Tasca d'Almerita Tasting: Exploring the Sicilian micro-continent

By Hamish Graham

Published: 31 March, 2025

With owner Alberto Tasca in attendance, Tasca d'Almerita’s London tasting gave credence to the notion that Sicilian wine is a world unto itself.

Tasca d'Almerita is not a small player in the Sicilian viticultural universe, with five estates dotted across the volcanic island. The tasting at Kerridge's Bar & Grill at the Corinthia hotel was led by Tasca d'Almerita’s ebullient Corrado Maurigi.

In his masterclass on the producer’s wine, Maurigi highlighted not only the array of terroir at their five estates (known as Tenuta in Italian), including Tenuta Tascante in the famed Etna DOC and their founding Tenuta Regaleali, but also the diversity of varietals produced including both indigenous Sicilian and international grape varieties.

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The tasting began with its Nozze d’Oro 2022 from Tenuta Regaleali. Tenuta Regaleali is based in the centre of the island in the county of Sclafani. The white wine is a delightful marriage between the native Inzolia (59%) and Sauvignon Blanc (41%). The wine is aged in steel tanks though it maintains its structure well despite never being aged in oak. Wines from Tenuta Regaleali, whose vineyards are based between 400m and 900m, are known for their longevity and the freshness afforded by higher altitudes.

From the same estate 2022 Vigna San Francesco Chardonnay, which was a delightful expression of the French grape and my favourite wine tasted from Tasca d'Almerita. The Sicilian government only allowed the planting of international varieties from 1989, and I am thankful they did. The 2022 wine produced from the French varietal, drawn from the single San Francesco vineyard, is a silky and creamy Chardonnay.

The island’s violent geological history has afforded it the revered wine growing Etna DOC, which hugs the famous volcano’s western, eastern and southern flanks. Tasca d'Almerita’s Tenuta Tascante, purchased in 2007, is situated across four of the DOC’s 133 contrade (districts).

Wines tasted from the Tenuta Tascante included the 2020 Contrada Sciaranuova from the eponymous district which sits at 740m altitude. The vineyard’s dark soil is volcanic in origin, influnced by two lava events, one 4,000 years ago and another 40,000 years ago. The light red is produced from the Sicilian Nerello Mascalese and, as Maurigi put it, is the perfect red wine for those that prefer red. The tannic and light red wine is aged 90% in 25hl Slavonian oak barrels, and 10% in 300L french oak tonneaux.

The final wine tasted was the 2016 Rosso del Conte Riserva from Tenuta Regaleali. The collector’s wine is a bold red produced from the Sicilian Perricone (60%) and Nero d’Avola (40%). The wine is aged for 26 months in Sicilian chesnut barrels and the wine produced in Tenuta Regaleali’s oldest vineyard, first planted in 1959 with a mixture of Perricone and Nero d’Avola.

Maurigi’s presentation also explored Tasca d'Almerita’s three other wineries including their Tenuta Whitaker based on the tiny island of Mozia off of the west coast of Sicily. The Whitaker Foundation entrusted Tasca d'Almerita with restoring the island’s Grillo vineyards, a varietal famed for its use in Sicilian fortified Marsala wines.

This restoration of Mozia’s vineyards represents Tasca d’Almerita’s sustainability bent, with the producer having achieved B Corp status in 2023. The producer has also been an adherent of SOStain, the sustainability protocol for Sicilian viticulture, since 2010 which has rigorous standards when it comes to sustainable viticulture and can name 39 Sicilian wineries as members.

Tasca d’Almerita, who are exclusively distributed in the UK by Berkmann Wine Cellars, highlight the strength and depth of Sicilian wines, which are becoming an evermore appealing proposition as more in the UK market discover the island's vinic diversity.

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