If you are looking for fine Italian wine and food, consider the Sicily region of southern Italy. You may find a bargain, and I hope that you'll have fun on this fact-filled wine education tour.

Sicily is the football kicked by the Italian boot. It is an island in the Mediterranean Sea located off the southwest tip of Italy. Sicily was first inhabited about ten thousand years ago. Agriculture and animal raising date back well over four thousand years. Its rulers have included the Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Normans, Germans, and Spaniards, among others. This mountainous region is prone to volcanoes and earthquakes; in 1908 an earthquake and subsequent tidal wave killed eighty thousand people in the coastal city of Messina. Sicily's population is about five million, with an additional ten million people of Sicilian descent around the world.

Agricultural products include wheat, barley, corn, olives, citrus fruit, almonds, and, of course, grapes. Tomatoes, eggplants, and peppers are prominent in local cuisine. Sicily is Italy's second region for organic food. Many think that the Arabs introduced pasta to Sicily, which subsequently introduced it to the rest of Italy. Cattle, mules, donkeys, and sheep are raised. Sicily claims to have invented meatballs, The seas surrounding Sicily are bountiful, favorites include sardines, tuna, and swordfish. Sicily is famous for desserts, including frozen treats made with snow from Mount Etna.

Sicilian heavy industry includes petro-chemicals, chemicals, mining, and electronics. Tourism is a major factor in the Sicilian economy. Did you know that the Valle dei Templi in Agrigento on the Mediterranean Sea has some of the finest Greek ruins on earth?

Palermo, arguably the world's most conquered city, is Sicily's capital with a population of a little under seven hundred thousand. It is a definite tourist destination, with its numerous historical churches, museums, theaters, and Italy's largest botanical garden. Another urban tourist destination is Syracuse, dating back to Ancient Greece. The Greek writer Cicero described it as "The greatest Greek city and the most beautiful of them all." Both earthquakes and World War II caused heavy damage, but many of the most interesting sites have been reconstructed.

Sicily devotes about a third of a million acres to grapevines, it ranks first among the 20 Italian regions. Its total annual wine production is about 213 million gallons, also giving it first place. If Sicily were an independent country, it would rank seventh in the world for wine production. About 54% of its wine production is red or ros? (only a bit of ros?), leaving 46% for white. The region produces 19 DOC wines. DOC stands for Denominazione di Origine Controllata, which may be translated as Denomination of Controlled Origin, presumably a high-quality wine. Only a little more than 2% of Sicilian wine carries the DOC designation. Sicily is home to over three dozen major and secondary grape varieties, with more white than red varieties.

Widely grown international white grape varieties include Malvasia and to a lesser extent, Chardonnay. The best-known strictly Italian white varieties are Catarratto, Grecanico, Inzolia, and Grillo. The first three of these varieties are blended in the wine reviewed below.

Widely grown international red grape varieties include Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot. The best-known strictly Italian red varieties are Nero d'Avola, Frappato, and Nerello Mascalese.

Before reviewing the Sicilian wine and cheese that we were lucky enough to purchase at a local wine store and a local Italian food store, here are a few suggestions of what to eat with indigenous wines when touring this beautiful region.
Start with Insalata di Finocchi, Arance Sanguigne de Olive; Fennel, Blood Orange, and Olive Salad.
As a second course try Pollo con Prosciutto e Melanzane Fritte; Braised Chicken with Proscuitto and Fried Eggplants.
For dessert indulge yourself with Cassata; Candied Fruit and Chocolate on Sponge Cake.

OUR WINE REVIEW POLICY While we have communicated with well over a thousand Italian wine producers and merchants to help prepare these articles, our policy is clear. All wines that we taste and review are purchased at the full retail price.

Wine Reviewed
Tasca d'Almerita 'Regaleali' Blanco 2005 IGT Sicilia 12.5% alcohol about $13

We'll start by quoting the marketing materials. "Made with the local grapes Inzolia, Greciano, and Catarratto, this wine is matured only in stainless steel and is not put through acid-softening malolactic fermentation. The producer chooses this approach to retain the bright fruitiness and racy crispness of the wine. Enjoy with steamed mussels, chicken or summer salads." And now for my thoughts on the wine.

