Passo del Tempio
These wines are made by Alana McGettigan and Matt Thomson at a private winery in the hills outside of Trapani...
Alana manages to fit this into her other commitments(Alpha Zeta, Ponte del Diavolo and Il Faggio) as the harvest for Catarratto and Syrah is in the first half of September. She selects the fruit from the estate’s vineyards and vinifies it in their modern winery, which is well equipped with a must chiller, stainless steel tanks and temperature control.
Sicily’s temples were built by the Greeks, who brought the vine to Sicily 3,000 years ago. Today, alongside the remains of the finest temples is a path (Passo del Tempio) that enables you to wend your way past these magnificent buildings.
Vineyards
The vineyards are located in the hills outside Trapani, Western Sicily in the Erice region, close to the town of Fulgatore. Most of the vineyards are on a gentle slope, with tilled terra rossa soil, at an altitude ranging between 200-400 metres. The vines are trained in the guyot system.
Vintage information
Conditions throughout the grower season were slightly warmer and dried than in the previous years, although not hugely dissimilar. As a result of the early harvest of the red varieties, the wines are fruit driven with a great balance between acidity and structure and less powerful than previous vintages. Yields were average.
Vinification
The fruit was machine harvested and transported to the winery where it was crushed and destemmed and put into temperature controlled stainless steel fermenters. Fermentation lasted around five days at a maximum temperature of 30°C, and pumped over very gently several times a day. In order to control the extraction of harsher tannins, the pump overs were reduced at the end of ferment. The wine was then pressed gently and went through malolactic fermentation. The wine was shipped to Verona shortly after fermentation and stored in temperature controlled tanks until it bottling in April.
Tasting Notes
Crimson in colour, with black fruit and berry perfumes. There is a good balance between ripe, berry characters and a youthful structure on the palate. This Syrah is accessible, supple and rounded on the finish.
Vintage information
| Vintage | 2012 |
| Grape varieties |
100% Syrah/Shiraz |
| Region | Sicilia |
| Winemaker | Alana McGettigan |
| Consultant Winemaker | Matt Thomson |
| Alcohol (ABV) | 12.5% |
| Acidity | 5.49g/l |
| Residual Sugar | 5.8g/l |
| Wine pH | 3.45 |
Trade customers
Liberty Wines customers can order this wine directly from us.