Regaleali Bianco, Tasca d'Almerita, Sicilia 2021

Sicily, long known for its cheap, cheerful and weighty reds for export in bulk, has seen something of a renaissance in recent decades as a number of producers look to the future and innovate, with ever-increasing benefits for the wine drinker.

History
At the forefront of such innovation are the aristocratic Tasca d’Almerita family who own one of the best-known estates and houses on the island, at Regaleali. Since 1837 they have lived at and farmed the 1,000-hectare estate, 40 of which are vines, that is now augmented by a superb state-of-the-art winery, both an hour or so south of the coastal resort of Cefalu and 100km south-east of Palermo.

The wines
Here the vines grow at between 450 and 700 metres above sea level, a fact that tempers the effects of Sicily's hot Mediterranean climate to maintain great freshness in the grapes and lengthening the time it takes for the grapes to reach a perfect point of maturation.

Environmental sustainability
The past decade has seen considerable soil erosion in Sicily, cause by periods of intense rainfall and use of mechanical tillage. To counter this, Tasca uses carefully-selected cover crops to protect the soil. They also encourage biodiversity in their estate. Although vines are the largest crop, they also have olive groves, pastures, orchards and woodlands. They also minimise mowing in order to provide a habitat for insects and other fauna.

In the winery, they have worked hard to reduce energy consumption, with their usage in 2022 less than 40% of what it had been in 2017. This has been achieved by various means, including investing in more energy-efficient refrigeration systems, and alternations to their lighting system.

Social Sustainability
Tasca sees itself as having a significant responsibility to Sicily, its landscape and people. As part of this, it prioritises using local suppliers with the result that 50% of their raw materials suppliers are Sicilian. They also maintain distinctive local features such as dry stone walls. There is also a cooking school dedicated to preserving the gastronomic culture of Sicily!