“SM” Santa Margherita Vino di Contrada IGT Sicilia Bianco 2022

The white Vino di Contrada Santa Margherita is the latest addition to the winery's portfolio. It is the fulfilment of a long-cherished dream of Arianna Occhipinti, who found this vineyard in 2016 at the foot of the Iblei Mountains in the old village of Chiaramonte Gulfi after a long search. The vineyard is located at an altitude of 490 metres amidst pine forests, oaks and centuries-old olive trees and is divided into four plots on sandy white calcareous marl and sandy soils with yellowish-white calcarenite - marine sediments dating back to the Pleistocene. The Costa Sud and Costa Nord parcels are planted in the Sicilian single-vine training system and provide the salty twist thanks to their gypsiferous soils, while the Terrazza and Trefile parcels are planted in the Albarello on limestone espalier and provide the fresh acidity.

The wine is made from 100% Grillo, the white grape variety of the west, which has also spread to the east of the island in recent decades under the name Riddu.

Occhipinti regards the grape variety as a means to an end and a tool to reflect its origin. After a short 48-hour maceration, the must ferments spontaneously in concrete and oval Austrian oak barrels, where it then matures for 12 months.

Luminous old gold with a silky matt opacity.

The 2022 Grillo Vino di Contrada Santa Margherita from Arianna Occhipinti shows itself calmly on the nose with the typical characteristics of a low-intervention wine: little sulphur and therefore an almost complete absence of primary fruit or other ornamental elements. Instead, it speaks firmly of its origins, of citrus fruits, orange blossom, cedro-lemon zest and pink grapefruit. The whole is spiced with notes of linseed oil and distinctly herbal notes of sage, laurel, wild maquis and pine needles along with a hint of honeycomb.

Tidy, straightforward and clear, this Grillo emancipates itself from the army of Sicilian sparkling wines and presents itself as a flawless terroir translator. Like an infusion, it is calm and balanced on the palate, the flanking tannins stimulatingly tart, notes of camomile and aromatic herbs, which tie in with the rich extract of the wine on the finish and span a closed aromatic arc across the palate. The saline minerality fuels the delicately citric acidity, which also delivers a clean performance in terms of drinking acceleration.