VINTAGE REPORTS
BY JACOPO MANIACI
Vintage 2009
Very humid and rainy spring, with a high amount of rainfalls. Short summer with a heat peak in late July, August in drought, almost the same during September. Humid and
chilled autumn with a nice spot between late September and mid-October; second half of September with an uncommon rainfall. The red wines are showing big structure,
with lots of leather, tar and humus features. Acidity is still very high, tannins are quite soft. The whites are round, hydrocarbon feelings, not so long in persistence.
Vintage 2010
Vine growing cycle, during blossoming and setting, has a normal course, helped by a great water availability accumulated during autumn-winter period. Ripening and
maturation have been excellent. Cause of September rain, harvest has been delayed for few days. Good yield, with great grapes acidity. These vintage wines are fresh and
with a good aging potential. The structure of red wines is quite huge, with tight tannins and big round body, lots of licorice, fennel, herbs and underbrush, the whites are
tropical, not so much sharpness, acidity is still alive, but the saltiness is gone.
Vintage 2011
Ripe and healthy grapes came in also after a long and cold year, even if slightly unbalanced between sugar and high acidity caused by a long time without rainfall from
the mid-time of June until the beginning of harvest. Thanks to the rainfall of late September, a correct phenolic maturation has been reached. Musts with high sugar levels
created rather alcoholic wines with a great aging potential. The red wines are lovely, with a balsamic, fruity and herbaceous nose, very elegant and feminine, TF style is
starting to be consistent after two bold and ripe vintages, the whites are sharp, tight, citrusy, high acidity, smoky and slightly too ripe on the finish.
Vintage 2012
Winter was very rigid with a lot of rainfall until March. The top of the volcano was covered with snow until the beginning of summer, with heavy and late snowfall. Spring
was dry and mild, hot summer, just one thunderstorm in July irrigated vineyards giving a source of water that gave a nice vitality and allowed to the vines to stay healthy
until September. September was unusual, warmer and drier than average, the same for the first twenty days of October, in fact, we had a late but quiet harvest, with
good quality grapes. Wines are sapid with very mellow tannins. Positive harvest in 2012. The red wines are coming back to that deep structure, lots of tar, asphalt, sour
cherry under spirit, almost smoked, tannins are big, bulky and not mo much acidity The whites are vertical, but tropical, with a lot of yellow pulp, savory finish.
Vintage 2013
Dry spring followed by long a not so hot summer. A lot of rainfall in August and September that almost ruined the harvest, we lost a lot of the vintage, maturation was
slow and gradual having medium quality grapes with an interesting flavor profile. September was very cold followed by October with some dry weather, medium quality
harvest. No Musmeci was released, very nice A’Puddara tough, similar to 2015, very Rislingesque, with waxy, herbaceous and hydrocarburic features.
OUR HARVESTS
The vintages of our vineyards and their winemaking cycles
Vintage 2014
Nice weather during all the season: the spring rainfalls combined by precipitations at the beginning of the summer created a good water source for vine growing cycle.
Summer temperatures in seasonal average, without heat peaks, allowed a perfect vegetation on the vines. An “Etna style” vintage with rainfalls in early September that
guaranteed great quality followed by a sunny October that allowed to make a harvest with healthy and ripened grapes with a great phenolic maturation of Nerelli. IL
The harvest of Carricante was between 15th and 26th October, followed by Nerello Mascalese harvest. The red wines are great, elegant, feminine, rich but also sharp. IL
The whites are bigger than usual, lots of pineapple, mango feelings, the acidity is lesser, the body is bigger and with more texture on the mid palate. This was my first vintage
at Fessina. Not so great in Italy, but very decent on the Volcano.
Vintage 2015
Harsh winter with a lot of rainfalls, the accumulation of water allowed a good vegetative development and a great blossoming. Heavy rains in the middle of August invigorated the
vineyard, creating a good water source and vitality for the vineyard. Alternating moments of little rainfalls and warm weeks at the beginning of September guaranteed dry and
ripened grapes. A great harvest with a good aging potential and complexity. Many wines are opening up now after a moment of shyness, the Il Musmeci is finally more open, with a
strong leather, smoky, underbrush feeling, some tar as well, huge tannins and round mid palate, almost salty at the end. The whites are iconic, no malo, all very sharp and salty,
classic TF style, rich but lean, savory, citrusy and very mineral.
Vintage 2016
Not harsh winter with few rainfall and snowfall until February. A lot of rainfall and temperature under the average in March. Early sprout in April with temperature above the average
during the day and very cold during the night. Hot weather helps the grass growing; it is necessary an hard hand work for control them. At the end of April vineyard are good and
healthy, shoots are more developed than the average. The rest of the year has been in drought, with heat peaks and no rain. Harvest was very healthy, but a big over ripe. The red
wines are similar to the 15’ trend, bulky, ripe and rich, the whites are stunning, probably still my favorite A’Puddara and Erse, creamy, tropical, but salty and extremely citrusy, there is
still so much tangerine and chantilly cream on the nose, great also the mid palate, super Iodine on the end.
