Our aim is that you shall experience some of the best and most interesting that the wine region has

— Sicily is becoming rental luxury cars one of the "hot" wine regions in Italy. They have their own unique grape varieties that give wines filled with fruit and freshness. Nero d'avola, for example, makes powerful yet fresh wines. The quality has increased with meteoric speed the last few decades. It is also an island filled with culture and a rich history. They have their very own gastronomy; Sicilian food has nothing to envy the rest of Italy: fresh fish, sun-ripened vegetables and much more. And plenty of sunshine and warmth!
This is a sample program , an example . Every wine and food tour that we organise is different and specially adapted for the season and the circumstances. Details in the program, e.g. which producers we visit, will be different each time. Look in the menu " Our Tours Scheduled Tours " to check what scheduled tours are currently on the program or contact us to discuss a custom made private wine tour .
The biggest island of the Mediterranean has a very special charm. Perhaps it is the location that almost touches North Africa. rental luxury cars Or the majestic landscape dominated by mountains and not least Etna, the volcano. Or the Greek heritage that is noticeable everywhere, for examples the temples, the arenas, and the harbour town of Syracuse.
You can find vines all over Sicily. We will concentrate on the eastern and south-eastern rental luxury cars regions: the vineyards in the black volcanic soil on Etna and the new stars around the cities of Ragusa, Vittoria, Syracuse and Pachino on the south-east tip of the island.
To cover the entire island in a few days is impossible. It is a mountainous landscape and getting around takes time. Only 14% of the island is flat land. But that also means that the landscape is beautiful, rental luxury cars spectacular, and with a very long Mediterranean coast line.
A long time ago Sicilian wines were almost synonymous with Marsala. But that is indeed a very long time ago. This sweet and fortified wine is still produced on the western part of Sicily but today more people think of Moscato de Pantelleria, if you are looking for a sweet wine.
But the big thing now is the table wines. First the red wines. They can be full-bodied, made from the nero d'avola grape that is a recent international success story. Or it can be white wine from grapes like inzolia, catarratto and carricante. These red and white wines are our main focus on this tour among the Sicilian rental luxury cars vineyards.
The Sicilian grapes rental luxury cars can also make full-bodied wines but they always maintain a fresh and fruity acidity, making the wines very balanced and enjoyable. We will discover a whole family of grape varieties, both red and white, that few people are familiar with today, that have not yet reach international fame. But it will come!
We will stay in Catania the first and the last night. You arrange for your own travel to Catania. They have good flight connections with most of Europe. The second and third night we stay in Syracuse, an ancient city founded rental luxury cars by the Greeks. It was an important city in both the Greek and Roman empires. Syracuse has an amazing and charming old city centre filled with old houses, churches and private palaces.
We are not far from Greece and that also shows on the gastronomy. We will enjoy gourmet lunches together, often along with a wine tasting, as guests of wine producers. Evenings are free for your own explorations.
This is a sample program, an example . Every wine and food tour that we organise is different and specially adapted for the season and the circumstances. Details in the program, e.g. which producers we visit, will be different each time.
Catania is the second city in Sicily, after Palermo, and is dominated by its closeness rental luxury cars to Etna, the volcano. It is an active volcano and every once in a while a think layer of black dust, ashes, cover the streets of Catania. Like many other cities rental luxury cars on Sicily, Catania was completely destroyed by the earthquake in 1693 and was totally rebuilt in Baroque style. There are many beautiful baroque buildings dating from that time, as well as churches and not least the Doumo, the impressive cathedral.
Nerello mascalese rental luxury cars thrive in the black soil. It is like fine sand allowing the roots to penetrate deep down. Hot daytime temperatures rental luxury cars and cool nights make for a long growing season. Harvest can be as late as the middle of October or even November.
Etna is one of the "hottest" wine regions in Italy today, rental luxury cars talking about trends. More and more wine producers arrive rental luxury cars here and buy land, both other parts of Sicily, from mainland Italy and from other countries. rental luxury cars It is clear that there is a tremendous potential for quality, judging from other winemakers' interest in the region.
Here is where we find Tenuta di Passopisciaro, created by Andrea Franchetti some ten years ago. In addition to nerello mascalese he also grows petit verdot. The volcanic soil is difficult to work but it is worth the effort, says the winemaker.
