Sipping in Sicily with Duca di Salaparuta
Gathering in the historic cellars of Cantine Florio in Marsala. Photo: Benedetto Tarantino
In November, I was very fortunate to join a trip to Sicily with Duca Di Salaparuta, the island’s largest private wine group, along with a fantastic bunch of wine professionals. Here are some of my memories of exploring this wonderful island.
Our first stop was the historic Cantine Florio, where we tried some incredible Marsala wines in varying styles, form dry to sweet and young to aged. If you’ve never tried this type of wine before then, trust me, you’re missing out!
There’s a common misconception that Marsala is just for cooking but Florio dispels that myth and shows that there are so many occasions to enjoy this sophisticated drink. The variety of Marsala styles means it can be used in cocktails, enjoyed on its own as an aperitif, be a match for cheeses, desserts or as the ultimate nightcap.
Less than 100 metres from the coast, the Florio cellar slopes upwards, allowing the vast barrels to be aged in different locations to benefit from the influence of sea air movement, which varies the temperature and humidity levels. Once bottled, the labels reference the exact geographical location that they were positioned in the cellar. The vast cellar was used as an aircraft carrier during the war and they still have a cask containing a pre-war reserve from 1939!
We also visited the Duca di Salaparuta cellars in Casteldaccia, not far from the capital of Palermo, where we explored the traditional cellars and the contrasting modern Bond-lair-esque tasting room and restaurant.
We tried wines from across the Duca di Salaparuta range and enjoyed a delicious lunch, topped off with traditional Sicillian Cassata, paired with Florio Marsala Semisecco 2007.
The definite highlight here was tasting Sicily’s first single-varietal Nero d’Avola, Duca d’Enrico, an elegant age-worthy wine.
This was a brief two night trip that made me hungry to go back for more of Sicily and its wines. Below are details of some of the places we were lucky enough to visit. If you’ve been to Sicily, I’d love your recommendations - drop me a message here!
Marsala
La Corte dei Mangioni
A cosy restaurant in the heart of Marsala where we enjoyed the most amazing food paired with Duca di Salaparuta wines. Try the Gran Crudo di Mare - raw Fruits de Mer - it was unbelievably fresh and beautifully presented.
Palermo
Osteria dei Vespri
A cute restaurant in the historic centre of Palermo with stunning vaulted ceilings, delicious and well-presented modern dishes, made with locally sourced ingredients and a massive wine list!
Farmacia Alcolica
This very cool cocktail bar, in the beautiful old town of Palermo, is crammed with eclectic vintage finds. We enjoyed cocktails made with Florio (of course), such as their take on a Penicillin, made with Marsala Dolce.
