Groundbreaking Nero d’Avola study underway
New research is hoping to shed light on how producers growing Sicily's most-cultivated red grape variety can adapt to a changing climate and changing consumer demands. The post Groundbreaking Nero d’Avola study underway appeared first on The Drinks Business.
New research is hoping to shed light on how producers growing Sicily's most-cultivated red grape variety can adapt to a changing climate and changing consumer demands.
The InnoNDA project commenced in April of last year, and is expected to conclude this June.
It is a collaboration between the University of Milan, Sicilian wine body Assovini Sicilia, ISVEA laboratories, the producers Tenuta Rapitalà, Dimore di Giurfo, Feudi del Pisciotto and Tenute Lombardo, as well as "innovation broker" Leonardo La Corte, with additional funding from Sicily's Assessorato Dell'agricoltura, Dello Sviluppo Rurale e Della Pesca Mediterranea.
Professor Daniela Fracassetti of DeFENS, the University of Milan's Department of Food, Environmental and Nutritional Sciences, is serving as scientific director of the project.
"The InnoNDA project has three specific objectives that are related to the production of Nero d'Avola: producing wines with lower alcohol content, the production of different styles, and an evaluation of the diversity of the Nero d'Avola grape on the Sicilian territory," explained Fracassetti when speaking with the drinks business.
Nero d'Avola is grown across Sicily, though its particular heartlands are in the west of the island and around its southern tip, where Sicily's only DOCG wine, Cerasuolo di Vittoria, is produced.
According to data from the Sicilia DOC consorzio, as of 2021 around 15,400 hectares of Nero d'Avola were planted on Sicilian soil, putting it well ahead of other red grapes such as Syrah and Nerello Mascalese, but still a long way behind the 30,000-or-so hectares planted with Catarratto/Lucido.
With more than 43 million bottles of Sicilia DOC-designated Nero d'Avola produced in 2022, more than four times the level it was five years prior, it would seem to be an understatement to say that the grape is of major commercial importance – indeed, there is seldom a supermarket in the UK which does not have bottles of this red wine on its shelves.
Asked about whether lower-alcohol Nero d'Avola might be advantageous for producers trying to cut costs when selling to the UK market, with its ABV-based duty system, Fracassetti said: “It could have an impact from a taxation point of view – we are working in advance to a certain extent. In Italy the production of low-alcohol wines was only permitted last December, but in the UK or US market, these wines with low-alcohol content are already being consumed. The results we obtain could be transferred to other wine productions, not only Nero d’Avola – this expertise could work for other grape varieties.”
Fracassetti suggested that the production of lower-alcohol Nero d'Avola wines, say at 10% ABV for example, is not necessarily going to become the norm, but it is a style which could certainly have a commercial future.
“I think that the traditional winemaking will still be maintained – in Italy, the wine production is very rooted in our culture and mentality. Nonetheless, to give wine producers the chance to produce different styles, with low- or no-alcohol, will also help to support the growth of the Italian wine industry. I think that the market for alcohol-free wine is different to the market for ‘traditional’ wine. The possibility to produce these alternatives is a good opportunity to help growth.”
However, perhaps in the next decade it might become common for Nero d'Avola producers to de-alcoholise their wines to a small degree, especially in the context of a warming climate and the demand for lower-alcohol wines. Sicilian vineyards have been at the forefront of climate change in Europe, with increasingly extreme weather (such as that seen ahead of the 2023 harvest) making consistency in the fruit harder to achieve.
“We need to keep in mind that the Mediterranean as a whole is facing an increase in temperature – in the last 10 years it has gone up by 1 to 5°C," said Fracassetti. "The increase in temperature leads to an increase in sugar content as well, and, consequently, a higher alcohol content in the wine, which is the opposite of what consumers are requesting – they are asking for wines with less alcohol, so we need to find a solution."
Wines macerated and aged in amphorae can have a particular 'natural' quality to them which detractors might consider 'faulty', but Fracassetti said that the structural changes Nero d'Avola undergoes in these vessels may be desirable: "These old containers are very interesting, because we can obtain micro-oxygenation, like that in wood, without the release of wood compounds. So these could help to age and soften the wine – accelerating the polymerisation reactions which make the wine rounder and more pleasant."
She added that samples are being taken from the amphorae and tested/tasted throughout the study.
The InnoNDA project commenced in April of last year, and is expected to conclude this June.
It is a collaboration between the University of Milan, Sicilian wine body Assovini Sicilia, ISVEA laboratories, the producers Tenuta Rapitalà, Dimore di Giurfo, Feudi del Pisciotto and Tenute Lombardo, as well as "innovation broker" Leonardo La Corte, with additional funding from Sicily's Assessorato Dell'agricoltura, Dello Sviluppo Rurale e Della Pesca Mediterranea.
