Tours and guided tastings on the starry night of San Lorenzo.
Overview : A visit to one of Sicily’s most beautiful and best-tended vineyards by moonlight. Guided tour of the vinification cellar and photovoltaic installation for solar energy, a renewable and non-polluting power source. Video of grape harvesting and wine making at the Donnafugata estates in Contessa Entellina and on Pantelleria (duration: about 10 minutes). There will be a special selection of Donnafugata wines for tasting during the evening.
As usual, August 10 is the date for the “Calici di Stelle” (“Goblets of Stars”), an event held in the splendid setting of the Donnafugata Estate (at the 60 kilometer stone on the Palermo-Sciacca limited-access Highway 624).
This program, a nationwide event organized by the Wine Tourism Movement and now in its 6th edition at Donnafugata, has become one eagerly awaited by lovers of fine wine.
It will be an important event for the estate staff, too, who during the evening will be able to meet and talk with the numerous and knowledgeable wine lovers arriving from all over Italy and abroad. Last year about a thousand people attended the most glamorous wine event in Sicily.
The “La Fuga” Chardonnay vineyards, lit up for the occasion, will be the setting for the first leg of the guided tour, where the technical staff will illustrate how vineyards are tended and the vines are grown and pruned. As they walk through the vineyard, visitors may even taste some grapes from this premium vines.
The tour then continues to the estate’s vinification cellar where technology and innovation are mixed with systems to protect and defend the territory, values always espoused at Donnafugata, which manages to cover more than 30% of the cellar’s energy needs with a photovoltaic installation inaugurated in 2001.
Afterward visitors can watch an extremely brief film, “Donnafugata on Pantelleria,” the island of Ben Ryé, to learn about this Sicilian winery’s commitment, values and important endeavors.
The height of the evening and the moment wine lovers look forward to most will be the tasting of a special selection of Donnafugata wines, including some authentic gems: Sherazade 2006, a new red made from Nero d’Avola and Syrah, Chiarandà del Merlo 2000, Mille e una Notte 1998. And of course, the sweetest are sampled last, Ben Ryé Passito di Pantelleria.
This program, a nationwide event organized by the Wine Tourism Movement and now in its 6th edition at Donnafugata, has become one eagerly awaited by lovers of fine wine.
It will be an important event for the estate staff, too, who during the evening will be able to meet and talk with the numerous and knowledgeable wine lovers arriving from all over Italy and abroad. Last year about a thousand people attended the most glamorous wine event in Sicily.
The “La Fuga” Chardonnay vineyards, lit up for the occasion, will be the setting for the first leg of the guided tour, where the technical staff will illustrate how vineyards are tended and the vines are grown and pruned. As they walk through the vineyard, visitors may even taste some grapes from this premium vines.
The tour then continues to the estate’s vinification cellar where technology and innovation are mixed with systems to protect and defend the territory, values always espoused at Donnafugata, which manages to cover more than 30% of the cellar’s energy needs with a photovoltaic installation inaugurated in 2001.
Afterward visitors can watch an extremely brief film, “Donnafugata on Pantelleria,” the island of Ben Ryé, to learn about this Sicilian winery’s commitment, values and important endeavors.
The height of the evening and the moment wine lovers look forward to most will be the tasting of a special selection of Donnafugata wines, including some authentic gems: Sherazade 2006, a new red made from Nero d’Avola and Syrah, Chiarandà del Merlo 2000, Mille e una Notte 1998. And of course, the sweetest are sampled last, Ben Ryé Passito di Pantelleria.
PROGRAM:
When: Friday, August 10, 2008 - from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m.
Price : The price of the tasting is € 5 to be paid at the entrance. In addition we ask that you leave a € 5 security deposit for the wine glass, which will be given back when the wine glass is returned.
Booking : Reservations required at the phone number +39 0923 724245 or via e-mail at info@donnafugata.it. Just give a last name and the number of people in your group.
You just gave me a reason to make another trip to Sicily, my 3rd, to explore more of the west and to go to Pantelleria to see the grape harvest. I saw a bottle of Passito in a store in Rome for 30 euros 2 weeks ago. I can't wait to go back.I wrote about my trips and even earned a favorable comment from Theresa Maggio, author of 2 books on Sicily.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with your third trip to Sicily. It has that affect. Where do we read your writings on your Sicilian travels? Sounds interesting.
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