Occhipinti SP68 Bianco Terre Siciliane IGT

Fermentation with indigenous yeasts and 15 days of maceration on the skins. Then six months in concrete vats before bottling without filtration.

The SP68 is the name of the main road that passes near to Arianna’s hometown of Vittoria….it lies in the far south of Sicily just to the west of Ragusa. It is here that she has been making wine for the past ten years under the tutelage of her uncle, Giusto Occhipinti who owns and runs the famous COS estate.

All the vineyards are worked using biodynamic principles and the work in the cellar is measured…not pushing the wine in any way…letting it find its own space…natural yeasts, no temperature control, no fining, or filtration and minimal SO2 at bottling.

The blend for the SP 68 Bianco is two obscure Sicilian varieties: Zibibbo (a regional name for Muscat of Alexandria) and Albanella. The nose offers notes of white flowers, pink grapefruit, lychee, fresh oregano, and spice. It’s a deeply aromatic wine that is surprisingly light on the palate. There’s some maceration on the skins, so you’ll get a bit of tannin on the finish along with an intriguing olive-y note.

Arianna Occhipinti works in the vineyards, finding an endless source of inspiration through observation. In particular, during the last few years, she has not only been focused on the splendid varieties of Frappato di Vittoria and Nero d’Avola, but also on the soil and on the potential of the various districts or contrade of Vittoria and their particular influence on the final wines. The vineyards alternate on this game of sand and limestone presenting themselves in the expression of the wines with fresh fruit and silkiness from one side, but also with great acidity and energy on the other.