2018 Passorosso
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Tasting Notes
These high-altitude vineyards are a staggering 15˚C below coastal temperatures in the region. Combine this with very cool nights and you have an exceptionally long growing season, the grapes typically not picked until late October. This gives the wine a rich, complex aromatic spectrum, while remaining distinctly elegant. On the nose there are bright red fruit aromas, ranging from raspberries to sour cherries with hints of white pepper. On the palate, the scented aromatic red fruit flavours continue with added saline and smoky mineral notes. The mid-palate is nicely concentrated and structured – the tannins polished and well framed by refreshing acidity, that leads to a sharp and precise finish. The wine is perfectly approachable now and should evolve nicely over the next five to eight years.
Critic Scores
Monica Larner, Wine Advocate
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This is the only Etna denomination wine in the Franchetti portfolio, and it is made with a selection of fruit from various vineyard sites on lava flows of different epochs. The 2018 Etna Rosso Passorosso opens to a lean garnet color with faded color intensity. Like the other wines from this vintage that saw problematic rain on some parts of Etna, this wine is thinner and tighter than some of the more generous vintages of the past. There are tart cherry flavors followed by ashy smoke and tar. Some 35,000 bottles were made.
About the producer
Tenuta di Passopisciaro is the Etna estate owned by Andrea Franchetti, one of Italy’s pioneering winemakers who founded the Super Tuscan estate Tenuta di Trinoro, before becoming instrumental in Mount Etna’s wine renaissance with his Passopisciaro estate.