($17):  Duca di Salaparuta’s “Sentiero del Vento” is a fresh and breezy Vermentino perfect for cutting through August’s heat and humidity.  The barest hint of bitterness in the finish of this mid-weight — not voluptuous — wine adds to its appeal. … Read more

($26, Caput Mundi Wine Import):  Pellegrino does a masterful job with this light weight Grillo, a white grape indigenous to Sicily.  Saline-infused acidity enhances its clean and fresh profile, while a hint of white pepper in the finish amplifies its appeal. … Read more

($24):  Cantine Emes’ unnecessarily heavy bottle and a label proclaiming Riserva gives a good indication that this Nero d’Avola will be at the more muscular end of the spectrum of wine that variety can produce.  The wine is bold, but not too pushy. … Read more

($16):  Regaleali, owned by the Tasca d’Almerita family, one of the most famous and important producers in Sicily, rarely fails.  They certainly didn’t with this one, a harmonious balance of berry fruit and savory notes enrobed with a supple and suave texture. … Read more

($26):  Salina is both the name of the wine and the tiny volcanic Aeolian island just north of Sicily in the Mediterranean.  Barely 10 square miles in area, it has six inactive volcanos that account for its lava rich soil.  Here the Malvasia di Lipari makes a riveting dry wine that electrifies the palate. … Read more

($34):  This looks like a Rosé in the glass, but fortunately it displays enormous character and complexity, so you know it’s not a rosé.  Girolamo Russo, one of Etna’s top producers, makes a range of terrific wines from that mountain.  This one, ‘a Rina, is a blend, and could be considered his “basic” — though there’s nothing basic about it — wine. … Read more

($35):  Nero d’Avola, a grape indigenous to Sicily, makes a wide wine across a wide gamut of styles.  The muscular 16 Filari, from Case Alte, lies towards the massive side of the spectrum — sort of a Nero d’Avola on steroids. … Read more

($18):  It is no surprise that Duca di Salaparuta, one of Sicily’s leading producers, makes a delightful wine from Grillo, one of Sicily’s indigenous white grapes.  This crisp and clean light-weight beauty cries for fish or shellfish.  A saline-like acidity and hint of bitterness in the finish imparts a surprising length. … Read more

($21, Regal Wine Imports):  This zippy Grillo, made from an indigenous Sicilian grape, is a great accompaniment to seafood, even in a hearty tomato sauce, because of austere style and lively saline acidity.  Not an opulent or fruit-driven wine, it is light weight, with a modest 12.5 percent stated alcohol. … Read more

($41):  Made from one of Sicily’s native grapes, this robust red holds its 14.5 percent stated alcohol effortlessly, without a trace of heaviness.  Smoke and other savory accents complement its dark plum-like fresh and dried fruit notes.  Good balancing acidity keeps this mature beauty bright and fresh while fine tannins lend support without astringency. … Read more

($28):  Nero d’Avola, Sicily’s emblematic grape, produces wines that vary and light and fruity to more substantial and robust.  Put this one in the latter category.  Earthy notes support dark fruit character.  Fine tannins lends support and balance so it doesn’t come across as a “fruity” wine, although there is no lack of black fruitiness. … Read more

($28):  Nero d’Avola, Sicily’s emblematic grape, produces wines that vary and light and fruity to more substantial and robust.  Put this one in the latter category.  Earthy notes support dark fruit character.  Fine tannins lends support and balance so it doesn’t come across as a “fruity” wine, although there is no lack of black fruitiness. … Read more

($17, Disaronno International):  Consumers unfamiliar with Nerello Mascalese, the signature grape of Sicily’s Mount Etna, should grab this bottle.  Lava-like mineral notes complement the sour cherry like ones in this mid-weight red.  A long an explosive finish reminds you this is a wine to sip and savor. … Read more

($12, Palm Bay International):  Nero d’Avola, Sicily’s most main red grape, is worth getting to know because it can deliver an appealing combination of fruitiness mixed with non-fruit elements.  Take this one, for example.  Its initial delivery is heavy on the fresh, black cherry-like notes. … Read more

($17, Disaronno International):  Consumers unfamiliar with Nerello Mascalese, the signature grape of Sicily’s Mount Etna, should grab this bottle.  Lava-like mineral notes complement the sour cherry like ones in this mid-weight red.  A long an explosive finish reminds you this is a wine to sip and savor. … Read more

($12, Palm Bay International):  Nero d’Avola, Sicily’s most main red grape, is worth getting to know because it can deliver an appealing combination of fruitiness mixed with non-fruit elements.  Take this one, for example.  Its initial delivery is heavy on the fresh, black cherry-like notes. … Read more

($20, Disaronno International):  Duca di Salaparuta, one of the oldest wineries in Sicily, introduced many Americans to the value-packed joy of Sicilian wines decades ago with Corvo, which was made with purchased grapes grown all over the island.  Well, Duca di Salaparuta has evolved and now makes a bevy of distinctive estate wines. … Read more

