Cuore di Marchesa, Etna Rosato, Sicily 2024

Rosé made from Nerello Mascalese from Pietro Di Giovanni’s Contrada La Marchesa. Elegant, light, and refreshing, pair with pesce crudo, salads, or enjoy as an aperitivo.

Cuore di Marchesa is a recently-born project of Pietro Di Giovanni and Gina di Marco, together with their young daughters Carola and Lea. Originally from Mazara del Vallo in the province of Trapani and son of three generations of winemakers, Pietro boasts long experience as a consultant oenologist for various well-known Sicilian and Italian wineries, and was co-founder and source of inspiration of the Etna Nord Producers project. A profound connoisseur of the Etna area, to which he moved in 1991, he decided in 2016 to start bottling his own wine, using exclusively his own grapes.

The Cuore di Marchesa vineyards extend four hectares on the northern side of Etna, in Solicchiata, a hamlet of Castiglione di Sicilia. The plants are 70% Nerello Mascalese plus a small part of minor varieties such as Minnella Nera and Nerello Cappuccio and the remaining 30% Carricante with small percentages of minor varieties, such as Grecanico, Minnella Bianca and Inzolia. They are all free-standing secular viiti aged between 90 and 100 years. Thanks to the position and altitude (750 meters above sea level), strong temperature variations between day and night are generated in the months of July and August, essential for the grapes to be particularly rich in aromas and acidity. All field treatments respect organic principles, supported by some sustainable practices such as green manure and organic fertilization.