Nostru Cortese Carricante

Our Carricante has a pale straw yellow, with some hints of green. The elegant bouquet is a combination of peach, apple, citrus fruits and blossom. The palate has a big-structure, with excellent acidity, minerality and sapidity and these characteristics give Carricante a particularly long finish.

The name Carricante comes from the Sicilian dialect “u carricanti” which means “heavily laden” and refers to the high volume of grapes that this vine produces, if not strictly controlled. Carricante is mostly grown on the slopes of Mount Etna, where it has enjoyed a renaissance in recent years. It flourishes particularly well at altitude, and is now being grown in other high areas too. Carricante expresses a wonderful acidity and distinct minerality.

Our Carricante is cultivated at about 400 metres above sea level. As it is so prolific, it is essential to focus a lot of attention on training the vines – which we do using the Guillot method. Strict pruning is also absolutely key in order to limit production.

Grapes are hand-picked, then de-stemmed and very softly pressed with a pneumatic press. The must is decanted at low temperature for about 48 hours before staring the fermentation, which is carried out at 17-19C° for about 20 days. When the fermentation is finished the wine is racked and kept on fine lees for at least 5 months, with frequent battonages.