($19, Winebow):  Tasca d’Almerita family owns Tenuta Regaleali, a great and reliable name for Sicilian wine.  They have transformed Catarratto, another autochthonous grape, into a fleshy and cutting wine.  (Soon Catarratto will be called Lucido, after one of its clones, for marketing reasons because the Sicilians believe it is easier for foreigners — mainland Italians included — to pronounce.) … Read more

($35, Folio Fine Wine Partners):  Pantelleria is not an appealing place to make wine.  An island off the coast of Sicily closer to Africa than to Rome, it’s been described as “a volcanic rock jutting from the sea” where the major activity is “listening to the wind.” … Read more

($29, Taub Family Selections):  Planeta is so consistently reliable that consumers can basically pick any of their wines and be thrilled with the choice.  Their Etna Bianco, made from Carricante, a grape indigenous to Sicily, is stunning and dispels any notion that Sicily is incapable of making great wine. … Read more

($19, Taub Family Selections):  Cerasuolo di Vittoria, Sicily’s only DOCG wine, is a blend of Nero d’Avola and Frapatto, two of Sicily’s autochthonous grapes.  Planeta’s is simply marvelous.  Refined, it delivers a balanced combination of minerals and cherry-like fruit.  Weighing in at a modest 13 percent stated alcohol, it is not particularly opulent, but it is particularly penetrating. … Read more

($23, Montcalm Wine Importers):  I was unfamiliar with this producer until samples arrived on my doorstep.  Now, with this Nero d’Avola and their equally impressive Etna Rosso, Vivera is a name I will remember.  The fleshy character of this Nero d’Avola presents a great counterpoint to the sleek austerity of their 2019 Etna Rosso. … Read more

($23, Montcalm Wine Importers):  I was unfamiliar with this producer until samples arrived on my doorstep.  Now, with this Nero d’Avola and their equally impressive Etna Rosso, Vivera is a name I will remember.  The fleshy character of this Nero d’Avola presents a great counterpoint to the sleek austerity of their 2019 Etna Rosso. … Read more

($34, Montcalm Wine Importers):  Wines made from grape grown on the lava-rich slopes of Sicily’s Mount Etna transmit their origins beautifully and precisely.  The cherry-like fruitiness of this Etna Rosso takes a back seat to its angular lava-tinged character.  Wonderfully austere, this sleek wine delivers a saline-like freshness. … Read more

($21):  The regulations for Etna Bianco require at least 60 percent Carricante in the blend.  Firriato opts to blend another autochthonous grape, Catarratto, with Carricante for this Etna Bianco.  The result is a fruitier, somewhat richer, Etna Bianco with less of the cutting saline-minerality for which Carricante is known. … Read more

($40, Folio Fine Wine Partners):  Made entirely from Carricante, Donnafugata’s Etna Bianco displays an immediately engaging floral component.  A crisp and chiseled wine, it captures the best elements of that grape.  This paradoxically vibrant, yet restrained, wine starts to blossom after 30 minutes in the glass. … Read more

($35, Folio Fine Wine Partners):  Donnafugata’s Etna Rosso, a blend of Nerello Mascalese and Cappuccio, is a seductive mid-weight red that marries red fruit flavors with a distinct lava-like minerality.  Not an opulent wine, it has a lovely austerity without being hard or astringent. … Read more

($85, Folio Fine Wine Partners):  The grapes for Donnafugata’s Fragore hail from the Contrada Montelaguardia.  Made entirely from Nerello Mascalese, it is denser than Sul Vulcano Rosso, but paradoxically, still displays a wonderful austerity.  This is no fruit bomb.  Indeed, the power and concentration have a lava-tinged savory character. … Read more

($19):  Although only started in 2000, the family-run Fondo Antico, has a long connection with grapes as a grower for Marsala.  They have about 200 acres of vineyards on the western side of the island where they grow both autochthonous varieties, such as Grillo, and so-called international grapes. … Read more

($24, Folio Fine Wine Partners):  The primary grape for Etna Bianco is Carricante, one that is unique to Sicily.  Though people, rightly, associate red wine with Sicily, Carricante produces impressive and distinctive whites, especially when grown on the slopes of Mount Etna. … Read more

($39, Folio Fine Wine Partners):  While Donnafugata maintains a traditional focus on indigenous Sicilian grapes, such as Nero d’Avola, they also have planted international ones, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, and unusual ones, such as Tannat.  Those three grapes comprise the majority of the blend of Tancredi. … Read more

($30, Folio Fine Wine Partners):  Cerasuolo di Vittoria, located in southeastern Sicily, is that island’s only DOCG wine.  Regulations require that Nero d’Avola comprise at least 50, but no more than 70, percent of the blend.  Frappato fills out the blend. … Read more

($21, Artisanal Cellars):  “Eloro is a grand cru for Nero d’Avola,” according to Ian d’Agata, one of the world’s foremost authorities on Italian wines.  Barone Sergio has 75 acres of vineyards, two-thirds of which are devoted to that grape, one of Sicily’s most important varieties. … Read more

($39):  Andrea Franchetti is either brilliant or crazy.  He built a wine estate, Tinoro, from scratch in Tuscany’s Val d’Orcia and makes wine there, not from Sangiovese, but from solely Bordeaux varieties.  He has another estate in Tuscany, Sancaba, dedicated to plant, of all things, Pinot Noir. … Read more

