"A great natural white for everyday drinking." Ciello Bianco Catarratto Terre Siciliane.

Ciello Bianco Catarratto Terre Siciliane (IGP) 2022, 12% ABV

"A great natural white for everyday drinking"

RRP: €14.50. Stockists include 64 Wine Dublin, Bradley’s of Cork, Greenman Dublin, Le Caveau Kilkenny

Le Caveau is well known, among other things of course, for their range of appealing house wines, and this Cantine Rallo Bianco is one of them. See and try it at both Ichigo Ichie and 51 Cornmarket along with its red sibling Nero D’Avola. Rallo vines are organically grown and the label boldly states that the fruit for the Bianco was harvested in the first ten days of September.

Colour is a hazy gold - the wine is unfiltered, hence the cloudiness. Aromas feature both floral and herbal elements. On the palate, it is full of energy and freshness with refined white fruit leading before a slightly salty finish. If you love a fragrant and crisp Italian white, you’ll hit the target with this gem from the island. 

A great natural white for everyday drinking and, easily drunk, is also the perfect entry-level natural white wine. It is organic, unfiltered, and unfined.

 Very Highly Recommended. Well priced too by the way. 

Catarratto is a native grape in Sicily and the name means cataract or waterfall (not the cloudy thing in your eyes!). Why this name?  According to Vino (2022), because of “the prodigal amounts of wine from what is the most common grape in Sicily and the second most common in all of Italy”.

It is ideal to pair with the Sicily's traditional pasta, such as pasta with sardines or with broccoli or still with soft cheeses. Good too with turbot, white meats and very appealing by itself!

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Andrea Vesco, whose family bought the winery in the 90s, runs it with expert commitment personally and meticulously attends to all the stages of production from the cultivation of the grapes to the final bottling, with the strong support of a professional staff of 21 employees.

Since 2010, Rallo wines have been “produced and bottled at their origin by the grower”. Night harvesting and modern temperature-controlled fermentations result in bright, fresh, and outstanding wines. The results are evident in this fragrant, crisp Catarratto and its red sibling the perfumed, fresh Nero d'Avola.

Three Highly Recommended European Whites

Three Highly Recommended European Whites

Catarratto. Vintage 2019

Baglio Bianco Catarratto Terre Siciliane (IGP) 2018, 11%, €19.55 64 Wine Dublin, Bradley’s of Cork, Greenman Dublin, Le Caveau Kilkenny

A few days of skin maceration gives this its amber colour. Colour is not the only result from the three or four days of skin contact, as you’ll note. The nose is rich too, apple and cinnamon in the mix. The palate also is rich and textured. It’s full of flavour and a bit spicy too and it’s dry all the way to the long finish. Highly Recommended.

Bianco is certainly a bit of a misnomer here as this is most definitely an orange wine, a cloudy deep amber in colour, unfined and unfiltered. And Le Caveau say it is a “fantastic introduction” to orange, “both from a flavour and price point of view”.

Orange wines also have a higher level of tannins, more like red wines, and indeed can match foods where previously red would have been the only choice. Some orange wines can be tough going if you’re not used to them but this one is quite easy-drinking. 

Pairings suggested by the importers are free range pork with apple sauce; a herby roast chicken; and cheeses such as Durrus. Catarratto, by the way, is Sicily’s, and Italy’s, most popular white wine grape. Baglio also produce a red from the Nero D’Avola grape. Their organic Rosso is fresh and fruity and also a delicious easy drinker.

Millet Sauvignon Blanc Côtes de Gascogne (IGP) 2019, 11.5%, €12.95, Wines Direct

Colour is a very pale straw.  The fresh vibrancy of the aromas (floral notes, pear) make an immediate impression, a good one, and that follows through onto the lively palate where citrus fruits and an invigorating acidity go all the way through to the decent finish. 

Quite a lovely wine from Armagnac country where much of the grape harvest goes to the distilleries to make the local brandy (don’t ever ever call for a Cognac around here!). Millet themselves say they are devoted to “the production of Armagnac”. A very enjoyable wine and Highly Recommended. Must try and remember this for Sauvignon Blanc Day next year.

Millet recommend serving at 9 ° C, alone as an aperitif, or with a meal. “It harmoniously accompanies starters, goat cheese, Landes asparagus, fish and shellfish.” Importers Wines Direct point in the direction of Rich Fish, Light Fish and Shellfish, Hard Cheese, Fresh Greens

Esteban Martin “Viña Canal” blanco Cariñena (DOP) 2018, 12.5%, €* Wines Direct

This blend of Chardonnay and Macabeo has a light straw colour. Pleasant, if delicate, aromas with both floral and fruity notes. Lively and fruity (tropical hints), good acidity as well and a decent finish. Excellent aperitif and should go well with fish and shellfish. Versatile and Highly Recommended.

Cariñena is a Spanish Denominación de Origen Protegida (DOP) for wines produced in the area of the same name which is in the province of Zaragoza (Aragón, Spain). It was awarded DO status in 1932. 

€* Bought in mixed case.

HANDSOME SICILIAN

Feudo Montoni Catarratto Sicily 2009, IGT, 13%, €15.50 (Bubble Bros)

Catarratto is one of the most heavily planted grape varieties in Italy and yet is found only in Sicily but you’ll be hard pressed to find anything good written about it.

One of the most “positive” sentences I’ve seen on it comes in Hugh Johnson’s 2011 Pocket Wine Book: “Sicilian white grape with as yet unrealised potential”.

The winemakers at historic Feudo Montoni (well known for their Nero D’Avola reds) have realised some of that potential in this bottle and credit too to Bubble Brothers, who also sell the Nero D’Avola, for going with it.

Indeed, they are quite proud of it: “This is a feather in our white wine cap, and no mistake.  Made from old vines set high above sea level in north-eastern Sicily, Fabio Sireci's Catarratto combines citrus freshness with the substantial body and mellowness of Catarratto when grown with a special varietal wine in mind.

Despite taking full advantage of the torrid Sicilian sun to offer ripe, peachy fruit, this is a crisply focused dry wine with more edge and minerality than you might expect from the island, and a persistent finish in keeping with the overall impression of refined, opulent craftsmanship.”

The colour is that of pale honey with a pleasant if moderate aromatic nose. On the palate, you have a rich texture and perfect balance of fruitiness and acidity and a pleasant lengthy finish. Perhaps the fact that it is made from fifty year old vines had something to with the quality here.

If you are looking for a change from the usual white grapes, then this is well worth a try. Why not drop down to Bubble Bros in Centre Park Road and see if they have it on their multi-bottle temperature controlled tasting device?
By the way. I have added it to My Favourite Wines 2011.