Inzolia on the beach

Inzolia is one of the most ancient native grapes of Sicily, where it is grown since time immemorial: its favorite terroir is the sicilian coastline, where the Mediterranean Sea washes beautiful sandy shores.

Inzolia is indeed a low acidic variety: this genetic treat is the reason why many Sicilian producers located far from the seaside blend their wines with more acidic juices. You may find Inzolia blends combined with Chardonnay or Catarratto in Western Sicily, and with Carricante on the slopes of Etna.

But if your vineyard is located by the sea, no blending is necessary to make a nicely balanced wine.

Being planted close to the sea for many centuries, a vine increases its ability to dialogue with the brackish environment in terms of nutrition opportunities and resistance to diseases: what we get after 3,000 years is a perfect adaptation to terroir. The saline air protects the grapes from fungal infections, and enriches their flavor profile with a sapidity that naturally offsets their sweet taste. This is what happens in Menfi, and in our Tenuta Belicello, where the microclimate is influenced by constant ventilation and abundant presence of salts and marine trace elements.

Menfi beach is a 15 kilometers long coastline shaped by the Mediterranean wind. It is covered by a rich and varied spontaneous vegetation that gives life to an extraordinarily beautiful landscape: wild rosemary, ampelodesmus, sea lilies and St. Joseph's beard (Carpobrotus acinaciformis).
Right here, among golden sand dunes, some ungrafted vines of prephylloxera Inzolia grow, a real living monument to biodiversity and to the viticultural traditions of our territory.

This short video and the photos prove the ingenious adaptation of Inzolia vines to an environment that is normally considered "hostile" to viticulture.

 Photo and video credits: Franco Gagliano and Filippo Buttafuoco.