2019 Pietradolce, Vigna Barbagalli, Etna Rosso DOC, Sicily, Italy.
The gorgeous Pietradolce Barbagalli Etna Rosso shows off terroir and high elevation depth, aromatics and structure in one of the world’s most unique wines with a rich layering of dark cherry, brambly raspberry, balsamic strawberry and blood orange fruits, smoky iron like mineral spices, dried flowers, a touch of vanilla, anise and roasted herbs. This 100% Nerello Mascalese old vine and high elevation sourced wine shows off the concentration, elegance and complexity you’d expect from a Grand Cru Burgundy and feels wonderfully silken on the medium/full palate and the finish is distinctively long and lingering, making for an exceptional example of grape and place. The Northern Etna micro-climate of this Contrada, the winery says, is characterized by strong temperature variations, and the sandy soil, rich in volcanic rock, contributes to its uniqueness. I’ve loved the more basic Pietradoilce, which means “Sweet Rock”, offerings, but this Vigna Barbagalli is rare stuff indeed and a thrilling experience in the glass, which I was lucky enough to taste at this year’s Gambero Rosso Tre Bicchieri event in San Francisco. Etna has become one of the old world’s most prized regions, for both white and red wines, with vines on the high slopes of Europe’s most active volcano!
Pietradolce, as mentioned in my prior reviews, is owned by Michele & Mario Faro and was founded in 2005 on the Northern slopes of Mount Etna and based in Solicchiata, Castiglione di Sicilia, in the province of Catania, all their wines are 100% estate grown and bottled with only the native grapes to Etna, which are bush vine, or head trained to reduce the need of irrigation in the volcanic sandy loams that also have abundance mineral elements. While the basic Pietradolce Rosso, also a single vineyard wine, is the winery’s entry level offering mostly from their younger vines, with a range 40 to 50 year vines, it’s 100% Nerello Mascalese that is grown at close to 2,000 feet above sea level, the Barbagalli is from older vines and much deeper in concentration. These 100 to 120 year vines are what forms the Barbagalli Etna Rosso, Pietradolce’s purest expression of Etna, comes from a very small pre-phylloxera plot in Contrada Rampante up at 900 meters above sea level. Mount Etna has a special micro-climate that is cooler than other areas in Sicily with big swings in day to night temps in the shadow of the volcano, which helps retain the vibrant acidity. This Etna Rosso, all hand harvested and macerated on the skins for about 20 days and fermented in raw cement “tulip” vats before being raised for 20 months in lightly toasted French oak Burgundy style barrels, which seems perfectly judged and allows for transparency and textural excellence.
($169 Est.) 95 Points, grapelive