Palermo, 12 May. (Adnkronos/Labitalia) – A performing vintage, that of 2023, in terms of quality and organoleptic profile, for Sicily’s wine. In the face of a harvest that, throughout Italy, will be remembered as the least productive since 1947. Sicily, like all of Central-Southern Europe and the southern areas of Europe, also suffered drops of around a third compared to the previous year . As in the other regions, these drops in production are attributable to the unfavorable weather and climatic conditions that occurred in the spring period which favored the spread of downy mildew.
But the producers of what is the second largest ‘vineyard’ in Italy by extension, with 95,760 hectares of cultivation, and the first region in terms of organic vineyard area, have given their best through their know-how, focusing on varietal richness and diversity of the Sicilian areas, showing ability to manage the complex and challenging climatic situation. Despite the reduction in quantity, with a drop of 34.48% (total DOC and IGT production) compared to last year, identity, territory and quality won.
Mattia Filippi, co-founder, outlined the balance sheet during the 20th edition of ‘Sicilia en Primeur’, the event dedicated to the preview of the latest vintage, organized by Assovini Sicilia in Cefalù from 9 to 11 May. of Uva Sapiens, a company that deals with wine consultancy.
The longest harvest in Italy – one hundred days of harvesting – began in the western part of the island in the first ten days of August 2023 and ended at the end of October in the vineyards of Etna. “From this 2023 vintage we will drink red wines with a strong identity, whites with a complex aromatic profile, native vines increasingly faithful to the territory, international ones with a new and interesting profile,” said Mattia Filippi.
The wines obtained from the 2023 harvest – explains Mattia Filippi’s report – stand out for their characteristics of essentiality, cleanliness, clarity and definition. The emblem of this is Grillo, which continues to demonstrate its ability to create wines that evolve positively over time; a vine that performs in quantity reductions and which in this harvest revealed itself in wines with a broad aromatic spectrum and more pronounced tropical notes; the Catarratto which is increasingly ‘glocal’ thanks to its great indigenous values (local) that meets the characteristics of international taste (global). Nero d’Avola, Frappato, Nerello Mascalese and Perricone, then, are establishing themselves as wines of the future by focusing on a style that combines elegance, versatility and freshness.
The big surprise – according to Mattia Filippi’s report – was the wine produced from the Syrah vine, whose grapes demonstrated resistance to weather and climate conditions and a result which, after the harvest, translated into wines with an acid-sugar balance and excellent maturation.
“It was a very complex wine-growing year which highlighted some critical issues linked to the particular aggressiveness of downy mildew, but which also revealed a production sector rich in skills and which was able to interpret and enhance the peculiarities of a harvest outside the schemes”, commented the Master of Wine Pietro Russo.
Even the president of Assovini Sicilia, Mariangela Cambria, underlined how “the associated companies of Assovini Sicilia have demonstrated their ability to manage a challenging situation such as the last harvest with competence, know-how and technique”. “prevention approach and the prudent and careful management implemented by producers, as well as a series of agronomic techniques and monitoring actions capable of verifying water stress conditions in advance and being able to intervene promptly”, he added.
“Once again the ‘Sicilian wine system’, represented by Assovini Sicilia, has teamed up and responded to the difficulties with competence and results. Precisely for this reason, the 2024 edition of ‘Sicilia en Primeur’ (‘Cultivating the future’) will be remembered for the architecture of the 2023 harvest characterized by the ‘Less is more’ style, concluded Mattia Filippi, of Uva Sapiens.
