Donnafugata - Mille e una Notte2020

RED WINE

Estate

Donnafugata Winery is one of Italy’s finest wineries and praised by wine critics and wine lovers alike all over the globe. Located in Sicily, Donnafugata has various estates including the historic cellar in Marsala, the beautiful Contessa Entellina country house and vineyards in the western interior of the island, and another winery and estate in the windswept island of Pantelleria off Sicily’s southwest coast. The Rallo family who owns Donnafugata have been in the wine business for over a century and the current generation is extremely dynamic and visionary. The Donnafugata brand was born in the early 1980s by Giacomo and Gabriella Rallo in the family’s historic cellars and today their children José and Antonio play prominent roles in the company.

Food pairing

Great with slow-cooked rack of lamb, pappardelle with pork ragout and roasts.

Harvest

Manual harvesting of the grapes takes place into small crates with careful selection of the grapes in the vineyard. The harvest began during the first week of September with the Nero d'Avola and Syrah and concluded in the third week with the Petit Verdot.

Tasting Notes

Ruby red colored the Mille e una Notte has an ample and enveloping bouquet characterized by fruity notes of mulberry and blackberry, and balsamic and spicy scents (nutmeg). In the mouth it is soft and full-bodied and amazes with the great finesse of its tannins. Extraordinary persistence on the finish. Donnafugata's flagship red confirms itself as an icon of style and elegance.

Vineyard

VSP (Vertical Shoot Positioning) training with spurred cordon pruning, leaving 6 to 8 buds per plant. Planting density of 4,500 to 6,00 plants per hectare (1,822-2,429 an acre) and yields of about 4 tons (1.6 tons per acre); about 0.8 kg per plant.

Vinification

A further selection is carried out in the cellar, thanks to a latest generation destemmer, able to discard the green and overripe berries that might still be on the clusters. Fermentation in stainless steel and maceration on the skins for 12 days at temperature of 26-30 C (79-86 F). Ageing for 14 months in new French oak barriques and then in the bottle for at least 36 months.