
2014
Region
Italy › Sicily › Etna › Etna Nord › Vino
Type
red · still
Grapes
Nerello Mascalese, Alicante Henri Bouschet
Alcohol
13.5%
Volume
750 mL
I hoped the 10-year-old Q1000 Tataraci would be more approachable, but no! It throws all its raw power at you, making you feel challenged and overwhelmed. Yet, it has character and some sophistication. Smelly cranberry, raw meat, underbrush, spices, and some VA. Full-bodied, tannic yet fresh (remarkable for 10 years old!) with a long aftertaste. Cool wine, but boy, it's a challenging experience.
The wine "Tataraci" Q1000 is made from organically grown grapes hand-harvested from a single vineyard in Contrada Tataraci. This contrada is located above the "Quota Mille" road that encircles Etna, on the northern face near Maletto. The vineyard includes 70-year-old bush vines of Nerello Mascalese and Alicante (Grenache). The grapes were hand-destemmed into a 1,200-litre qvevri buried underground. Fermentation occurred spontaneously with indigenous yeasts. After fermentation, the qvevri was sealed, and the must macerated on the skins for two months. The wine was then pressed and placed into a smaller qvevri, where it remained on fine lees until bottling, without fining or filtration.