We do not need to travel far to get to our next winery. It is owned by Frank Cornelissen, originally from Antwerp. He belongs to the "natural rental luxury cars wine school" whose credo is to do as little as possible to the wines during vinification. He even ages his wine in terracotta amphorae buried in the soil. "Natural wine" is one of the big subjects of debate in (some parts of) the wine world today. This visit will give us an occasion to see what they are really worth!
We will stop for lunch in the small village of Randazzo, on the north-west side of the volcano, at a trattoria where the whole family is involved. They will serve us plenty of delicious Sicilian specialities.
In the afternoon we head south. Our target is the wonderful town of Syracuse, about an hour's drive from Catania. We will stay here two nights in a hotel with only two steps to the sea. Evening is free to explore Syracuse.
rental luxury cars Today is dedicated rental luxury cars mainly to the nero d'avola grape, the best know variety of Sicily. We will bas close to the city of Avola that has given its name to the grape. We are heading towards Ragusa and Vittoria.
Not far from Vittoria we will visit a producer with the short name of COS, a very ambitious and interesting winery. The owner, Giusto Occhipinti, farms the vineyards organically. With the excellent Sicilian weather there is no need for chemicals, he says. He ages his wines in a very traditional way, in clay amphorae rental luxury cars buried in the earth. He has a whole building entirely dedicated to the wine-filled amphorae. What difference does it make for the wine? You will taste it and decide for yourself!
Gulfi is a beautiful estate near the village of Chiaramonte. The Gulfi winery was created in the middle of the 1990s. They use the indigenous grape varieties, the white carricante and albanello, making a dry and full-bodied white wine with hints of peaches. For the reds they use, among other grapes, rental luxury cars nero d'avola. Their Nerosanlore is full of aromas and concentrated. We will have the opportunity rental luxury cars to taste these wines together with food since at the Gulfi winery they also have a top-class restaurant. You even have a view over fermentation tanks in the vat hall from the restaurant.
rental luxury cars The restaurant at Gulfi is one of the most ambitious that we have seen at a winery. They serve local specialities, absolutely fresh ingredients, often with a lot of fish and seafood. Their home-made bread is divine as is their own olive oil made from an olive called tonda iblea . We can promise you a delicious gastronomic experience at the level of international top class restaurants.
This day will also feature Cerasuolo di Vittoria, the first and so far only DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata et Garantita, the highest quality label in Italy). It is a blend of the frappato and the nero d'avola grapes, grown primarily in the vineyards between Ragusa and Vittoria.
Frappato gives it some hints of cherries and a wine made only from frappato is light in body. Some Cerasuolo di Vittoria are made for easy drinking, others are made with very low yields and get more concentration.
Today we go south from Syracuse towards the baroque town of Noto. We are heading to the southern-most rental luxury cars tip of Sicily, to the region called Pachino. It is known for its high-quality wines made from nero d'avola. They have several different types of soil each giving a distinct character to the wines.
Nero d'avola is indeed the base for the wines that Antonio Moretti makes at the Feudo Maccari winery in Pachino. Delicious and well balanced. He works with one of Italy's most famous oenologist, Carlo Ferrini.
Near Syracuse the Pupillo family have their beautiful family estate. Their wines are highly prized and they make both dry, semi-sweet, and sweet wines. One of the grapes rental luxury cars they use is the rare muscato di siracusa but they also use nero d'avola and other Sicilian varieties.
The lunch this day will be at one of the wineries we visit. They have prepared a number of Sicilian specialities for us, like pasta con fave (with beans and grated pecorino cheese), cannolo (a delicious crunchy cake filled with sweet goat ricotta), grilled sardines, octopus, or lamb stew.
Price per person : This is a sample program. Look in the menu " Our Tours Scheduled Tours " to check what scheduled tours are currently on the program or contact us to discuss a custom made private wine tour .
We warmly recommend rental luxury cars that you plan a few extra days here if you have the time! It is a very interesting rental luxury cars place and well worth some non-wine rental luxury cars tourism too! We can assist you with booking additional hotel nights if you want.
Our aim is that you shall experience some of the best and most interesting rental luxury cars that the wine region has to offer, both of wine and food. We put a big effort into finding and creating outstanding winery visits. Often it will not be the most famous and internationally well-known wineries that will give you the best and most unique experiences
It is usually when you get to meet the winemaker or winery owner himself (or often herself) that the visits become really exciting, and perhaps we even meet the whole family at the estate. Yo