Italy’s Islands of Wine—Sicily & Sardinia
Tuesday, September 21st - 7 pm

Sicily has been producing wines since ancient times; both the
Greeks and the Romans made wine there. Its Southern tip is
further south than Tunis, Africa; the Islands of Pantelleria,
where wonderful muscats are made is closer to Tunis than it is
to Palermo. Sicily has a great many terriors and terrains and it
gets a lot of sun. The warm temperatures encourage tourism
and very ripe grapes; this makes the wines rich and flavourable.
The remoteness of Sicily has meant that original grape
varieties are still grown today. Inzolia, Catarratto, and Zibbibo
(Muscato of Alexandria). It is the red wines of Sicily that have
really taken the world by storm. Once the reds were made in
huge volumes, with high alcohol mainly for blending. But since
the 90’s volumes have decreased and quality has

vastly improved.


The main grape is Nero D’Avola but Nerello Mascalese
is very interesting, it is used to make Etna Rosso and
grows on the side of Mt. Etna. There are many Nero D’Avolas
in the LCBO, both regular list and Vintages. The ones in Vintages
are usually the better buy, generally under $15.00 and
of high quality.


Italy’s other wonderful Island is Sardinia, further North than
Sicily but with many of the same influences. Historically Sardinia
is more known for its sweet wines, both red and white,
but not many of those make it off the Island. It wasn’t until
lade in the 20th Century that wine-makers became

interested in Sardinia.

For four centuries Sardinia was ruled by Spain, so the
Spanish influence is reflected in the grape varieties, mainly
Grenache called Cannonau on Sardinia. It can make
sweet or dry wines. For white wine, Vermentino Di
Sardegna is the main grape; it is usually light and lemony
and very refreshing. Sardinia’s most successful grape,
from a quality perspective, is Carignano Del Sulcis,
(Cariňena in Spain, Carignan in France). It grows on bush
vines in the Southwest of the Island and has attracted a lot
of interest from top wine-makers like Gincomo Tachis of
Sassicaia. Wines from Sicily and Sardinia re constantly
going in and out of Vintages and are excellent value. We
will enjoy them with a classic Southern Italian meal.

M E N U


Antipasto
grilled vegetables with prosciutto,
parmesan & balsamic dressing
Minestra
Chickpea, chard & tomato soup
Pasta
Orecchiette with clams & sun-dried tomatoes
Braised Veal Marsala
With Polenta & vegetables
Italian Cheese Plate
Cassata Alla Siciliana


$69.00 per person