2018 Etna Rosso Riserva Rovittello
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Tasting notes
As its name confirms, this special wine is made with grapes from ancient vines that are more than 100 years old. With 90% Nerello Mascalese and 10% Nerello Cappuccio, the Benanti 2018 Etna Rosso Riserva Alberello Centenario Rovittello Particella No. 341 opens to a sultry garnet color with blackcurrant, dried cranberry and spicy notes from oak aging. This elegant, medium-bodied red finishes with hints of cinnamon and licorice root. Those savory tones, and the oak spice, outpace the primary fruit in this vintage. The Particella No. 341 is a one-hectare site on the north side of Etna. This is a limited release of 2,964 bottles.
Critic scores
Tamlyn Currin, jancisrobinson.com
Monica Larner, Wine Advocate
More reviews and scores
Roughly 90% Nerello Mascalese and 10% Nerello Cappuccio, co-planted in a terraced vineyard located in Contrada Dafara Galluzzo, in the upper area of Rovittello, part of the municipality of Castiglione di Sicilia, on Etna’s northern slope, at 750 m (2,450 ft). Sandy, volcanic soil, rich in minerals. A parcel of pre-phylloxera, ungrafted, head-trained bush vines. Fermented in stainless-steel vat, aged in 15-hl French oak barrels for 24 months. Iodine, cigar box, finest touch of rust. Rose water and nectarines, strawberries and rust. But then it changes on the nose and changes in the mouth. More muscle, pushes back on you, tamarind. More bite and bitter orange. This really owns your mouth. Dominatrix. Old bricks and ironwork. Wrought and curling. Shapes and rectangles. Like leaning face into an old brick wall. So much minerality! (TC)
The 2018 Etna Rosso Riserva Rovittello Particella No. 341 lifts from the glass with a spice-box bouquet, mixing camphor with cloves, incense, black cherries, burnt orange and a dusting of cocoa. It’s lifted and finessed with silky textures over a wiry framework. Tart wild berry fruits saturate, and cedary spice resonates toward the close. The 2018 finishes structured and pleasantly bitter as hints of dark chocolate and blackberry linger on and on. This is an excellent effort in a challenging vintage.
About the producer
Benanti is one of the founding fathers of modern-day wine in Sicily, with Giuseppe Benanti an early champion of wines made from the slopes of Mount Etna. Today the property is in the hands of Giuseppe’s children and remains one of the region’s leading names.