I first tasted this wine with broiled chicken burgers accompanied by a hot pepper relish, and red peppers. The wine was light, perhaps a bit intimidated by the relish. It was delicate, but not weak. When I finished my glass with the red peppers, the wine was quite fruity and sweet.

I next tried this wine with fillet of sole poached in an onion sauce, accompanied by brown rice and okra in a tomato sauce. The wine tasted light and citrusy in the presence of the fish, and was more powerful when facing the rice and the okra. I finished that meal with fresh pomegranate. The wine became sweet and acidic, but did not take on new flavors.

Isola is a Sicilian fresh cheese made from sheep's milk. The Isola cheese was powerful, strong smelling and strong tasting, especially when you crunched into a peppercorn. Unfortunately, the cheese overpowered this relatively light wine. In contrast, when paired with an Asiago cheese from northern Italy, the wine became quite full bodied and fruity. Sometimes rules such as local wines with local cheeses are meant to be broken. I had a bit of wine left over and finished the bottle with out-of-season strawberries. They brought out the wine's complexity and softness.

Final verdict, in spite of its low official rating, I found the wine pretty good. I would buy it again, but avoid pairing it with strong-tasting food.

About the Author

Levi Reiss has authored or co-authored ten books on computers and the Internet, but to be honest, he would rather just drink fine Italian or other wine, accompanied by the right foods. He teaches classes in computers at an Ontario French-language community college. His wine website is www.theworldwidewine.com .

Short Review on Wine Attributes

Understanding Online Wine Buying Regulations and How To Order Wine Online


In our continuing effort to provide online wine consumer education, included in this segment is a break down of different wine shipping state classifi...


Click Here to Read More About Wine ...

Recommended Wine Attributes Items

The FTD Beloved Bouquet - Standard


This bouquet of pink alstroemeria, purple lisianthus, white daisies, and other soft blooms arranged in a glass vase expresses your love or friendship. Approx. 19H x 16W C22-3062S


Price: 49.99 USD



Wine Attributes in the news

Who’s conning whom?

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 09:06:08 PDT
Who’s conning whom? March 10, 2008 by Thomas. There’s a particular type of lawyer who probably views him or herself as a good debater, when in fact, what the lawyer is good at is browbeating, especially when the lawyer hasn’t a good argument to make either for the cause or against the opposition. This is where I would place the comment made by a wine bulletin board moderator when he called blind tasting wine evaluations a “con job.” To be more precise, he called it the “biggest con job in

The best Daddio around

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 12:23:26 PDT
I know I do a lot of bragging about Girlie. I can’t help it, I think that’s all part of being a Mom, as long as I don’t go too overboard with it. I thought today I’d focus on my awesome husband, Erik. This weekend was so wonderful…it truly was a great break for me. We didn’t do much except enjoy time together as a family and spend some time with friends. I’m rested, relaxed and ready for the week! Friday night we went over to our neighbor Karen’s house to celebrate her bi

a week in Mumbai avec ma maman - Mumbai (Bombay), India

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 20:34:26 PDT
Jump to the full entry & travel map Mumbai (Bombay), India After the usual 4h sleep on the train - the "sleeper class" is clearly a misleading name -, I arrived in Mumbai early morning... that's when a cup of chai taste the best. It is such a clean city compare to every other ones I've seen in India, with big buildings, the sea and some very good vibes. Went to Leopold cafe but was very disappointed as it is not half as nice as expected from the book "Shantaram". Anyway, I'm in a

Dis-moi ce que tu manges, je te dirai ce que tu es.

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 20:48:27 PDT
"Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are." - A.B. you are what you eat. really? okay. so you mean literally or just in terms of the value and quality of my character? let's see... this phrase was initially meant in terms of the philosophy or disposition of the mind. for the masses: brain food. what fuels your body also fuels your genius (unless you're eating dumb food. like...whoppers or lemon heads). while this phrase was coined sometime in the 1800s (thank you mr.googledotcom)


Wine Search
Sparkling Wine
Wine Merchant

Labels: Wine Makers

&type=page">