($18, Palm Bay International):  Frappato, an indigenous Sicilian grape, is best known as a component of Cerasuolo di Sicilia, Sicily’s only wine awarded DOCG status.  By itself, it’s a mid-weight wine that has a beguiling spiciness. The lack of wood aging allows the cherry-like fruitiness to shine. … Read more

($12, Palm Bay International):  This wine from, Mandrarossa, the upscale label of an excellent Sicilian cooperative, Settesoli, could qualify for the best white wine value of the year.  Wine co-ops get little respect, which is a shame. The outdated vision of a co-op is that all the grapes go into one pot and out comes one innocuous wine. … Read more

($20, Palm Bay International):  Full disclosure:  Petit Verdot as a monovarietal ranks among my least favorite wines.  Which makes this wine all the more impressive.  I was struck by its elegance and balance and then amazed when I discovered it was made entirely from Petit Verdot. … Read more

($37):  Andrea Franchetti, who also owns Tenuta Trinoro, an estate in Tuscany’s Val D’Orcia, started a winery in Sicily about 20 years ago.  In a bold move, he planted 10 acres of Chardonnay at high elevations (2,500 to 3,000 feet above sea level) in powdery lava soil, figuring that the elevation and soil would impart a distinctive character to this grape. … Read more

($22):  Regulations require that Cerasuolo di Vittoria, Sicily’s only DOCG wine, be made from a blend of Nero d’Avola (50-70%) and Frappato.  Gulfi, one of the island’s best producers, uses equal parts for this wine.   It’s explosive, in a very delicate way. … Read more

($24):  Carricante, Sicily’s best white grape, is a name to remember because can produce cutting, mineral-infused wines.  Combine this grape with a top producer, Gulfi, and unsurprisingly you wind up with terrific wine.  Clean and bright, you can almost taste the lava of Mt.… Read more

($28):  Donnafugata, one of the top producers on that island, makes a floral wine from Frappato, an indigenous Sicilian variety.  Light-bodied, it exudes charm and delicacy, but finishes with an engaging touch of bitterness.  It could easily take a chill in the summer. … Read more

($35, Folio Fine Wine Partners):  You can almost smell and taste the lava-infusion soil of Mount Etna in this wine.  This mid-weight red packs lots of flavor for its weight.  With a lovely firmness, it’s a wine that cries for food as opposed to a stand-alone aperitif.… Read more

($30, Folio Fine Wine Partners):  Donnafugata, one of Sicily’s top producers, has shown consistently what stunningly good wines can come from that Italian island.  Donnafugata’s 2016 Cerasuolo de Vittorio, a blend of Nero d’Avola and Frappato, is a delicate light to mid-weight floral red wine with charm and vivacity. … Read more

($40, Folio Fine Wine Partners):  It’s hard to go wrong with any wine from Donnafugata, one of Sicily’s — and Italy’s — iconic producers.  With Tancredi, Donnafugata has married Nero d’Avola, an indigenous Sicilian grape, with Cabernet Sauvignon and a pinch of Tannat to produce a dense and concentrated, but balanced, wine. … Read more

($80, Folio Fine Wine Partners):  Mille e una Notte, Donnafugata’s flagship wine, is a tribute to Sicilian grape growing and winemaking.  The 2012 is simply gorgeous.  A masterful blend of Old World (Nero d’Avola) and New (Petit Verdot and Syrah) it conveys power and sophistication. … Read more

($19, Artisanal Cellars):  Nero d’Avola, the most widely planted red grape in Sicily, makes a diverse style of wine, ranging from fruity to more savory depending on where the grape grows and the producer’s style. This one focuses on the earthy, herbal character, though there’s plenty of dark fruit flavor as well. … Read more

($45):  Gulfi, the first estate in Sicily to give focus on site specificity to Nero d’Avola, continues to making stunning examples of wine from that grape.  This one, from their Bufaleffj vineyard, is eye-opening for its balance and complexity, delivering a ying/yang of black fruit and savory flavors offset perfectly by a hint of bitterness in the finish. … Read more

($30): Pantelleria, an island off the coast of Sicily that is closer to Africa than Rome, has the potential to produce wonderfully sweet wines.  Donnafugata, one of Sicily’s top producers, consistently fulfills that potential with their Ben Rye, a wine made from the Muscat of Alessandria grape.  … Read more

($17): Conte Tasca d’Almerita’s Tenuta Regaleali, one of Sicily’s leading producers, has shown the world repeatedly that Sicily can produce superb wine.  To their credit, they do not rest on their laurels.  This wine, only their third vintage, is a good example of their broad thinking. … Read more

($21, Palm Bay International): A harmonious blend of Nero d’Avola (60%) and Frappato, Planeta consistently makes an excellent example of Cerasuolo di Vittoria, Sicily’s sole DOCG wine.  The 2015 delivers a mixture of lovely cherry-like and mineral flavors wrapped in mild finely polished tannins. … Read more