TERROIR
Soil, sun, climate – Sicily is and will always remain a garden capable of producing the very best fruits.
Oxford English Dictionary definition of resilience (resilienza): “the ability of a substance or object to spring back into shape.” Ragusa’s soil has this unique property to adapt, renew, reinvigorate.
Each estate has its own distinct terroir, while sharing a common identity. The Sicilian landscape is a kaleidoscope of local characters and vines, which express themselves through the wines they produce.
BIODIVERSITY
Using “Selezione Clonale”, vines are field-grafted onto rootstocks, all coming from the Cortese estate. This ensures that we use only the optimum clones for each specific vineyard.
Vineyards and vines are treated as individuals – there is no standardization. We do no chemical treatment of the soil – each strip of land is encouraged to grow and develop according to its own rhythms, expressing individuality and unique character.
To choose a natural rhythm requires careful attention, sensitivity and a constant presence in the vineyard.
ORGANIC CULTIVATION
Cortese is something more than organic. Organic certification is important, but Cortese goes further than that: with respect for the eco-system, use of natural fertilizers, and traditional methods, we are going back to the time when making wine organically was not a choice, but the only way.
Even adverse conditions contribute to maintaining the natural balance, allowing the vines to grow strong and healthy, building natural defences, with absolutely no need for chemical interventions of any kind.
Vines are only one small part of the whole – a cog in the wheel of the eco-system, of which every living thing is a part: from the ant to the falcon, the rabbit to the fox, from oranges to olives to almonds. Each vineyard has a part to play, expressing its own individuality through the fruit it produces.
CONSCIENCE, RESPECT, KNOW-HOW
It’s important to have confidence in nature, but to balance this by investing time in scientific research. It is vital to understand, decode and protect the important interactions within the vineyard.
Wait, don’t force. We observe nature carefully in order to allow the personality of each single vineyard to evolve.
INSPIRED BY TRADITIONAL TECHNIQUES
Once the grapes have been harvested and carefully selected, the moment comes for us to put our signature on the wine.
Taking inspiration from our forebears, who were on the same land thousands of years before us, we find traditional wine-making methods the best, such as fermentation in terracotta (inherited from the ancient Greeks).
The resulting wines reflect the combination of modern technology and traditional techniques, with every nuance
of the terroir showing through.
Terroir and respect for biodiversity, exclusively organic cultivation and scientific know-how, the meeting of traditional techniques and contemporary technology. A PHILOSOPHY, A NEW WAY OF BRINGING WINE TO LIFE.
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For Nostru, our inspiration is the vibrant Sicilian landscape, rich and bold in colour, abundant and generous in all it produces.
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While Stefano and Marina Girelli are from Trento in the extreme north of Italy, it is the island of Sicily in the country’s deep south that has captured their heart. Stefano realised many years ago that Sicily was generally underrated as quality wine producing region and that the potential for making premium wines was tremendous. Crucially, he also recognised that conditions for producing organic, low-intervention wines are perfect on the Sicilian island.
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News
Digital tastings - head to head with the final consumer.
There are some wineries which are offering digital tastings directly with the final consumer, such as Sicilian Azienda Agricola Cortese, with its “Vino-à-Porter” project, which is not only for journalists and sommeliers but also for the public.
The winery, run by Trentino Stefano Girelli has decided that distance is not an issue. “Confined to Trento in the new situation,” explains Girelli, “thanks to the video camera, my estate can reach people many kilometres away.
Since we have had to cancel all actual tastings in Italy and around the world, we have substituted them with online versions, where people can still interact and ask questions. I am also working on virtual tours of the winery and vineyards.
Author: Gianbattista Marchetto
Read more: HERE
Cantina Cortese – Sicily as you don’t expect it!
In these days of being quarantined at home, it is important to find interesting distractions, and the on-line tasting from a Sicilian winery, with its great quality wines was very welcome.
We prepare the 6 bottles, the glasses, a couple of snacks for the tasting, carefully organised for aperitif time, meaning we don’t have to spit the wine out, and we connect to Zoom. Brother and sister Stefano and Marina Girelli have been in the wine world for three decades. Although he is from Trentino, Sicily has become Stefano’s wine country. He is keen to talk about all the work they have done in the vineyards and he gets excited about the terroir. “There are incredibly different soils just a few metres apart, that bring out amazingly different characteristics in the grapes.
To enhance the wines further, Stefano has pursued the philosophy of making organic and vegan wines, with no chemical intervention. Each strip of land is given the opportunity to produce and react at its own pace and express its own unique qualities – in the firm belief that this is the profound meaning of biodiversity.
