Autumn-Winter 2005

November's Novello - A Country Wine Tasting

November's Novello
In Sicily Autumn means Saint Martin's Day, November 11th, with its traditional hard biscuits and fortified wines (Malvasia, Moscato), and its implied reference to "Saint Martin's Summer," which is something like what Americans call "Indian Summer," that last breath of warm breezes before the Autumn chill sets in. Here in Sicily, Autumn 2003 has been unseasonably warm, almost a continuation of the unusually torrid Summer --especially in coastal areas like Catania, Agrigento, Messina and Palermo-- so nobody is thinking about a second Summer, traditional or not. But the heat and sunshine are good for grapes, so we are thinking about Novello, as Italy's "nouveau" reds are known. With the minimal necessary fermentation and almost no time to age, they retain a robust yet fruity flavor. Well, at least that's the idea.

By definition, Novello is a "new" red of the most recent harvest consumed within six months of its bottling date, usually the first week of November --about two weeks before the French government permits the sale of Beaujolais Nouveau, in international markets the best known wine of this kind. In Sicily, mature, high-sugar wine grapes are usually harvested a few weeks before the French grapes are ripe, and the earlier sale date is a potential marketing advantage for Sicilian vintners, so long as the season isn't too hot and dry. Like its French counterparts, Sicily's Novello is a fruity, low-tannin wine created using the process of carbonic maceration or "whole-berry fermentation." We won't bore you with too many technical details, but essentially this is a modern process using carbon dioxide (depriving the grapes of oxygen) to increase rapid alcohol production by the sugars present in the grapes, and then adding yeast to the must (pulp, juice and skin), bringing about speedy fermentation. The result is a lighter red wine which lacks the tannins necessary for long storage in the bottle but tastes fantastic. The Italian term novello has come into widespread international use to describe the wines made with this process. While the method dates from the 1920s, these wines have become more popular internationally in the last twenty years. France's Beaujolais Nouveau is intrinsically a varietal, made exclusively from the gamay grape. Novello, however, is a more general term implying no particular region or variety.

More fanatical Italian purists do not consider nouveau wines to be "wine" per se, preferring to reserve that distinction for wines aged longer using traditional methods. (It's a little like the way Italians regard ricotta, feta and mozzarella as milk products but not actual "cheeses," because they're not aged.) Another factor that makes this wine particularly "heretical" is the practice of serving it cool or even slightly chilled, something which hasn't yet become commonplace in Italy. Well, whatever some notions of novello (or nouveau) wines, they're certainly something more than strong grape juice, and this wine style has become very popular for the Christmas holidays.

The 2003 prices have increased somewhat with the general inflation created as the euro has replaced the lira, but here in Italy you can buy a good varietal Novello for less than seven euros (about eight US dollars or five British pounds). Inflation aside, that's quite a bargain. If most smaller Sicilian wineries do not usually produce Novello, it's because the market is not considered as certain as that for aged wines whose shelf life is far longer.

The hottest Summer in recent memory has not affected this year's grapes for the better, and the consensus thus far is that 2003's Novellos are good but not exceptional. These wines are not intended to be very potent but many are. Making any wine less overpowering is an age-old challenge in Sicily. The experts' choice the last few years has been Nero d'Avola. This is an exceptional Sicilian varietal, but it sometimes yields a hearty wine too high in alcohol content for many people. A few wineries have chosen to use temperature controls to check the fermentation process early, even from the time the grapes are harvested. This technique works, but few vintners use it. We're not complaining, but we'd like to see more quality control. We've sampled a few of this year's Sicilian novellos and we've had some pleasant surprises from unexpected quarters.

Rallo's novello (not a varietal), made from grapes unidentified in the labeling, was satisfactory but undistinguished. It seemed flat, with little flavor to set it apart from others. Unusual, since Rallo, one of western Sicily's largest wineries (well-known for its Marsala), is usually consistent in producing medium-market wines of predictable but acceptable quality. But it must be said that their novello is an economical wine, at just under four euros a bottle retail in Palermo and Catania.

Instead, Antichi Vinai's Nero d'Avola Novello was enjoyable. This winery in Castiglione di Sicilia, on the other side of Sicily, is oriented toward a general market but seems to have struck success with this year's novello.

Corvo's novello is also very good. This large winery east of Palermo was founded by the Alliata family's dukes of Salaparuta in the nineteenth century and bought by the Sicilian Region some years ago, only to be re-privatised recently. Like Rallo's novello, Corvo's is a blend of Sicilian reds.

Corbera's entry, produced in Santa Margherita Belice, was equally good, distinctive but not overwhelming. We found it a worthy complement to roast chestnuts and some aged Sicilian cheeses, particularly a sharp Caciocavallo.

By far the best 2003 novello we tasted is Tasca d'Almerita's "Sassello," whose unusual name is that of a colorful bird, the redwinged thrush (turdus iliacus), pictured on the label but now rare in Sicily. It is made from a blend of Nero d'Avola and Pinot Nero (Pinot Noir). We found it slightly fruity but remarkably dry, too --a good complement to a roast kid dish we enjoyed. Try these wines with lamb or mutton if the Sicilian idea of eating young castrated goat seems unappealing.

This is all academic unless you can obtain Sicilian novello locally where you live. If your wine merchant doesn't stock it this year, see if they can get some next year --with or without the goat meat.

A Country Wine Tasting
There are two kinds of Sicilians: Mountain People and Beach People. We'll admit it. We're Mountain People. Country creatures at heart. Beaches are for tourists! But most folks in the wine business in Sicily share our preference for high places with great views, even if some of the areas around Marsala and other wine-growing regions are rolling hills rather than rugged mountains. Anyway, we're the first to agree that, generally speaking, wineries surrounded by vineyards are an ideal setting for wine tastings, at least in southern Europe. But there are exceptions, and we recently spent a delightful afternoon and evening at one of them.

Al Castello del Piraino is located outside Santa Caterina Villarmosa, in west-central Sicily near Caltanissetta. It's managed as a restaurant and country inn by the Cicero family. Today it's a farm house surrounded by olive orchards that offers lodging and activities (what Italians call agriturismo or "agritourism"). Olives certainly aren't grapes, and there aren't many vineyards in this part of the mountainous Caltanissetta province, but the setting was fantastic. Built on high ground in the 1700s, the structure, complete with embattled towers, is a kind of neo-medieval castle. The original owners were one of the minor feudal families of this area, and their bas-relief coats of arms grace embellish some of the walls. There's a rustic restaurant with a large dining room, and accomodations for as many as twenty guests in eight or nine bedrooms located in the towers and other parts of the complex.

The late afternoon tasting, attended by two guests from New York (an advertising guy and a writer for a well-known American wine magazine), went well --the Milazzo wines received exceptional praise-- and the dinner of lamb, sausage and local specialties served with some fine wines was the kind of meal you don't forget right away. The accomodations were simple but comfortable --our favorite interpretation of genuine rustic Sicilian. (The next morning was to find us back in chaotic Palermo.)

As evening fell, the sunset gave way to a full moon rising over Mount Etna beyond Enna and Calascibetta. Mount Cammarata was visible to the west and the high peaks of the Madonie Mountains to the north. A spectacular setting indeed, even without the vineyards.