Barone Montalto Collezione Di Famiglia Syrah

Super Syrah from Sicily! Although best known for producing the native Nero d’Avola grape, Syrah can be bit of a hidden gem in this part of Italy. As Drinks Business said – “Sicily is the undiscovered terroir for Syrah” while Forbes said “Syrah seems to have a particular affinity for Sicily.”

Wine nerds out there might be even interested to know that some reckon that Syrah originated in Sicily way back in the day (as in Roman times) from the Sicilian town of Syracuse.

And while it’s not new we don’t see many good examples hit our shores. NZ Master of Wine Steve Bennett has brought this Italian beauty into NZ for the first time and we were super impressed at first sip.

So was another Master of Wine, Bob Campbell, who scored this 91/100 and said “Deeply-tinted syrah with intense blackcurrant, cassis, black pepper, violet and liquorice flavours. Perhaps a little jammy but at an acceptable level give the warm growing conditions. It certainly packs quite a punch for a wine at this price point.”

This looks the part and tastes the part. Remember the name Barone Montalto, they’re ones to keep an eye on we reckon. Pair this Sicilian star with a cut of good old Kiwi beef or lamb for the ideal food match. Buon appetito!