This is a designation that provides the determination of certain territories, like Sicily, to produce quality sparkling wines using the Classic or Charmat method. Sicily is affirming its culture for the production of these types of wines with the utmost care and attention during the farming of the vineyards by building foundations to create sparkling wines of great structure, minerality and acidity.
The fortified wines produced in the region are assigned the Sicilian PGI (Terre Siciliane IGT since vintage 2012) denomination. They are obtained by adding mistella, or grape juice whose fermentation has been stopped by adding alcohol, and spirits obtained by the distillation of wine, or concentrated must, to wines with at least 12% alcohol content.
Certified in 2011 with the Ministerial Decree of November 22, 2011, and subsequent amendments, it includes all the nine Sicilian provinces. These new quality designations replace the familiar Sicily IGP, which featured the Sicilian wines to the 2011 vintage. The division introduced allows for greater characterization already in the production phase, favoring an increased focus in quality. The certification allows for the cultivation of a wide range of varieties, thus producers select the ideal terroir for each type of grape, either native or international. Due to the extension of the territory, each micro-area can offer different characteristics, as the wines that are part of the X wine group can easily exemplify.
It is Italy’s oldest DOC, and perhaps the only one able to tell the history and tradition of this territory. 1969 is the date of approval for this DOC, a process that began back in 1931 with the demarcation of the the production area. In 1984 a new series of restrictions were written into this DOC, called the “New Rules of Marsala Wine”. There are three typologies now recognized under the DOC: Fine, Superiore Riserva and Vergine, strictly aged in oak or wild cherry wood, for one, two or five years (twice for the Riserva) and bottled exclusively in the territory of origin. The tastes can be sweet, semi-dry or dry and the colors recognized are gold, amber and ruby. The producers of Xwine have chosen to return to the traditional systems such as that of Soleras to give back the quality that only this wine can offer. The Soleras method, or the selection of the best vintages, intends to recover its original sensory notes. It is not only a cooking wine, but also a great meditation wine, which can be appreciated as an aperitif, or after dinner. It is surprisingly complex.