and animals), results in rich, fertile soil.

But, according to Marco Perciabobco (Department of Agriculture, Sicily Region), soil parent material in the Etna environment is primarily pyroclastic (My prior post on volcanic soils detail the weathering of these materials). Weathering of this coarse-textured parent material, according to Marco, produces soils with an "aerated hypogeal (underground) environment and the following characteristics:

• Extremely well suited for the growth and development of vine roots
• Soil water stagnations are rare
• They warm easily (this generates stable conditions for the occurrence of the chemical reactions required for the weathering of the finest materials.

Soil Distribution
According to Perciabobco, the Department of Agriculture's soil survey dataset shows five different landscape systems in Etna: northern; northwestern; eastern; southeastern; and southern. The soils of these environments differ in the degree of weathering of the primary clay minerals. From north to south wetness decreases and so does weathering of the volcanic constituents. The soils of the northern landscape, when compared to the soils of the south, are finer textured, have a higher organic matter content, and a have a higher value of cation-exchange capability.

Bibliography
Bill Nesto MW and Frances di Savino, The World of Sicilian Wine.
James, et al., Development and spatial distribution of soils on an active volcano: Mt Etna, Sicily.
Sonia Calvari and Harry Pinkerton, Lava Tube Morphology on Etna and evidence for lava flow emplacement mechanisms, J Volcanol Geotherm Res 90 (3-4) 1999.

©Wine -- Mise en abyme