Santa Tresa, starting from 2001, cultivates indigenous clones of Frappato, Nero d’Avola and Grillo, which are very typical of the region. Frappato is an excellent indigenous variety from Vittoria, Grillo originates from western Sicily, while Nero d’Avola comes from Avola, a small town a few kilometers from Vittoria.

At Santa Tresa they also cultivate non-indigenous grape varieties rarely found in Sicily, such as Viognier from France, which has found ideal growing conditions there. They have also an experimental vineyard, which is completely organically cultivated and dedicated to rediscovering indigenous, traditional vines by their bio-types.

They have recently invested in connecting directly with a local reservoir and only use natural rainwater for our irrigation, without using wells, or taking water out of the soil.

Winemaking: Harvest is at the end of September and is done extremely carefully by hand in the early hours of the morning to avoid the heat of the Sicilian sun. We put the grapes into small containers of only 15kg to ensure that they are not crushed by their own weight. The grapes are put into a cold room overnight. It is of fundamental importance that they reach the optimum temperature for processing of (7-8 °C). Ageing: Avulisi is aged in barriques for at least 12 months. The wine rests in bottle for 6 months before release.

Organoleptic Characteristics

• Colour: Ruby red.
• Nose and flavour: The integrated vinification technique results in rounder wines with greater volume, richness and complexity, a defined aromatic character, and a lovely silky, well integrated finish. The combination of integrated vinification, old vines and organic cultivation gives a concentrated wine that has authentic flavors. Avulisi fully expresses its Nero d’Avola character. The nose is a wonderful combination of black cherries, chocolate, almonds and spices. The well-structured palate is broad and warm, full of red fruits, spices and a long finish with liquorice notes. A wine with great ageing potential.

Suggestions

• Serving Temperature and Food Matching Serving temperature: 18-20°C.
• Recommended with: Avulisi ages well and with time will become a wonderful accompaniment to mature cheeses and highly flavoured meat or wild mushroom dishes.