# Passorosso (2024)

- **Producer:** Vini Franchetti
- **Colour:** red
- **Type:** still
- **Grapes:** Nerello Mascalese
- **Region:** Sicilia, Italy
- **Style:** Classic
- **Alcohol:** 14.5%
- **Average price:** €28
- **Contains sulphites:** Yes
- **When to drink:** Now or Later
- **Serving temperature:** 16–18 °C
- **Aromas & flavours:** cherry, strawberry, plum, redcurrant, lavender, ginger, black pepper, vanilla, cloves, smoke, leather, tobacco, mushroom

## About this wine

Passorosso is the flagship wine of Passopisciaro, an estate founded in 2000 by the visionary winemaker Andrea Franchetti on the slopes of Mount Etna. Franchetti was a pioneer in recognizing the potential of Etna's ancient, high-altitude vineyards. Passorosso acts as an orchestral blend of the estate's holdings, sourcing Nerello Mascalese from ancient bush-trained vines across five distinct contrade: Malpasso, Guardiola, Santo Spirito, Favazza, and Arcuria. This multi-terroir approach captures a holistic and complex portrait of the volcano's unique, high-altitude microclimates and diverse lava flows.

## Interesting facts

- Sourced from ancient, bush-trained (alberello) old vines with an average age of 100 years, growing up to 800 meters above sea level.
- Passorosso is a blend of five distinct contrade, with nearly 40% of the 2024 fruit coming from the prized Contrada Guardiola.
- The estate was founded by legendary winemaker Andrea Franchetti, a pioneer in mapping Etna's unique lava-flow terroirs.

## Food pairing

The high acidity and fine-grained, chalky tannins of Nerello Mascalese make it incredibly versatile, often drawing comparisons to Pinot Noir or Nebbiolo. It pairs beautifully with rich, earthy flavors like mushrooms and game, while its vibrant acidity cuts through the fat of roasted meats and rich pasta sauces.

## Wine making process

The grapes are hand-harvested from old vines, some up to 100 years old, situated between 550 and 800 meters above sea level. In the cellar, maceration is kept relatively short at 8 to 9 days to avoid over-extracting harsh tannins from the Nerello Mascalese skins. Fermentation takes place in temperature-controlled stainless steel vats below 26-28°C. The wine is then aged primarily in large neutral oak barrels (botti grandi) to allow the fine tannins to integrate and soften, with a small portion aged in concrete vats, before being bottled.