Sicily

DOC for liqueur wine on the island of Sicily off the coast of Italy. This is probably the most famous Sicilian wine, and is one of the best-known dessert wines in the world. It is named after the port city of the same name (Arabic: Marsah-el-Allah = harbour or gate of God) in the province of Trapani. The zone has a total vineyard area of more than 5.000 hectares, and includes the entire province of Trapani, with the exception of the island of Pantelleria, as well as of the two communes of Alcamo and Favignana. In 1770, the English businessman and wine expert John Woodhouse came to Marsala, and started exporting Sicilian wines to England, as the demand for port and sherry there exceeded the supply. 1773 is considered to be the year in which Marsala wine was “invented”, as it is then that Woodhouse started adding 8 litres of grape spirit to each 400.litre barrel of wine destined for Great Britain. He had previously investgated the methods of producing port wine in Portugal. In 1796 he opened the first Marsala house in Marsala, consisting of a warehouse and a cellar. The success of this new wine was initiated by Admiral Horatio Nelson (1758-1805), who in 1800 ordered that 500 barrels annually were to be delivered to the English fleet. In 1812, Englishman Benjamin Ingham founded a second company in Marsala, and exported the wine to new destinations such as America and Australia. The largest Marsala house still in existence, Florio, was founded in 1832 by Vincenzo Florio. All three companies were eventually taken over in 1929 by the Vermouth producer Cinzano. The DOC regulations of 1969 still permitted flavouring the wine with ingredients such as bananas, eggs, quinine bark, strawberries, almonds, cream, coffee, syrup and others. Particularly popular was „Marsala all´Uovo“, to which egg yolk had been added. These variants, known as „Marsala Speciale“, even had their own DOC status. Some of the more adventurous mixtures helped create a negative image for the wine.

New and much more restrictive DOC regulations were published in 1984. The special forms were no longer allowed to use the name Marsala, and the permitted additives and production methods were strictly regulated. The basic product is a varying blend of the white varieties Ansonica (Inzolia), Catarratto, Damaschino and Grillo, with the latter considered to bet he best quality, as well as from the red varieties Calabrese (Nero d´Avola), Nerello (with its clones Mascalese and Cappuccio) and Perricone (Pignatello). There are three colours: Oro (white, golden), Ambra (white, amber) and Rubino (ruby red, amber when it is matured). For all the Oro and Ambra types, any blend of the four white varieties is used, while the Rubino types are made from the three red varieties (70-100%) and optionally from the white varieties (up to 30%). These three colour variants are available for each of the styles of Marsala mentioned below. The wines are made in three degrees of sweetness. These are Secco (dry, residual sugar below 40 g/l), Semisecco (off-dry, 40 to 100 g/l) and Dolce (sweet, more than 100 g/l). Since 1984, „Mosto cotto“ (cooked, concentrated must) for sweetening and/or „Sifone“ (fortified must) may only be added to the two types Fine and Superiore. Abbreviations are sometimes to be found on the labels. These describe the method of production, but generally only serve to confuse the consumer. The following styles of Marsala are available:

Fine: This is the type most frequently produced, it has rather a poor reputation in terms of quality, and is usually made in a very basic style. The wine must be matured for one year, but it need not be matured in barrel. The minimum alcohol content is 17% vol. The label may state I. P. (Italy Particular).

Superiore: Matured in barrel for a minimum of two years, and a minimum of four years for Superiore Riserva. The minimum alcohol content is 18% vol. Most of these wines are produced in a sweet (Dolce) style. The label may state SOM (Superior Old Marsala) , LP (London Particular) or GD (Garibaldi Dolce).

Vergine or Soleras: The highest quality Marsala style sees the expert blending of different styles and vintages similar to the solera system used for sherry. Unlike the other two styles, these may not be fortified or sweetened. It is also the only style made only as a „Secco“ (dry or extra dry). The additional terms used alternatively, Vergine and Soleras, as well as Riserva and Stravecchio, have the same meaning. Vergine (Soleras) Stravecchio resp. Vergine (Soleras) Riserva must be matured in barrel for a minimum of 5 resp. 10 years. The minimum alcohol content is 18% vol.

In addition to the product name, the label will state the following: variant, colour and degree of sweetness, for example Marsala Vergine Stravecchio Oro Secco. However, the heyday of Marsala appears to be over. There was a brief renaissance beginning in the mid-1980’s, as a result of the introduction of the stricter DOC regulations in 1984, however this wine, with its long tradition, appears to be slipping back into oblivion now. The volumes produced have gone back to one fifth of what they were, with around 110.000 hectolitres being produced in recent times. Vergines/Soleras are only available in very small quantities. Well-known producers are (or were): Marco de Bartoli, Donnafugata (no longer producing), Florio, Pellegrino and Rallo. Bartoli produces an excellent top-quality product „Vecchio Samperi“ in Vergine quality that does not beart he description „Marsala“ on the label at all (no DOC status), preferring to market it as a simple vino da tavola. The reason can be found in disagreements with the authorities.