Porta del Vento “Voria” Rosato Frizzante of Perricone Pet-Nat NV

The Wine

This delicious, lightly-sparkling wine is surprisingly affordable, given its pedigree of 100% organic / biodynamic Perricone (see more about this rare grape, in the Winery section, below).

After a manual harvest, the grapes are crushed and pressed, then a portion of the juice is set aside and refrigerated and the remainder is fermented with native yeasts in stainless steel tanks. After 3 months of aging in concrete, the wine is bottled with the unfermented juice and the wine referments spontaneously in the bottle.

Unfiltered and not disgorged, this is a bright, juicy lightly sparkling rose, offering delicious aromas of raspberry, pomegranate and notes of red flowers. An amazing wine for lightly spicy dishes, grilled chicken and veggies, and tomato-based pastas.

The Winery

This wine comes from Comporeale, just outside of Palermo in Sicily. The vines are about 2000 feet above sea level, planted on a sandstone ridge overlooking an wide valley opening to the northern coast of Sicily. The region is blessed with ideal growing conditions, and winemaking dates back thousands of years. The hot daytime temperatures are mitigated by the cooling influence of the Mediterranean Sea (less than 15 miles), and the Northern Mistral winds.

In 2005 Marco left his career as a pharmacist in Palermo to save a rare, native grape called Perricone. He moved to Monreale on the outskirts of Palermo, to buy a farmer’s vineyard when he learned the farmer was about to uproot the aging vines of Perricone and Catarratto grapes. Marco acquired his vineyards and converting them to organic and biodynamic practices. He is now considered a beacon of excellence in Sicilian low-intervention winemaking.