Vinudilice Rosato 2022

For Salvo Foti, Etna wine is a "human wine" Due to the small size of the plots and the way they are cultivated, mechanical processing is not possible. The cultural landscape needs people to reflect its uniqueness. This is why Salvo Foti founded I Vigneri, based on the "Maestranza dei Vigneri" winegrowers' association dating back to 1435. The association of around 35 men is responsible for everything to do with viticulture in the broadest sense - from recultivating old plots and planting new vines to building and maintaining the Muretto Assecco, the typical dry stone walls. I Vigneri prove that craftsmanship and tradition not only have a future, but also represent an intangible and identity-forming value.

The Vigna Bosco vineyard lies 1300 metres above sea level and is therefore outside the DOC guidelines. The old mixed vineyard is enclosed like a French Clos by a wall with an old gate and covers just under half a hectare. It is planted with ten different vines, some of which are over 130 years old. Only one of them is red Grenache. It arrived on the island with the Spanish and was not uncommon historically, even if it no longer plays a role today. It gives this unique rosé its pale pink colour, which can vary slightly from year to year. The rest of the blend consists of white varieties such as Minella, Grecanico and other wild crosses that Foti has not had identified. Temperature amplitudes of up to 40 °C during the day to 15 °C at night maintain the acidity in the wine and give it its vibration and finesse. The name Vinudilice derives from the old holm oaks that surround the vineyard The wine from the oaks. Vinudilice is bottled sulphur-free and marketed simply as vino.

Rosehip colours with medium intensity.

Rosehip, mallow and hibiscus outline the first nose of the 2022 Vinudilice Rosato from Salvo Fotis I Vigneri. Floral with tangy accents, this rose has nothing in common with the "Schmunzelwässer" wines of this world, but proves year after year the independence of the old vineyard, which makes the wine a little different every year. The 2022 vintage underpins the floral notes with red fruit reminiscent of fruit tea. Some rhubarb, raspberry seed oil, watermelon and fig, with cool top notes of brook mint and lemon balm. A wine in constant flux that demands to be decanted.

Vinudilice calibrates the genre of rosé wine as its very own species and year after year Foti delivers a wine that is simply unrivalled. Which rosé continues to develop with increasing aeration in the carafe over the course of days?

Which rosé has this peculiar tannic structure, silky fine, yet incredibly firm and contoured? Which rosé gains so much from the absence of striking fruit without sacrificing fruit? Which rosé actually needs three to five years to really get into its stride - without losing a single second of drinking pleasure? And which rosé offers almost unbridled hedonistic drinking pleasure as well as so much substance and almost intellect in the glass, without losing any of its lightness of being? I can hardly think of another.