With the purchase of its proprietary Estates, Duca di Salaparuta has focused more and more on the principle of zoning, which in Sicily benefits from the island’s remarkable heterogeneity and biodiversity. This involves extensive study of the unique features of each Terroir and how they influence the qualitative characteristics of winemaking. This helps us to ensure not only that each grape variety can best express its own features, but also that in doing so it defends the concept of biodiversity, of which the island is such an exceptional example. In the agronomic context, biotypes are identical vines which, evolving in different environments, can develop morphological and/or biological differences. The choice of Terroir and the wine practices applied are therefore fundamental in determining the specific features of our products, which vary according to the oenological plasticity of the grape varieties used. The choice of cultivating a vine in one area rather than another leads to very different results and even within the same vineyard the differences can be considerable, because the Terroir may offer unique individual characteristics even a few meters away. Within each Estate, therefore, grapes can be harvested which will give rise to wines with a different personalities. Starting from the 2015 harvest, moreover, Duca di Salaparuta – through two types of investigation, one traditional and one experimental – launched a further technical exploration of its Terroirs, with the following goals: to follow and link the changes in the chemical composition of the grapes during the course of maturation, to compare the kinetics of maturation from one vintage to another (depending on climatic conditions), to compare the evolution of one vineyard with respect to another (depending on their Terroirs) and to predict the date of optimal ripeness, in order to determine when to begin grape picking.

Duca di Salaparuta combines the expertise of its agronomists with laboratory operations, using latest generation technologies to monitor the health of its vines and of the soil in every phase of the production cycle, thus reducing problems and favouring timely interventions when needed. Every day a Duca di Salaparuta agronomist sets out from the Winery and travels around the island in order to follow the different stages of fruit as it ripens, and to take samples both from the company’s vineyards and those of its suppliers, for laboratory analysis. As well as analysing micro-elements in the soil, the vine’s leaves are also checked, to ensure that the plant is correctly assimilating the substances present in the soil. Frequent sample checking allows us to also verify the presence of any kind of unwanted substances, both in our own vineyards and in those of the outsourced Corvo grape suppliers. This benefits the maintenance of a correct environmental balance, while also protecting the nature of both the soils and the vines.

The high temperatures typical of Sicily and the distance between vineyards and wine-making Cellars make it necessary to use chilling techniques in order to guarantee high quality grape standards. The cooling machine can lower the temperature of the harvested grapes by up to 20°, thus ensuring the “biochemical block” of processes such as spontaneous post-harvest fermentation, the oxidation of aromatic precursors or the oxidation of the grapes’ phenolic component. The freshly harvested grapes are cooled directly in the countryside and immediately transported to the Winery Cellar: in this way, by blocking the fermentation process, we keep the fragrances and aromas of the fruit intact, along with each grape variety’s special features. In reality, however, cooling processes accompany the entire winemaking process. The controlled temperatures – during various phases – avoid sudden thermal changes, thus preventing a series of potential problems while exalting the natural characteristics of each grape variety.

The grapes destined to become a Corvo, Duca di Salaparuta or Florio wine have already been subjected to strict controls in their vineyards. However, Duca di Salaparuta – adopting an increasingly consumer-friendly perspective – has invested in state-of-the-art control and monitoring systems to check the materials reaching the Winery, to ensure compliance with current regulations. This laboratory activity is also correlated with the skills and experience of our Technical Team, who assess the quality of the grapes not only from a health point of view but also from an oenological perspective, reserving the right to refuse a batch that is analytically valid but not considered suitable for our quality standards. Each batch of grapes harvested for Duca di Salaparuta is qualitatively guaranteed by the judgement of our Agronomist and our Oenologist, as well as assessed during growth and before picking by Duca di Salaparuta’s Quality Control team.

One of the key processes of vinification. This procedure, mainly used for the vinification of red grapes, is based on keeping the grape skins in contact with the must during the fermentation process. The maceration of red grapes helps to give the wine its specific colour, as well as making it particularly rich in polyphenols and aromas. This is usually a relatively short process, and is carefully and constantly monitored. It is particularly important because it contributes to preserving the tannins – which give the wine its final structure – and all the grape cultivar’s typical aromas. Duca di Salaparuta also carries out maceration on certain white grapes, such as Moscato and Zibibbo, intended for use in Florio wines.

Duca di Salaparuta chooses the most suitable cork for each type of wine, its longevity, its sensorial characteristics and the type of bottle used. One-piece corks in natural Portuguese cork for still wines, agglomerated cork stoppers for white wines to drink young, and ‘birondellato’ twintop corks for sparkling wines… Every wine has its own cork. Each small batch of corks is verified using chemical and microbiological checks, and by our Technical Team tasting panel. Acceptance of the batch of corks is based on the combination of all the checks carried out, all of which aim to guarantee the highest quality and to minimise the risk of defective cork odours. The choice of the best supplier is fundamental but not sufficient in itself: the corks must also be analysed using oenological, analytical, critical and innovative techniques, based on latest generation technologies.

The introduction of systems for monitoring and studying grape varieties and terroirs is an important factor in the development of a modern concept of naturalness. A new approach to agricultural production, more carefully pondered and selective, which shifts the focus away from thinking of the vineyard as a single entity and instead focuses on the single plant, cared for according to its needs and its potential. However, this intimate and capillary approach is also handed down directly from centuries-old expertise that constitutes an invaluable heritage. The experience and manual skills of people who live in the territory and know every nuance of every grape variety is integrated daily with the latest control systems. A blend that guarantees the health and maximum quality yield of the grapes in the Cellar.

The technique of Batonnage involves “stirring” the fine sediment of lees with the main body of wine as it ages in the barrel, an act which endows a wine with richer olfactory complexity and greater palatal intensity. It is a particularly important process for white wines such as Bianca di Valguarnera and certain reds, including Duca Enrico and Nawàri, which in the early months mature in contact with their own yeasts. Traditionally this is carried out manually with a tool or stick whose movement stirs the wine, sending the lees deposited on the bottom of the container floating upwards, but in the Duca di Salaparuta winery cellars it is performed using the Stop & Roll system. Thanks to this innovative technique, for the first three months of the wine’s life company personnel can easily rotate the barrels by hand every two or three days, sending the yeasts back into action. This procedure also proves useful for reducing the need to top-up reduced wine volume inside barrique casks. Even if the cask is fully capped, in fact, the wine is subject to minimal evaporation and therefore needs to be topped up from time to time.