Vintage 2017
The 2017 vintage was characterized by a cool and mild winter until the end of December. January was very dry while the entire months of February and March were characterized by
the rigidity of the climate and the frequent snowfalls even at low altitudes up to the first half of May, where there was a temperature rise with highs around 30 ° C. For the following
four months we have witnessed extreme thermal situations with highs that have touched 40 ° C, accompanied by very hot Scirocco winds. The manual selection of the 1911 sciara
led to a slightly late harvest, due to the slow phenolic ripening of the area, bringing very sparse and concentrated bunches to the cellar, moreover the more basaltic and rocky soils
guaranteed a greater thrust in depth and elegance. Our first vintage of Erse Rosso 1911 expands to the nose with hints of violet, ash and eucalyptus leaf, has notes of spices, white
pepper and ink, the palate has tannins that are still young but full-bodied, 2017 will surely be a project with great potential aging, which enhances the elegance of Rovittello by
portraying a snapshot of a vineyard with unique characteristics. The reds are also very elegant, but richer, Il Musmeci was not made, with just a small selection for the RS Riserva 17.
A’Puddara is very tropical, round and creamy, great results on the critics, not my fav vintage. Usually I prefer more acidity and verticality. It’s kind of Burgundesque.
Vintage 2018
The vintage was characterized by a rainy and cold climate throughout the winter, with heavy snowfalls even at low altitudes until March. After a spot of nice weather, the climate
worsened close to May, where the whole north side suffered several frosts and nights below 0 °. The summer was mild, dry and constant, with peaks over 40 °, but with large temperature
variations at night, while close to September, and especially to the harvest, rains and moderately cold climates returned. Despite the difficult year , combined with the very
high average age of our bush vines, + 80 years old, the final result appears excellent. The finesse and elegance of our terroir appears predominant, the nose of the red wines has notes
of ink, violet, pepper and Mediterranean scrub, the mouth is elegant and feminine, rich in acidity and with rich tannins, the finish it is sapid, crispy and rich in fruit. The whites are back
to the usual sharpness, lemony and rosemary feelings, saltiness and persistence are great.
Vintage 2019
The 2019 vintage will be remembered as one of the best of the current decade, the winter was mild on the South West side, with a harsh and cold climate, but not too rainy. Spring, on the other hand,
recorded peaks of cold until late April, with a slow opening of the buds and a general slowdown of the vegetative phase until late June, where temperatures suddenly
rose, melting the snow on the top of the volcano and dramatically increasing the temperatures until the end of August, in fact in the summer months there was very few rainfall and a dry
and hot climate. September and October were characterized by a slight increase in rainfall and a better climate, with powerful thermic excursions and very cold nights. Overall, the
grapes, despite a small and evident reduction in quantity, benefited from the great vintage, guaranteeing excellent quality and excellent concentration. The A’Puddara 2019 is tense
on the nose, with hints of orange blossom, mandarin, graphite and yellow broom, with a slight hint of hydrocarbon and herbaceous notes. Taste it is green, vertical and very iodized, with a
salty and persistent finish with a marked acidity. The reds are elegant, but richer than the 18’. I’m missing some feminine vibes, more muscles and more saltiness, less fruitiness.
Vintage 2020
Winter came late, almost in February, but with good rainfalls, the pruning was made late the usual due to the rain and we fought a lot against spontaneous grassing. The rest of
the season was quiet and sunny, the rainfalls almost stopped in May and until October the climate was very mild, but we had some stress for the COVID situation, with several workers
home in quaratine. Harvest went off easy with lovely climate until late autumn. The reds are very balanced, since this vintage we decided to extract less, with less maceration and lower
t° in fermentation. Elegance was the aim, the goal. The reds are very austere, but also fruity in the core. The ink and iron are finally popping out on the nose, the wines are feminine, salty
and sharp. The tannins are huge, but also elegant, almost smooth now, with a ferrous finish. The whites are very balanced, citrusy and herbaceous, so persistent and smoky, I love
the iodine and marine feeling on the aftertaste, classic TF style.
Vintage 2021
Winter came late again. The pruning was early and the climate was great. In March we had some frost, with almost no damages. A very dry growing season
came in, some stress of the younger vines affected the final result, the heat come in soon, green harvest was severe with the drought.
Although the beginning of the year was great I would say that overall the vintage is hot, similar to 17’. During the harvest, our calculations were going
towards a 35% less production, we managed to produce less Erse Bianco, The A’Puddara instead was very balanced, thanks to the altitude of 980
meters and the thermic excursion it went off as very balanced. The reds have high Ph and lower acidity, the wines have grip, texture and personality.
A vintage which I would define as unbalanced, but at the same time I do find harmony, mostly in the whites, which are very precise and maybe
just with a little extra texture. Since 17 I’m witnessing more and more dry and hot vintages, maybe climate change is starting to affect also us.
Vintage 2022
Winter went off mild and with highs temperatures, the sky center on the northern crater opened for less than two weeks. The pruning of the vines was
the end of January, March and April were both slow and slightly cold. April and May we had more humidity than 2021. The drought started around
June which put stress on the young vines, like in 2021. Warm and no rainfalls during summer are normal nowadays, which is concerning somehow.
Finally we got some rain in August. Yields were average quite low, but quality was good. The Rose and the white are great, more perfumed than
usual, but. Also very salty and sharp. The Musmeci and Puddara are still aging in barrels, same for Il Musmeci Bianco. I really enjoy the fruitiness and
elegance, the acidity is high and ph low, a bit more than 3 average, which is great regarding aging.
