DIRECT PRESS August 2024 • Sicily: Fate, fire, passion, and the vine
SICILY
Fate, fire, passion, and the vine
Not a Direct Press Member? Learn more here
In 1987, some 78% of Sicilian wine was produced by cooperatives. Nearly 100% of it was bulk wine. Much of that, in turn, was actually grape must concentrate, which was being used all over Europe, Russia, and the world to enrich wines — often subverting countless regulations designed to protect quality. This was Sicily’s reputation even after the turn of the 21st century. Yet many of us associate Sicily with a range of amazing wines from small producers. Names like Occhipinti, Salvo Foti, Frank Cornelissen, Terre Nere, and De Bartoli can be reliably found on shelves and wine lists all over the world and signify anything but mass produced swill.
How have we witnessed a total back flip in reputation so quickly? Wines from other regions and countries we’ve featured in Direct Press — including Greece, Portugal, and former Soviet-controlled Central European countries — are more of an uphill battle to sell despite them all having a similar story, and similarly exceptional natural resources for winemaking. But with Sicily, it only took around 15 years to go from a reputation of exporting bulk wine to Russia to one in which connoisseurs take it for granted that the wines can compete with those of Piedmont or Tuscany.
Read all about Sicily's ancient history and recent revival in this month's Direct Press 'zine!
Cheers,
Jonathan, Jeremy, Kate, Nico, Eddy, and Greg
Leave a comment