Author: Emanuele Bompan
Read more : HERE
Vanedda is a wine that tastes of summer
The island of Sicily is known for its rich, intense, memorable wines. Vanedda is the Sicilian name for little country lanes and is the top white from Azienda Agricola Cortese, in Vittoria, Sicily.
This is a wine which really speaks of its terroir: the body of the Grillo, the minerality of the Cataratto and the complexity of Fiano.
Author:Tarcila Bassi
Read more : HERE
Easter with a wine that you really want.
Cortese Vanedda is a fine white from Azienda Agricola Cortese, in Vittoria, the region of Ragusa in Sicily.
This is a wine which really speaks of its terroir: the body of the Grillo, the minerality of the Cataratto and the complexity of Fiano. A highly nuanced wine, with a prominent bouquet showing notes of coconut and tropical fruits, combined with hints of sweet spices. Perfect with seafood and traditional Sicilian seafood dishes.
Author: Anna Mazzotti
Read more:HERE
"Father's Day wines, which we will drink also after the quarantine period"
In Sicilian, Vanedda is a name for a little country lane.Brother and sister Stefano and Marina Girelli are from Trentino, but have fallen in love with Sicily.
They have made Vanedda their flagship wine, which brings together the body of Grillo, the minerality of Cataratto and the vivacity of Fiano, all of which are cultivated organically.
The result?
A rich white, full of layers of flavour, with well-integrated acidity, which makes you want to keep taking another sip. It takes more than a year after harvest to achieve this style, as the wine is fermented on the skins, spends 7 months on the fine lees, then rests a further 6 months in bottle before release.
Vanedda has a bouquet that is full of tropical fruits and notes of coconut, accompanied by gentle spices. The elegance of the nose is confirmed on the palate: rich, persistent, with a lovely, well-integrated acidity.
Author: Michele Pizzillo
Read more: HERE
EASTER IN A GLASS
Sabuci (70% Nero d’Avola and 30% Frappato) takes its name from the little hamlet where the Cortese estate has been situated since 1930. The grapes are very carefully harvested by hand and put into small containers between the end of September and the beginning of October. The two grapes are fermented separately.
The Nero d’Avola is fermented in open barrels, giving excellent control over the process, while the Frappato is fermented in 7hl amphorae, the natural porosity of which not only give the perfect level of oxygenation during fermentation, but at the same time allows the wine to remain on the skins for almost 12 months. The two wines are blended together after about six month and aged in a mixture of barriques and botti of various sizes.
The result is Sabuci – 8,000 bottles of pure pleasure. A lovely ruby red with garnet flecks. Ripe cherries, pomegranate and summer berries are the unmistakeable character of Cerasuolo di Vittoria. The oak is well integrated, there are hints of fresh cocoa and caramel. Savoury, robust, with persistent tannins, yet elegant and complex with a very long finish.
Author: Francesco Bruno Fadda
Read more: HERE
FOOD AFFAIRS - An online Tasting of Cortese Wines
Press events, tastings, conferences – the world of wine has had to adapt to the new restrictions imposed by Coronavirus. It has changed, but not stopped, thanks to incredible and ever-developing technology. Such is the case for Azienda Agricola Cortese, which makes exclusively organic wines.
With the project “Vino-à porter”, Cortese is continuing its commercial activity and communication with digital tastings with journalists, sommeliers, wine buyers and customers. “Vino-à porter” was the idea of Francesca Negri, a well known figure in the world of wine.
“It’s such a simple, yet brilliant idea,” says Stefano Girelli. “Thanks to video, my estate can reach people a great distance away. We can use this system during these times while we cannot taste with journalists and customers face to face. We are also preparing virtual guided wine tours of Vittoria.”
Author : foodaffairs.it
Read more: HERE
The best wines to celebrate easter!
Our Vanedda was chosen as one of the best wines to drink at Easter. Vanedda takes its name from Sicilian dialect for little country lanes and is a wonderful white from a beautiful estate in Ragusa.
A wine which really speaks of its terroir, it has body from the Grillo, minerality from the Cataratto and depth of flavour from the Fiano. Rich, highly characterful, with well-integrated acidity, Vanedda is perfect with grilled shellfish or oysters.
Author : www.bartumagazine.it
Read more: HERE
Sabuci – a taste of the classic and the modern.
The 2016 vintage, 4,800 bottles, there are two paths for the different grape varieties.
Nero d’Avola (70%) is vinified in open barriques with frequent punching down, while Frappato is vinified in 7hl terracotta amphorae, reminiscent of the ancient Greek tradition.
The blend is then aged in oak for 6 months.
