Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
knowledge that Italy's Carignano wines (or a
few of them at least) are probably the world's
best. The most famous wine is the DOC Cari-
gnano del Sulcis, where Carignano represents
roughly 80 percent of grape varieties cultivated.
Vineyards here are often one hundred years old,
and this is in large measure the secret behind
the exceptionally high quality of Sardinia's Car-
ignano. The most famous wine is Sardinia's
DOC Carignano del Sulcis, but the variety can
be included in DOC Sicilia wine blends. Close
to thirty IGT wine blends may also include Car-
ignano (a short list includes Colli Cimini,
Frusinate, Narni, and Terre Siciliane). How-
ever, outside Sardinia, Carignano grown in
Lazio, Marche, Umbria, and Tuscany is only of
anecdotal signifi cance. That said, in Tuscany
more than one producer has told me off the
record that Carignano must was (or is?) often
added (shall we say via involuntary mistakes?)
to many anemic Tuscan musts. Of course Ital-
ian producers, thoroughly scared by the tough
controls exercised by the local authorities and
the iron will of their local politicians to do
what's right and best for the country and its
wine loving consumers, would never dream of
doing such a thing.
For those weaned on less than impressive
Spanish and French versions, old-vine Cari-
gnano wines can be one of Italy's most inter-
esting and sensual offerings, with a velvety-
fleshy, almost sweet, and softly tannic
personality. Therein lies the greatness of Sar-
dinia's Carignanos, for nowhere else—not
even under the best conditions of old vines
and low yields—is “creamy” a word associated
with what are most often very high-acid,
roughly tannic wines. In truth, creamy per-
sonalities are typical only of Sardinian wines
made from old seaside vineyards planted on
mainly sandy soil: by contrast, wines produced
from inland vines, on soils with a much higher
clay content, are brawnier and more austere,
and greatly repay cellaring. So doing a little
homework before you buy will go a long way in
guaranteeing how much you'll like the Italian
Carignano wine you buy.
wines to try:
Agricola Punica*** (Barrua and
Montessu, made from younger vines), Cantina
Santadi*** (both the Terre Brune and Rocca
Rubia Riserva), 6Mura*** (Giba, Carignanoo
del Sulcis), Mesa*** (Buio, Buio Buio), Can-
tina Calasetta** (Piedefranco, Maccorì).
Carricante
where it's found:
Sicily.
national registry
code number:
55.
color:
white.
Carricante's name (it's also very rarely called
Carricanti, Nocera Bianca, or confusingly, Cata-
ratto, which is a distinct variety) tells you a lot
about its productivity: the word Carricante
refers “to loading up” the cart or the donkey
with the copious grapes this variety can pro-
duce when left to its own devices. Which is
strange, considering that Carricante, a hermit
that loves mountainous altitudes, is potentially
one of Italy's greatest cultivars, white or red;
when properly tended to, it yields wines of great
longevity and very intense mineral character. It
grows well on the volcanic slopes of Etna, clasp-
ing crooked crags where little else thrives;
attempts starting in at least the nineteenth cen-
tury to transplant it elsewhere on the island
have not fared well.
Carricante is really a one-zone variety, as it
is found only on the slopes of the Etna volcano,
in the countryside around towns such as Via-
grande, Randazzo, and others. It grows at
extremely high altitudes (where Nerello Mas-
calese has trouble ripening), on both the east-
ern and the southern slopes of the volcano, at
altitudes of 950 meters above sea level and
1,050 meters above sea level respectively. Ales-
sio Planeta of the world-famous Planeta estate
shook his head while telling me that he had
been thinking of working with Carricante on
Etna, “but when I actually saw where it lives, I
said, 'You know what, I think we'll just leave it
here and let the eastern Sicilians work with it.
I'll fi nd another, more reasonable variety, to
deal with! Either that, or plant it at more reason-
able heights.'” Planeta is too smart and knowl-
edgeable a winemaker not to recognize Carri-
