2013 Ira da Iri Cerasuolo di Vitorria DOCG 92+VM/92+WA
Valle dell'Acate
Vittoria, Siciliy


92+ pts Wine Advocate
This is a new wine from Valle dell'Acate. The 2013 Cerasuolo di Vittoria Classico Iri da Iri opens to a medium build but definitely shows more density and concentration, if you were to compare this wine to your standard Cerasuolo di Vittoria. The blend is 60% Nero d'Avola and 40% Frappato, and the wine ages in tonneaux for 36 months. You get a more intense aromatic offering with dark fruit, black cherry and sweet tobacco. The idea behind Iri da Iri is to push the quality boundaries of Cerasuolo di Vittoria to offer a more complex and age-worthy expression in what is often considered a quick-drinking red wine category. This appellation is the only DOCG denomination in Sicily, and Valle dell'Acate wanted to prove its worth. They have done a great job. Only 3,000 bottles were made.

92+ pts Vinous Media
Deep red. Clean, savory and dense red fruit, herbs and earthy nuances, complicated by touches of cinnamon. Bright and fresh, with serious tannic backbone nicely supporting the rich and bright fruit flavors. This strikes me as having less Frappato than Nero d'Avola in the blend. Spicy licorice and underbrush echo on the long, zingy finish. A lovely wine of sneaky concentration and power.

Cerasuolo di Vitorria is surprisingly the only DOCG wine in the island of Sicily. You'd think Etna, heck even Marsala would get that nod. This is the flagship wine of the house, Nero d’Avola and Frappato combined to make a super-DOCG Cerasuolo of potent elegance.

The name is derived from the following per the winery: While searching for an answer, we ran into a passage from Dante of extraordinary beauty in which it is described how two rainbows reflect one another, creating a third circle of fire. Gaetana Jacono was conquered by the visionary force of Dante’s symbolism, which best expresses the spirit from which this Cru was created. From the rainbows–the multi-faceted notes of Nero d’Avola and Frappato–surges a flaming radiance: a wine that inspires true emotion.

• From the estate’s oldest vines of Nero d’Avola (60%) and Frappato (40%) which are 20-25 years old
• Spontaneous fermentation with indigenous yeasts on the skins for about ten days
• Aged 36 months in 500L French oak casks; plus 18 months in bottle
• The tonneaux are in service for 7 years, and 14% are new
• 2013 is the first release

Vineyard: Vineyards plateau of Biddine Soprana
Appellation: D.O.C.G Cerasuolo di Vittoria “Classico”
Grape Variety: 60% Nero d’Avola; 40% Frappato
Methods of growth: Espaliers and cordon, A dense 5.000 plants/hectare
Alcohol level: 13.65%