Producer Article
Donnafugata
Last edited on 9/2/2015 by ChipGreen
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DONNAFUGATA
Producing wines of quality, while respecting the environment and promoting the territory
Donnafugata was created in Sicily by an enterprising family with 150 years’ experience in premium wines. Giacomo Rallo and wife Gabriella, daughter José and son Antonio are engaged in an entrepreneurial project aimed at care for details and at putting people at the service of nature to make wines that increasingly correspond to the territory’s potential.
The Donnafugata adventure began in 1983 in the Rallo family’s historic cellars in Marsala and at its Contessa Entellina vineyards in the heart of western Sicily; in 1989 Donnafugata arrived on the island of Pantelleria, starting to produce naturally sweet wines. To date, overall Donnafugata production is obtained from 820 acres of vineyards, 650 at Contessa Entellina and 170 on Pantelleria.
The Contessa Entellina estates are located in the heart of western Sicily, where vineyards are an integral part of the landscape. On its 650 acres Donnafugata grows both indigenous grapes - Ansonica, Catarratto, Grecanico and Nero d’Avola – and the international varieties that have proven to adapt best to the territory’s soil and climate, like Chardonnay, Viognier, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah. Of recent introduction are also Sauvignon Blanc, Alicante Bouchet, Tannat and Petit Verdot. Cultivating 13 varieties was an agronomic decision aimed at valorizing the particularities of the different areas (soil, elevation, exposure) and producing complex wines with great personality.
On Pantelleria, a volcanic island lying between Sicily and Africa, Donnafugata has 170 acres planted with Zibibbo (Muscat of Alexandria) and a winery in the Khamma district that is a fine example of sustainable architecture. The vines, trained in bush form, are grown on small terraced plots delimited by drywalls in lava stone. Given such conditions, grape growing is almost entirely manual and even harvesting is very laborious.
The Marsala cellars, built 1851, are a living example of industrial archeology. The layout of the “baglio”, a typically Mediterranean warehouse, has been retained and features a spacious courtyard adorned with citrus and olive trees, and trussed wooden ceilings, the work of master carpenters of long ago. Today it houses a dynamic, productive enterprise whose aim is excellence. Here converge the products obtained at Contessa Entellina and on Pantelleria for refinement (in steel, cement and oak) and bottling.
DONNAFUGATA
Producing wines of quality, while respecting the environment and promoting the territory
Donnafugata was created in Sicily by an enterprising family with 150 years’ experience in premium wines. Giacomo Rallo and wife Gabriella, daughter José and son Antonio are engaged in an entrepreneurial project aimed at care for details and at putting people at the service of nature to make wines that increasingly correspond to the territory’s potential.
The Donnafugata adventure began in 1983 in the Rallo family’s historic cellars in Marsala and at its Contessa Entellina vineyards in the heart of western Sicily; in 1989 Donnafugata arrived on the island of Pantelleria, starting to produce naturally sweet wines. To date, overall Donnafugata production is obtained from 820 acres of vineyards, 650 at Contessa Entellina and 170 on Pantelleria.
The Contessa Entellina estates are located in the heart of western Sicily, where vineyards are an integral part of the landscape. On its 650 acres Donnafugata grows both indigenous grapes - Ansonica, Catarratto, Grecanico and Nero d’Avola – and the international varieties that have proven to adapt best to the territory’s soil and climate, like Chardonnay, Viognier, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah. Of recent introduction are also Sauvignon Blanc, Alicante Bouchet, Tannat and Petit Verdot. Cultivating 13 varieties was an agronomic decision aimed at valorizing the particularities of the different areas (soil, elevation, exposure) and producing complex wines with great personality.
On Pantelleria, a volcanic island lying between Sicily and Africa, Donnafugata has 170 acres planted with Zibibbo (Muscat of Alexandria) and a winery in the Khamma district that is a fine example of sustainable architecture. The vines, trained in bush form, are grown on small terraced plots delimited by drywalls in lava stone. Given such conditions, grape growing is almost entirely manual and even harvesting is very laborious.
The Marsala cellars, built 1851, are a living example of industrial archeology. The layout of the “baglio”, a typically Mediterranean warehouse, has been retained and features a spacious courtyard adorned with citrus and olive trees, and trussed wooden ceilings, the work of master carpenters of long ago. Today it houses a dynamic, productive enterprise whose aim is excellence. Here converge the products obtained at Contessa Entellina and on Pantelleria for refinement (in steel, cement and oak) and bottling.