Catarratto Baglio Bianco 2016

Positioned smack in the middle of a very useful sea, Sicily has long been subject to attack and plunder by adventurers, rogues and other businessmen intent on using the island to strategic advantage. It's little wonder locals quickly came up with fortified structures - "Baglio" - into which they could 'up sticks' and run when things got a little hairy.

Naturally light-hearted, the peasants and traders of Marsale saw the repeated raids as a game of cat and mouse, or - more accurately translated from the dialect, 'cat and rat'. It is in self-deprecating delight they named their favourite white grape after the shenanigans! Catarratto. As affable and cheerful as they, but much easier to approach.
Based in Marsale on the western coastline of Sicily, the estate consists of a nineteenth century building that faces the island of Egadi. The baglio is an authentic and traditional architectural expression of the Sicilian rural economy. Sicily's classic Mediterranean climate creates the ideal conditions for producing grapes for wines. The warm and dry climate reduces the risk of mildews and rots, particularly in well-ventilated areas that benefit from coastal breezes, though the estate is blessed with a reliable moderate rainfall.