2018 Gulfi Nerojbleo Nero d'Avola Sicily IGT 750 ml

Nero d’Avola is Sicily’s boldest, noblest red variety, and the island’s southeastern coastal hills are its promised land. From grapes grown under the region’s radiant sun and buffeted by gusts off the sea, Gulfi has crafted the rich, minerally 2018 Nerojbleo—a wine that every lover of Italian reds needs to experience. 

The Nerojbleo is one of Gulfi’s benchmark 100% Nero d’Avola bottlings, culled from some of the oldest vines growing on their sites around the town of Chiaramonte Gulfi. Here, in Sicily’s southeast corner, Gulfi’s vineyards sit between the sea and the Hyblaean Mountains, where Mediterranean breezes and winds rolling down the mountains cut through the arid daytime climate, preserving a bright line of acidity to complement the wine’s rustic black fruit. 

The most widely planted variety on the island, Nero d’Avola “reflects the distinctive quality that makes Sicily as a whole… so compelling,” says Wine Spectator. It’s bold-fruited, full-bodied, brightly acidic, and grown almost exclusively on the island of Sicily.

Gulfi is one of the grape’s most ardent champions. They were the first winery to produce single-contrada (AKA single-vineyard) Nero d’Avola bottlings, and they’ve done it spectacularly. “There is no better producer of Nero d’Avola wines in Sicily,” praised Vinous, who also said that Gulfi occupies “the upper echelon of Italy’s finest wine estates.”

Pop the cork and you’re greeted with wafting aromas of blackberry, fresh violets, granite, and licorice. The first sip reveals the wine’s irresistible precision and mineral tannins, which balancing silky black fruit on a line of bright acidity. This is Sicily’s flagship grape in all of its rich, complex glory, and by the time you’ve finished a glass, you’ll know exactly why the island has captivated collectors, sommeliers, and wine lovers everywhere. 

The wine was crafted by enologist Salvo Foti, who has worked with some of Sicily’s top estates. Regarded as “the godfather of Etna” for helping pioneer the northeastern volcanic region, Foti holds to traditional methods in the vineyard and cellar. His team prunes their vines with the painstaking alberello method, which involves no trellises: Each vine stands like a miniature tree, shading its own grapes from the daytime sun. In combination with the Mediterranean winds, this lets the Nero d’Avola retain moisture and coolness, preserving its freshness. 

Vineyards have existed in this red, sandy soil for nearly 2,000 years, dating back to the days of ancient Rome. The vines here are densely planted, competing for nutrients in the poor soil, driving their roots deep and developing the wine’s unique mineral notes in the process. 

The Nerojbleo spends one year in French oak barriques, before at least a year in bottle brings all of its components together in perfect harmony, showing the nuance and beauty of Sicily’s hilly seaside landscape.