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750ml
Bottle:
$12.57
12 bottles:
$12.32
Colour: Intense bright red colour with violet reflections.
Nose: Flavours of prune, tobacco and vanilla.
Taste: Dry,...
750ml
Bottle:
$22.95
12 bottles:
$22.49
The 2022 Nero d'Avola is dark and woodsy in the glass, with dried blueberries and exotic spices lifted by sage hints....
750ml
Bottle:
$11.94
$13.01
An excellent deep, spicy, intriguing red wine from Sicily, the 2023 Nero d’Avolo is a tank-fermented and aged, dark...
500ml
Bottle:
$28.99
12 bottles:
$28.42
A nutty and intense marsala with salty undertones to the dried fruit, such as figs and sultanas. Some nuttiness, too....
1.5Ltr
Bottle:
$25.02
$27.80
6 bottles:
$19.59
With hints of raisins and vanilla it is dry, full, and harmonic on the palate. Colombo Marsala Fine Dry is perfect...
750ml
Bottle:
$13.26
$14.73
12 bottles:
$11.88
With hints of raisins and vanilla it is dry, full, and harmonic on the palate. Colombo Marsala Fine Dry is perfect...
1.5Ltr
Bottle:
$25.02
$27.80
6 bottles:
$18.61
Dark amber, with hints of dates and apricots it is sweet, full, warm and harmonic on the palate with an elegant,...
750ml
Bottle:
$13.26
$14.73
12 bottles:
$11.88
Dark amber, with hints of dates and apricots it is sweet, full, warm and harmonic on the palate with an elegant,...
750ml
Bottle:
$13.62
$15.13
The 2022 Nero d'Avola mixes sweet herbal tones with crushed black cherries and wet stone to form an inviting bouquet....
750ml
Bottle:
$18.00
12 bottles:
$17.64
Nero d’Avola, guyot, planted in 2011, harvested in late September at 42 hl/ha. Destemmed and crushed, with...
750ml
Bottle:
$16.63
$18.48
12 bottles:
$13.59
Umami notes of soy sauce and black olives, a bit of mossy underbrush and berries swirl together on the nose of the...
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle:
$14.73
A fine and persistent wine, with a strong scent of ripe red fruit.
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle:
$19.20
COLOR: Intense red with violet reflections.
PERFUME: Red fruit, ripe blackberries and cocoa scent.
TASTE: Tannic...
750ml
Bottle:
$79.93
6 bottles:
$78.33
The 2019 Sicilia Mille e Una Notte is a blend of Nero d'Avola, Petit Verdot, Syrah and other complementary grapes....
750ml
Bottle:
$19.94
12 bottles:
$19.54
Cherries and watermelon with some citrus aromas follow through to a medium to full body with creamy-textured tannins...
750ml
Bottle:
$20.94
12 bottles:
$20.52
Very typical with lots of sour cherry and crisp lemon zest in both the nose and palate. Medium body with bright...
750ml
Bottle:
$13.40
12 bottles:
$13.13
COLOR: Bright magenta red in color.
NOSE: Very fruit forward with notes of red berries (cherry, blackberry),...
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle:
$13.70
Red ruby in color. On the palate it is soft and enveloping. Medium to full-bodied and lightly candied, with dark...
750ml
Bottle:
$24.72
6 bottles:
$24.00
Lightly chewy and fresh, this balanced, medium-bodied red has a subtle, pleasing toasty edge to the flavors of...
Gelber Muskateller Marsala Mavrodaphne Nero D'avola Wine
Marsala is a well known fortified wine from Italy’s largest island, Sicily. A largely misunderstood and undervalued fortified wine, it is most commonly associated with its sweet variety - usually used as a cooking wine - although the finest dry Masalas are able to stand up to more revered, similar wines such as Sherry and Madeira. Marsala has been made in Sicily since the mid 18th century, and it grew wildly popular around Europe as sailors introduced it to port towns across the continent. Marsala wine has a beautiful set of flavors, most typically including apricot, tamarind, vanilla and tobacco, making it a delightfully intense treat when served as a sipping wine.
Marsala wine comes in several different varieties, and most of them are a world away from the sweet wines used in sauces and chicken dishes. Amber, golden and ruby versions of Masala are produced, from a range of different native grape varietals, and many of the finest are aged for over ten years to achieve a fascinating set of complex flavors and a remarkably smooth finish. It is usually made from the Grillo, Inzolia, Damaschino and Catarratto white grapes, although the ruby Masala wines uses typical Sicilian red varietals such as Nero d’Avola and Calabrese, among others.
In the Archaea region, high in the Northern Peloponnese mountains, the predominant grape varietal grown is the prized Mavrodaphne. Meaning 'Black Laurel', the Mavrodaphne grapes have extremely dark skins, and ripen slowly under the Greek sunshine, helped by the mineral rich soils the vines thrive in. This grape varietal is mostly used to produce the opaque, inky fortified wine of the same name, which is popular all over Greece and elsewhere in the world. This fortified wine allows the grapes to really show off their complex and fascinating flavors, which range from a rich marzipan to flavors of bitter chocolate, sweet coffee, dried figs and prunes, as well as plenty of jammy fruit notes.
Mavrodaphne is produced in a traditional method which involves leaving the grape juice exposed to the sun in large vats, before having its fermentation halted by the addition of various distillates taken from previous successful vintages. This mixture contains plenty of residual sugar, which gives the end result its characteristic sticky sweetness, and also helps with the next fermentation process, which typically takes place in large underground cellars. The final product is a heady drink, absolutely bursting with unusual, rich and sweet flavors and carried in a dark and slightly viscous Port-like liquid.
Mavrodaphne grapes are also used for the production of still red wines, but are generally blended with varietals such as Agiorgitiko or imported grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon. Mavrodaphne grapes are excellent for mellowing more acidic varieties, and producing deliciously rounded wines, which have taken the international market by storm in recent decades.
Additional Information on Greek Wines
Greek Wines
Ancient Greek Wines – A Brief History of Wine in Greece
The Myth of Dionysus, Greek God of Wine
What is Retsina?
Italy’s largest island, Sicily, has a wine producing history that can put most other European regions to shame. It was producing quality wines before the days of the Roman empire, and even the Ancient Greeks were not the first to cultivate vines on the island. For as long as anyone knows, the key grape varietal of Sicily has been Nero d’Avola, the beautiful, deep blue skinned grape which produces the region’s characterful, powerful red wines. While in the past, Nero d’Avola was mainly used as a blending grape, due to its deep color and intensely full body, it is today being increasingly celebrated as a single varietal wine grape, and is perfect for those who like their wines boisterous, loud and strong.
Nero d’Avola is grown pretty much everywhere on Sicily, as demand for wines made from this grape have never been higher. Despite its power and body, it is quite a versatile grape - it can be aged in oak barrels, which produces a dense and dark wine which puts its intense characteristics to good use, but it is also often drunk quite young, which allows its jammy, plummy character to come forward. It is also used to make rose wines in some appellations of Sicily, demonstrating a softer side to this otherwise heavy, deeply flavorful grape.