Sicily-Wines of Firriato and Occhipinti

SF Wine Trading Company
Tasted Sunday, January 13, 2013 by drwine2001 with 425 views

Flight 1 - Whites (3 Notes)

  • 2010 Firriato Ansonica Sicilia Chiaramonte

    Italy, Sicily, Sicilia

    Full yellow. Lush, deep and nutty without being offensively oxidative. Good citric zip in the middle prevents it from seeming dull. This reminded me of some southern Rhone whites, albeit a little brighter than most. Very interesting for short term drinking.

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  • 2009 Firriato Sicilia Quater Vitis

    Italy, Sicily, Sicilia

    Even deeper yellow than the Chiaramonte. Strong scent of hazelnuts. Very broad, rich wine. Carressing feel with wooliness that called Savennieres to mind. Fruit not featured and the finish is dry and well structured. Also very interesting and made me think of white Hermitage as well as the Loire analogy.

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  • 2011 Arianna Occhipinti Sicilia SP68 Bianco

    Italy, Sicily, Sicilia

    Yellow with an orange tint. Very forwardly aromatic. Not as full as the Firriato whites, but still with some texture around the core of grapefruit and herbs. Bitter, cyanic finish. Also quite fascinating but not entirely harmonious now. Will it knit over the next 6 to 12 months?

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Flight 2 - Reds (3 Notes)

  • 2011 Tami' Frappato

    Italy, Sicily, Sicilia

    Light, clear red. Crisp and light weight. Snappy black cherry fruit, uplifting acidity, low tannins, and some soil on the finish. A pleasure.

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  • 2010 Arianna Occhipinti Il Frappato

    Italy, Sicily, Terre Siciliane

    Medium to lighter ruby. More herbs and licorice than fruit on the nose. Lighter weight. Dry, spicy red fruit with pleasingly tart acidity. Very lively in the mouth. Good dose of anise at the end. Another delightful drink.

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  • 2008 Firriato Sicilia Santagostino

    Italy, Sicily, Sicilia

    Medium to dark ruby. Fennel and resiny oak. Big, mouth filling wine with strong cedar and vanilla notes. Black fruit, low level of tannins but lots of distinctive dill American oak which just overpowers the finish. This was especially jarring after the lightness and purity of the Occhipintis.

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Closing

While not all of these wines were to my taste, this was a very interesting flight for wines that are pretty modestly priced. I had had experience with Occipinti wines but not Firriato.

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