Wine of the Week! 08/14/23

Alcesti L’Isola dei Profumi Rosso

Normally $9.99 / Now on Sale for $7.96
Nero d’Avola and Perricone

Alcesti Famiglia e Cantina is a family-owned winery sitting in the Marsala growing region of Sicily. There the Palladinos own and manage 30 hectares of land between Marsala, Mazara, and Salemi and believe they can reflect the beauty of Sicily in their wines. You can feel their admiration in the name of this wine — “Perfume Island.”

So, you may know Sicily for its famed Nero d’Avola grape, but have you heard of Perricone? Perricone is a red grape variety that once covered Sicily but was decimated in the late 1800s. It has a parent-child relationship with Sangiovese. So, did Perricone come from Sangiovese brought to Sicily or did Sangiovese come from Perricone brought to the mainland? We don’t know, but best not to ask that question in the wrong wine bar.

For this blend, Alcesti mixes these two indigenous Sicilian grapes. Perricone is aromatic and also has tannins, so it adds layers of raspberry-like aroma and a hint of heft to the blend.