Etna sparks in M&S Sicilian selection

If the tomatoes drying out in the Sicilian sunshine take me back to memories of a scorching summer holiday, then M&S managed a near similar nostalgic feat, with its winter tasting – thanks to a striking selection of some of Sicily’s more obscure grapes.

As winemaking improves and ‘international’ varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Chardonnay become more ubiquitous (albeit in different styles), it’s these ‘heritage’ names that offer us the chance to try something new, different and authentic – wines that really speak of their place.

Sicily has a lot to offer here, with grape varieties that stretch back hundreds, probably thousands, of years. Sadly, over-production plagued the industry until the turn of the millennium, resulting in some unremarkable wines, but that’s all changing. The red grape, Nero D’Avola, led the charge towards better quality, firmly establishing the Mediterranean’s largest island on the wine map, but some other less well-known varieties are now making their presence felt too.

If you’d asked me to describe Perricone, a few years ago, I’d have suggested an American crooner. It is, of course, one of those heritage red grape varieties, grown in relatively small quantities on the island’s west coast, around the charming towns of Marsala and Trapani.

The Caruso e Minini Perricone 2016, £9, offers a wonderful sense of something wild; gentle herbs and spices abound, with a smoothie’s worth of red berry cherry aromas, and a bit of blueberry too. There’s also a chocolate-y richness on the palate. In short, it’s delicious.

Summer in Sicily is obviously very hot, but the wonderful thing about these modern Sicilian wines is that they are not ‘baked’, or ‘over-extracted’ (in simple terms, that means wines that are just too big, too heavy, out-of-balance and lacking grace). Rather, many of these wines are relatively delicate, fragrant, poised and sophisticated. This is down to some geographical factors, like elevation, but mostly just good winemaking techniques and the latest technology.

One such example is Nicosia Etna Rosso 2015, £11, which has more of those red cherry aromas, with an enticing spiciness and fresh leafy herbs, a smooth and silky texture with a little puff of smokiness too. It feels like a very sophisticated wine at not much more than a tenner. Mount Etna dominates the Sicilian skyline and provides a mix of volcanic soils, altitude and cool nights to keep things fresh. The native grape varieties, Nerello Mascalese and Nerello Cappuccio, are normally blended together, with this mix being 80% of the former and 20% the latter.

M&S also offered up a good value Sicilian Shiraz, at £8, which is bigger on black fruit, but smaller on sophistication – more like an entry-level Aussie take on that variety. That’s a shame, as when I visited Sicily back in the summer it was the Syrah that really shone for me, with some fabulously fresh, fragrant and wild examples.

Finally a word for the whites. Sicily’s most widely-planted grape variety is the very vigorous Catarrato, which you’re more likely to find as a thin ‘n’ plonky table wine. Much more exciting, in my mind, is Grillo – historically used to make the sweet wine Marsala. It makes a substantial white wine with that trademark acidity that defines Italy’s many styles. M&S have an own-label version, worth a try. Grillo 2016, £8, is refreshing, with lemons, baked apples and pears coming together in one golden creamy glass.

There are a couple of other great varieties from the island worth trying too – the white Inzolia and the red Frappato – but this M&S selection is a great opportunity to at least start a love affair with Sicily’s wines.

Marks and Spencer has often felt like the Theresa May of retail: ‘strong and stable’, but rarely exciting and not always sure of who it was talking to, so it was a wonderful surprise to find such an unusual and enticing Sicilian selection.

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