COSTE AL VENTO

EASY MENFI

TERROIR

HAND MADE

TRADITION

COSTE AL VENTO

GRILLO MENFI DOC

Coste al Vento means “windy hills”, where Mediterranean breeze brings minerals to the soil and refreshment to vines and people.

Here I grow the Grillo, a native intriguing variety that embodies the inner character of Menfi's terroir with its unmistakable style and unique charm.

Son of a generous land, Coste al Vento delights the palate with a tasty and ripe fruit that melts into saline fragrances, and profits from a prolonged skin contact in amphoras that enhances the wine’s full and intense personality.

THE SHORT STORY

Grape variety: Grillo from Tenuta Belicello, Vigna del Pozzo.
Soil: deep and fertile alluvial soil made of clay banks, rich in minerals
Vineyard: planted in 2017, vertical shoot positioning, Guyot
Winemaking: skin contact for about 7 days in amphoras
Alcoholic fermentation: spontaneous, with wild yeast
Malolactic fermentation: spontaneous
Refining: minimum 6 months on fine lees in amphoras
Average production: 4.000 bottles/year

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MORE ABOUT GRILLO

Grillo is one of the most interesting Sicilian grape variety. It was created in 1873 by agronomist Antonio Mendola by crossing two traditional native grapes: Catarratto and Zibibbo.

At the end of the XIX century, Sicily was a renowned center for experimentation in viticulture and its Universities were credited among the most illustrious research centers in Europe.
Palermo hosted a world-famous academic facility for studying possible solutions to the phylloxera, the pest that in only a half century had almost destroyed all European vineyards, and the tremendous work done by its scholars (Paulsen, Ruggeri, Prosperi and many others) contributed not only to the creation of the resistant rootstocks that we still use today, but also to the production of new hybrids that have enriched the valuable ampelographic patrimony of Sicily. Grillo is infact one of them.

Almost all of the Grillo is produced today in Western Sicily, especially in the province of Trapani.
Two are the main biotypes of the variety. Both are vigorous and resistant to late blight, and each of them is able to generate wines with distinct characteristics: more acidic wines are made from the compact clusters of biotype A, while fruitier and spicier wines are those derived by the loose bunches of biotype B.
In both cases, the Grillo grapes ensure the production of delicious, complex and long aging wines.

Read the long story

WINEMAKING

Grillo is normally harvested between the first and second week of September, slightly earlier than full ripening, to preserve its natural acidity and the freshest and more intense varietal flavors.

The grapes are brought to the winery right after the harvest, they are immediately destemmed and delivered to clay amphoras. The must ferments spontaneously with all the skins for about one week, depending on the vintage. After soft pressing, the fermentation continues without the skins until the wine is bone-dry, and the wine is then refined on fine lees for about 4 months.

Depending on the vintage, Coste al Vento can undergo a full or a limited malolactic fermentation: under no circumstances will I interfere with its natural evolution, convinced as I am that the wine should represent the characteristics of each vintage and the personality of terroir.
For this reasons, and because I do not practice any fining nor filtration, Coste al Vento is generally released after a few months in the bottles and acquires more complexity while aging for a couple of years.

TASTING NOTES

Thanks to skin contact, Coste al Vento is an intense wine that can often reach a 13° alcohol level while maintaining a surprising freshness and a very agile palate, even after aging for some years. The salinity donated by a marine terroir compensates the warm feeling of a Sicilian full bodied orange wine, which is extremely pleasant and versatile, and a perfect match with several types of food.

It has a bright gold color, made even livelier by the typical green shades of the grapes' skin. To the nose, complex and elegant aromas of white ripe fruit merge into herbal scents of oregano, mint and sage that stand out against rich layers of nettle and fine green tea. Its full palate is enriched by a mineral and vibrant aftertaste.

A particularly tasty combination is the one with big roasted fishes, grilled prawns or stuffed calamari, but also with a super-classic Spaghetti Marinara with clams and mussels, or with semi-matured cheeses such as Tuma Persa and Caciocavallo Ragusano.

SERVING TEMPERATURE: 54 - 58 °F
Coste al Vento should be poured in large white wine glasses, at a fresh but not chilled temperature that exalts its fruity bouquet and its rich pleasant texture.

EASY MENFI

TERROIR

HAND MADE

TRADITION

COSTE AL VENTO

THE SHORT STORY

MORE ABOUT GRILLO

WINEMAKING

TASTING NOTES

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