“Sattes, tiefdunkles Rubin mit Violettschimmer. Sehr dichte, stoffige Nase, balsamische Noten, nach Brombeeren und dunklen Kirschen, etwas Tabak, einladend. Zeigt sich am Gaumen mit viel klare und reifer Frucht, präzise, öffnet sich mit zupackendem, feinkörnigem Tannin, dicht gewebt, sehr langer Nachhall.” Othmar Kiem
This bottling is a blend of Nero d’Avola and a small percentage of other varieties. It offers lean, dark fruit on the nose and a soft full palate. While nicely flavored, it is showing astringent tannins and high acidity at this stage of development.
This opaque and midnight purple colored Italian Nero d’Avola opens with a blackberry bouquet with hints of rum cake and boysenberry. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied, balanced and fruit forward. The flavor profile opens with blackberry notes of rum and black plum. I also detected hints of old oak and faint prune lingering in the background. The finish is rather dry and its moderate tannins show excellent length. This wine is built for a cool evening. I would serve it with a ribeye steak. Enjoy – Ken
Rassiger und doch geschmeidiger Nobelsizilianer aus 90% Nero d’ Avola und anderen Rebsorten. Der Wein wird bis zu 18 Monate in französischer Eiche ausgebaut und reift anschliessend lange auf der Flasche. Aromen von reifen Früchten , begleitet von Nuancen von Veilchen, Tabak und Kakao. Am Gaumen gut strukturiert und ausbalanciert, geschmeidiges, langes Finale. Muss reifen.
Deep, pure, refined chalky and graphite notes. Youthful, long, bright and chewy. Serious wine with very typical Nero d’Avola aromas and flavours that last and last
Saturated ruby. Very dark aromas of black fruits, violet, graphite and bitter chocolate, plus sexy vanillin oak. Large-scaled and thick but suave, boasting outstanding depth and precision to its black fruit, cedar and herb flavors. Finishes with mouthcoating tannins and outrageous sweetness and size, but manages to maintain impressive verve. The best Mille e Una Notte in years, and one that reminds me of nero d’Avola, not cabernet sauvignon. Extremely well done.
So youthful and bright, the 2013 Passito di Pantelleria Ben Ryé (750-milliliter) is all about those primary aromas. An enormously fragrant grape like Zibibbo has plenty of those to go around. Fresh fruit tones of nectarine and floral tones of jasmine and honeysuckle appear upfront. Passito perfumes of candied apricot, peach cobbler, zesty orange peel, Moroccan preserved lemon and honey ooze forth from the bouquet in a second wave of aromatic intensity. The mouthfeel is sticky, rich and creamy in texture. Ben Ryé delivers a big dose of Sicilian sweetness on the close.
“Golden yellow. Very intense, deep aromas of orange marmalade, dried mango, apricot jelly and honeyed dried figs. Bright, harmonious acidity gives noteworthy clarity and cut to the rich date, fig and orange oil flavors. This strikingly delicious, refined wine manages the neat trick of being superconcentrated but also light on its feet; thanks to its vibrant acidity it seems much less sweet than it actually is. Finishes bright and extremely long. This strikes me as one of the best vintages of Ben Ryé in memory.” (Ian d’Agata)
Aus angetrockneten Zibibbo-Trauben, ausgebaut im Barrique, Glänzendes, sattes Bernstein, Überschwängliche Nase mit vielfältigen Aromen, duftet nach getrockneten Orangenschalen, Mandarine. Datteln und getrockneten Feigen, unterlegt von würzigen Noten nach Ingwer. Am Gaumen rund und geschmeidig, wirkt wie aus einem Guss, zeigt Noten nach getrockneten Marillen, Feigen, auch Mandarine, sehr langer Nachhall, zum Reinbeißen!
Dried strawberry and fig paste notes are rich and aromatic, layered with acidity that drives the flavors of dried fruit, honey, bergamot, salted caramel, clove and anise. Drink now through 2030.
“Bright amber color. Rich aromas of crystallized apricot, mango nectar, saffron, dates, dried nuts and sesame oil. Round and multilayered, showing serious sweetness (203 g/l) to the rich apricot jam, date and fig flavors; peppery acidity (7.2 g/l) gives clarity and cut to the middle palate. Finishes clean and long, with a trace of alcoholic heat. Only 6,465 bottles of this Limited Edition were released, as the wine was kept longer in the estate’s cool cellars to allow it to develop further complexity prior to commercial release. Made from grapes grown anywhere from 20 to 400 meters above sea level in ten different island contrade.” (2015 – 2021) (Ian d’Agata)
The 2008 Contessa Entellina Rosso Mille e una Notte stands out immediately in a blind tasting, thanks to the wine’s instantly recognizable pedigree. Crafted in a seamless manner, this mostly Nero d’Avola based wine is inky dark and beautifully concentrated with thick layers of blackberry, barbecue spice and a defining note of eucalyptus oil (that seems stronger in this vintage). This is a soft and penetrating effort with long, polished tannins, impressive richness and persistency. Donnafugata doesn’t reveal what other grapes may be present in the blend, but given the strong Bordeaux influences at the winery, there could be grapes associated with that part of France. In the style of the great super Tuscan wines, Mille e una Notte is a true “super Sicilian.” Drink 2015-2025.
The 2009 Mille e Una Notte is a gorgeous wine that shows its age with pride. A beautiful wine like this puts any doubt concerning the aging ability of Sicilian red wines to rest. Polished and carefully evolved notes of dried cherry, licorice, pressed rose petal, dark chocolate and coffee bean add momentum to the bouquet. The wine is mostly Nero d’Avola with smaller percentages of other red grapes thrown into the mix. Great care goes into making this wine and it shows. The large production numbers also mean that Mille e Una Notte is relatively easy to find at a wineshop near you.
