Pellegrino Old Marsala Superiore Secco NV 375ml

ITALY : SICILY : MARSALA

ORGANIC, SUSTAINABLE : Catarratto, Grillo, Damaschino, Inzolia

AMBER, DRY, MED-BODIED, TOFFEE, DRIED FIG, ROASTED ALMOND, OAK

Cantine Pellegrino has made Marsala from the same corner of western Sicily since 1880 — seven generations of the family, 750 acres of calcareous vineyards in the Trapani province, and Enrico Stella as chief oenologist for nearly thirty years. What they make here is the real thing: Marsala Superiore DOC, the classification requiring minimum 18% ABV and two years in French oak, which is where most producers stop explaining and most drinkers stop reading. Worth continuing.

Old Marsala Superiore Secco starts as white wine from four native Sicilian varieties — Catarratto, Grillo, Damaschino, Inzolia — fermentation stopped with eau de vie before it finishes, keeping sugar below 40g/L (DOC Secco). Blended with mistella, aged at least two years in French oak, fortified to 18%. The result is amber, dry, and distinctly itself: toffee and roasted almond on the nose, dried fig, singed orange peel, and ground clove on the finish. 90 points, Wine Spectator. The 375ml is the right format — enough to pour alongside dinner and splash into the sauce.

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