The Making of a 100-Point Wine: A Marsala That Is Saving History
The 1980 Riserva Vergine Secco is more than good—a taste of this wine could change the way you look at the world. [...] Read More... The post The Making of a 100-Point Wine: A Marsala That Is Saving History appeared first on Wine Enthusiast.
Francesco Intorcia realized that his family’s cellar had the potential to produce high quality, unique Marsala, following the tradition that had made the northwest corner of Sicily one of the world’s great wine regions. That heritage, however, was slowly being lost to the annals of history.
In 2010, he evaluated the vintages aging in the cellar and began to carefully select barrels that could exalt all the elements of this centuries-old winemaking process.
The result: a line-up of some of the most magnificent Marsala expressions on the planet. The most spectacular of all is the utterly life-altering 1980 Riserva Vergine Secco—which I scored with a rare 100-points during a blind tasting last summer.
Here’s why—and how—it blew me away.
The Wine
Francesco Intorcia Heritage Marsala Vintage 1980 Riserva Vergine Secco is a fortified wine made using the historic low-intervention solera-style method that blends wines from different vintages, gradually increasing the overall age of the liquid in the barrel over the course of many years. It is composed of 100% Sicilian-grown Grillo grapes and is aged for 35 years minimum in large-format oak barrels.
The Grape
Like when Sangiovese becomes Brunello or Nebbiolo becomes Barolo, the white Sicilian Grillo grape is used in a wide variety of expressions. It realizes its greatest potential as Marsala. Deeply savory and mineral with fierce acid and tangy, sunny citrus components, Grillo is like Sauvignon Blanc all grown up. Given time to mature in oak and then luxuriate in the warmth of Marsala’s higher potential alcohol content, it reveals leagues of depth and incredible longevity.
