Sicily's Zibibbo Grape with Fish Cakes

Sicily has been the talk of not only Italian wines, but the worldwide wine market as a whole mostly due to its unique volcanic wine production.  Looking outside Sicily’s volcanic wines though one will discover a breadth of unique grapes found throughout the island including the Zibibbo grape I’m featuring today.

What is the Zibibbo grape? 

Synonymous with the name Muscat of Alexandria, the Zibibbo grape’s origins believe to hail from Egypt and were brought over to Sicily by the Arabs.  It’s an ancient grape that has been cultivated for over 5,000 years.  The name Zibibbo comes from the Arabic word, Z’bib, which translates to dried grape.  This is a grape that shows beautifully not only when produced from dried grapes that result in a sweeter style wine, but also as a dry style white wine like the one I'm sharing today. 

Zibibbo is considered an aromatic grape due to its high levels of organic compounds called terpenes.  Other grapes that you may be able to relate to that carry intense, floral aromas that also contain high levels of terpenes are Riesling and Gewurztraminer.  Before I knew the breakdown of the blend today that I’m sharing, some of the floral notes of this wine reminded me of a Gewurztraminer, one of my favorite white grapes due to my love of NY Finger Lakes wines.  You’ll pick up notes of stone fruits, orange blossoms and jasmine in the aromas of Zibibbo.  It’s a resilient grape that does well in the hot temperatures of Sicily’s climate.  It also is a drought resistant grape.

Firriato's Calamoni di Favignana Estate

I had the luxury to tour the Firriato wine estates spread from the western side of Sicily to the eastern side right before covid hit near the end of 2019.  Firriato's Calamoni Estate is located on the island of Favignana.  Vines had disappeared off this island over a century ago and today Favignana is the only vineyard present in the Egadi archipelago.

The vineyards are located only steps from the sea and surrounded by neptune grass, which is a marine plant that acts as a natural fertilizer providing nutrients to the limestone soil.  Sitting right off the water these vineyards receive a nice marine, Mediterranean breeze that gives a hint of salinity to the wines along with very aromatic notes.  to read more about Firriato please reference my previous blog on Favignana,  Firriato's Calamoni Estate: The Only Winery of the Aegadian Islands.

The Wine

This week I sampled the 2018 Firriato La Muciara Terre Siciliane IGT which is a blend of 60% Zibibbo, 20% Grillo and 20% Catarratto.  This wine was softly pressed and went through fermentation for 12 days.  It spent 6 months on the lees with an additional 18 months in the bottle.  A brilliant straw-colored wine with golden highlights.  Intense florals of stone fruit with some tropical notes. Medium-bodied with the tropical fruits carrying through to the palate creating a roundness on the wine with a touch of salinity.

Food Pairing with Zibibbo

When I consider pairing wines with food I always think of where the wine originates from. What is the typical cuisine of the region?  With many of Sicily’s indigenous white grapes you can’t seem to go wrong with a seafood pairing and creating a dish with the abundance of vegetables grown throughout the island.  It had been awhile since I had made some fish cakes and these are always a big hit in my home so I figured I couldn’t go wrong.  This pairing worked out great!  I was concerned about the body and flavors of the wine with some of the flavors of the fish cakes, mostly the mustard added to the fish cakes but it was so minuscule in the grand scheme that all the flavors blended nicely together. 

The fish cakes, which I made with cod, were an easy preparation.  I poached the fish in some water and milk on the stove with some added bay leaves, lemon and salt until cooked through.  In the meantime, I blended together a cup of bread crumbs, 2 eggs, garlic, a tablespoon of mayonnaise, a teaspoon of mustard with some added kosher salt and pepper.  Once the fish was finished and cooled, I blended all the ingredients with my hands forming the cakes.  I cooked them in some extra virgin olive oil for about 4-5 minutes each side.  Easy peasey!  So try some Zibibbo or any of Sicily’s indigenous white grapes, cook up some fish cakes and let me know what you think.

Do you have a favorite Sicilian white grape?

This month our Italian Food, Wine & Travel group, hosted by Camilla the Culinary Cam, featured indigenous grapes of Italy.  Join the rest of our wine and food bloggers as they feature their particular selections.  

• An Umbrian Grape with Greek Origins: Cantina Roccafiore Grechetto di Todi Fiordalis + Pesce alla Ghiotta by Culinary Cam
• BI.VI.SI.: Revitalizing Sicily’s native, ancient vines for forgotten flavors like Frappato by Wine Predator...Gwendolyn Alley
• Brachetto: A Piemontese Grape Meant for Food! by Keep the Peas
• Castello di Grumello Medera & Casconcelli by The Quirky Cork
• Ciliegiolo, Great Wines for Spring by Avvinare
• Durella - Native vine of the Lessini Mountains that Sparkles by Crushed Grape Chronicles
• Pasta, Wine, and a Cookbook Review by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Pizza Wine! Fresh, Fruity, and Made from Native Italian Grapes by My Full Wine Glass
• Sicilian Wine Grapes: Grillo and Frappato by Cooking Chat
• Unlock the Beauty of Mexican Wines: The Fusion of Italian Indigenous Grapes by Our Good Life

Also, in support of Vino Travels, if you plan to purchase some Sicilian wines I may receive commissions if any wines are purchased directly from Wine.com.