The colour is an intense ruby red, the nose reveals hints of blueberry and plum jam and there are hints of thyme, hedgerows, spicy pepper and licorice root.
The palate is powerful, with a good tannic structure and savoury character. A taste of the classic and the modern – a great glass!
Tastings & tours
Tastings & tours
Nostru Experience
The authenticity of the Iblean terroir is encapsulated in the organic, vegan-friendly range “Nostru”. Nostru is made from indigenous Sicilian grapes, showing the perfume and flavours of Vittoria in every glass. In this tasting you will delve deeply into a terroir rich in resources, which we cultivate, while taking care to respect the natural rhythm to make our sustainable wines. The visit includes a tour of our vineyards and concludes with a tasting which will be guided by a certified sommelier and will comprise of three wines from our Nostru collection.
The wines available to taste should be chosen from the following:
Nostru Carricante Terre Siciliane IGP
Nostru Catarratto Lucido Terre Siciliane IGP
Nostru Nerello Mascalese Terre Siciliane IGP
Nostru Nero d’Avola Sicilia DOC
To taste:
You can add a tasting of typical local Iblean products if you wish (incurring a cost of 5 Euros per person).
Duration of the visit:
1 hour 30 minutes | minimum 2 partecipants
Price:
25 € per person
Booking:
Ph. +39 388 981 5320
Email info@agricolacortese.com
La Selezione Experience
The elegance of the Iblean terroir is encapsulated in three wines. Wines which express the characteristics of the Ragusa terroir, with its rich history and which show a strong identity of the vineyards they come from. The visit is a discovery of terroir and craftmanship, of our organic philosophy through respect for the land and its fruits, flora and forna, cherishing the past and looking towards the future. At the end of the tour there is a tasting guided by a certified sommelier of the three wines in the range “La Selezione”.
The wines available to taste are:
Vanedda Bianco Terre Siciliane IGP
Senia Nero d’Avola Sicilia DOC
Sabuci Cerasuolo di Vittoria DOCG
To taste:
You can add a tasting of typical local Iblean products if you wish (incurring a cost of 5 Euros per person).
Duration of the visit:
1 hour 30 minutes | minimum 2 partecipants
Price:
40 € per person
Booking:
Ph. +39 388 981 5320
Email info@agricolacortese.com
Cortese Experience
Live the Cortese Experience with a tasting of its most representive organic and vegan-friendly wines: a journey to the past, present and future of wine in the terroir of this unique Sicilian DOCG. Discover this terroir and our philosophy for respecting the land, its fruits, flora and fauna. You will witness the beauty of our vineyards before savouring six different expressions of the land, all sustainably made and of high qualitly, guided by a certified sommelier.
The wines available to taste are:
Nostru Carricante Terre Siciliane IGP
Nostru Nerello Mascalese Terre Siciliane IGP
Nostru Nero d’Avola Sicilia DOC
Vanedda Bianco Terre Siciliane IGP
Senia Nero d’Avola Sicilia DOC
Sabuci Cerasuolo di Vittoria DOCG
To taste:
A tasting of typical local Iblean products.
Duration of the visit:
2 hours | minimum 2 partecipants
Price:
65 € per person
Booking:
Ph. +39 388 981 5320
Email info@agricolacortese.com
Riserva Experience
Azienda Agricola Cortese has an on-going commitment to to improve its work, while respecting nature and through the research into expressions of terroir, three extraordinary wines have been created: Avulisi, “O” Orisi and Boscopiano. Respectively, these wines represent: our best expression of Nero d’Avola; the world’s only wine made from the Orisi relic grape variety; and a Frappato vinified in amphorae, insipired by the ancient wines of Kamarina. The experience begins with a visit to our vineyards, where you will discover the beauty of this terroir, our organic cultivation, as well as the actions we take in the vineyards to maintain biodiversity, such as our experiemental vineyard, unique of its kind it is a guardian of the genetic heritage of Sicilian viticulture. The tasting will be guided by a certified sommelier and will comprise of three organic and vegan-friendly wines.
The wines available to taste are:
Cortese Boscopiano Frappato Terre Sciiliane IGP
Santa Tresa Avulisi Riserva Sicilia DOC
Santa Tresa Orisi Rosso Terre Siciliane IGP
To taste:
A tasting of typical local Iblean products.
Duration of the visit:
2 hours | minimum 4 partecipants
Price:
90 € per person
Booking:
Ph. +39 388 981 5320
Email info@agricolacortese.com
SOCIETÀ AGRICOLA CORTESE
C.da Sabuci, 3 Km 11 | VITTORIA | RAGUSA | ITALIA
+39 0932 875 615 - info@agricolacortese.com
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