Professor Daniela Fracassetti of DeFENS, the University of Milan's Department of Food, Environmental and Nutritional Sciences, is serving as scientific director of the project.
"The InnoNDA project has three specific objectives that are related to the production of Nero d'Avola: producing wines with lower alcohol content, the production of different styles, and an evaluation of the diversity of the Nero d'Avola grape on the Sicilian territory," explained Fracassetti when speaking with the drinks business.
Nero d'Avola is grown across Sicily, though its particular heartlands are in the west of the island and around its southern tip, where Sicily's only DOCG wine, Cerasuolo di Vittoria, is produced.
According to data from the Sicilia DOC consorzio, as of 2021 around 15,400 hectares of Nero d'Avola were planted on Sicilian soil, putting it well ahead of other red grapes such as Syrah and Nerello Mascalese, but still a long way behind the 30,000-or-so hectares planted with Catarratto/Lucido.
With more than 43 million bottles of Sicilia DOC-designated Nero d'Avola produced in 2022, more than four times the level it was five years prior, it would seem to be an understatement to say that the grape is of major commercial importance – indeed, there is seldom a supermarket in the UK which does not have bottles of this red wine on its shelves.
From Nero to zero?
One of the key areas which the InnoNDA project is examining is the production of lower-alcohol Nero d'Avola wines. “Right now, we are working to decrease alcohol by up to 4%, though we are also running trials to reduce ABV by 2% too," she shared. "We will trial a 6% reduction in order to evaluate the general aspects related to higher alcohol removal just to see what’s going on, in particular relation to the sensory aspects – the focus is to have a wine with lower alcohol content which maintains the typical aroma and flavour of Nero d’Avola with a higher alcohol content." Fracassetti says that two styles of alcohol removal are being trialled. "Firstly, there is alcohol removal through a technological approach. In particular, we are using inverse osmosis and a semipermeable membrane, and we are also running experiments in the lab to remove ethanol using a vacuum." "The other approach is microbiological," she continued, "using Saccharomyces and non-Saccharomyces yeasts, especially Torulaspora and Metschnikowia pulcherrima, which are already available as active dry yeasts in the market." Different yeasts will ferment sugars into alcohol differently, reducing the ABV of the final wine – this approach isn't about removing alcohol, but rather reducing how much is produced in the first place. The reduction of alcohol in wine is a divisive topic in Italy. The legal decree permitting non-alcoholic wines to be labelled as 'wine' was signed by agriculture minister Francesco Lollobrigida at the end of last year.
Asked about whether lower-alcohol Nero d'Avola might be advantageous for producers trying to cut costs when selling to the UK market, with its ABV-based duty system, Fracassetti said: “It could have an impact from a taxation point of view – we are working in advance to a certain extent. In Italy the production of low-alcohol wines was only permitted last December, but in the UK or US market, these wines with low-alcohol content are already being consumed. The results we obtain could be transferred to other wine productions, not only Nero d’Avola – this expertise could work for other grape varieties.”
Fracassetti suggested that the production of lower-alcohol Nero d'Avola wines, say at 10% ABV for example, is not necessarily going to become the norm, but it is a style which could certainly have a commercial future.
“I think that the traditional winemaking will still be maintained – in Italy, the wine production is very rooted in our culture and mentality. Nonetheless, to give wine producers the chance to produce different styles, with low- or no-alcohol, will also help to support the growth of the Italian wine industry. I think that the market for alcohol-free wine is different to the market for ‘traditional’ wine. The possibility to produce these alternatives is a good opportunity to help growth.”
However, perhaps in the next decade it might become common for Nero d'Avola producers to de-alcoholise their wines to a small degree, especially in the context of a warming climate and the demand for lower-alcohol wines. Sicilian vineyards have been at the forefront of climate change in Europe, with increasingly extreme weather (such as that seen ahead of the 2023 harvest) making consistency in the fruit harder to achieve.
“We need to keep in mind that the Mediterranean as a whole is facing an increase in temperature – in the last 10 years it has gone up by 1 to 5°C," said Fracassetti. "The increase in temperature leads to an increase in sugar content as well, and, consequently, a higher alcohol content in the wine, which is the opposite of what consumers are requesting – they are asking for wines with less alcohol, so we need to find a solution."
Putting terracotta to the test
Although low-alcohol wines certainly have their market, the study is also looking into another style of Nero d'Avola, one which is perhaps even more polarising for wine lovers.
Wines macerated and aged in amphorae can have a particular 'natural' quality to them which detractors might consider 'faulty', but Fracassetti said that the structural changes Nero d'Avola undergoes in these vessels may be desirable: "These old containers are very interesting, because we can obtain micro-oxygenation, like that in wood, without the release of wood compounds. So these could help to age and soften the wine – accelerating the polymerisation reactions which make the wine rounder and more pleasant."
She added that samples are being taken from the amphorae and tested/tasted throughout the study.