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The Prominent Wine Regions of Sicily

As we wrap up this month’s feature on Sicily, we’ll be covering some of Sicily’s prominent wine regions.   Sicily is a melting pot of cultures, rich in architecture with varied geographies and climates from the coastal parts of the region to the high altitudes of its mountains and volcanoes.  We are drawn to its warm, sunny climate and coastal beaches, but Sicily has been standing out amongst Italy’s 20 regions for travelers to visit.  Sicily’s wine scene in recent decades has taken a turn for the better from the reputation of producing bulk and quantity wines to becoming a wine region to keep a close eye on.  Many producers are experimenting and are driven to focus on producing quality wines throughout the island and highlight Sicily’s native grapes. Let’s take a look at some of Sicily’s prominent wine regions from east to west. 

Copyright of Federdoc

Cerasuolo di Vittoria DOCG 

Cerasuolo di Vittoria is the only DOCG in Sicily, granted in 2005. It is located in the southeastern corner named after the town it is located around, Vittoria, in the province of Ragusa. This area is situated between Hyblaean Mountains (aka Mount Iblei) and the Mediterranean Sea.   This is a dry and hot climate in which the grapes grow. The wines under this DOCG are red and are a blend of Nero d’Avola, between 50-70%, and Frappato. Between 30-50%. Both grapes lend their own characteristics to the blend with Frappato lending aromatics and freshness and Nero d’Avola adding color and body.  

Etna DOC 

The Etna DOC is one of Sicily’s most talked about wine regions now. It was one of the first DOCs that were separated and defined by their villages, or contrade. You may see this located on some of the bottles. This is due to the diversity of terroir and climate that form a semicircle around the volcano.  

What’s unique about the vineyards here is that many of the vines escaped the vine diseases, phylloxera, that took place in the late 19th century. It couldn’t survive in the volcanic, sandy soils. You can find both reds and whites here with the red wines based mostly on Nerello Mascalese and NErello Cappuccio and the whites mostly based on Carricante and Catarratto.  

The Etna DOC has some of the higher altitudes found throughout the region and is rather cool climate with large diurnal shifts in temperature. This area also has higher rainfall than most of the Sicilian wine regions. To harvest and take care of vineyards here can be quite challenging since many of them are terraced amongst volcanic rocks. The soils are sandy along with lava, ash and pebbles and are well-drained with a high mineral content. These soils absorb the heat during the day, which is released to the vines at night. 

Faro DOC 

If you follow my social media, I highlighted this region this week for my Italian wine word Wednesday. Although this is a small production region it’s worth seeking out if you can find wines from here. It was established in 1976, but took a couple decades to come to life via the Palari winery. It’s located in the northeast amongst the foothills of the Peloritani Mountains near the Tyrrhenian and Ionians Seas. The climate here is Mediterranean with a high amount of rain and wine. The wines are known for their elegance and are made from both Nerello Mascalese and Nerello Cappuccio along with a rare grape, Nocera, that has once faced extinction.  

 

There are a number of of DOCs on the western side of Sicily including the known Marsala DOC and other smaller ones to include Monreale, Alcamo, Mefi, Contessa Entellina (which I covered this month with Donnafugata). Another region worth noting before we move off the mainland to the islands is the Contea di Sclafani DOC. In this region the main grapes are Perricone and Nero d’Avola for reds and Catarratto for white wines. It’s a rather newer DOC established in 1996 located inland from the Palermo province. It’s named after a medieval city, Sclafani Bagni, and the powerful Sclafani family. Originally this area had a broad focus of mostly bulk wine, but that has changed. One of the most known wineries in this area is Tasca d’Almerita. 

Pantelleria DOC 

Both of these islands shared are known for their sweet wines. Pantelleria is Sicily’s largest island, very close to Africa (Tunisia) with a rocky landscape making it challenging to harvest. This area it very hot and dry with drought challenges. It also receives very strong winds known as the scirocco that blow in from Africa so the vines grow uniquely low on the ground to protect them.  

This DOC was also another early established one in Sicily in 1971 that was originally called Moscato di Pantelleria that changed its name in 2013 to what it is now. Although still wines are produced here, they are known for their sweet wines made from dried grapes. A perfect example is the Ben Rye from Donnafugata shared earlier this month. 

Malvasia delle Lipari DOC 

This DOC is located on the Aeolian islands about 30 miles off the southeastern shores. Lipari is the largest island of the 7 islands located in the archipelago. The Aeolian islands also contain 2 active volcanoes, Vulcano and Stromboli. You can find most of the vines located on the island of Lipari and Salina, which are both mountainous landscapes. Here you will find sweet wines based on the Malvasia di Lipari grape.  

Lastly, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the all encompassing Sicilia DOC that covers a broad range of Sicily's native and non-native grapes across the island. Their "aim is to ensure Sicily's complex wine heritage continues...focusing on improving the established quality standards, including the reduction of maximum yields in vineyards and conservation of the island's historic area". It includes whites and reds from all size wineries.

If you’ve missed any of the other posts from this month focused on Sicily’s wines and native grapes check them out! Next month I’ll be covering the Puglia region. 

• A Journey Across Sicily with Donnafugata 
• The Great Grapes of Sicily 
• A Women Led Winery in Sicily with Caruo & Minini 

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