Tasting Notes: Nerocapitano is what the locals call Frappato. This grape is typically blended with Nero D’Avola to make Sicily’s only DOCG wine, Cerasuolo di Vittoria. On its own it's bright and vibrant with tons of earthy red cherry notes. The Lamoresca plantings are twenty-year-old vines growing on limestone and clay soils at 1400ft above sea level. No chemicals are used in farming and no additions during vinification. This nuanced red loves a slight chill and shows a dynamic mix of bright red cherries, dark chocolate, pomegranate and a soft mouthfeel. Incredibly balanced and electric on the palate, this may be the finest example of Frappato available and is certainly one of the tastiest natural wines you will come across.
Estate History: Lamoresca owner and winemaker Filippo Rizzo owned and operated a small restaurant in Belgium, among the first to be serving natural wines anywhere outside of Paris. His family ties brought him and his wife Nancy back to Sicily to make wine on a tiny farm, smack dab in the middle of nowhere, in the southernmost corner of the province of Catania. The farm sits at 1400 ft above sea level, a collection of beautiful rolling hills, the only reference point being the ever-smoldering peak of Mt. Etna in the distance. While reviving the 60-year-old vines on the estate, Filippo spent several vintages learning with his friend and fellow winemaker Frank Cornelissen by making wine on Mt. Etna. Filippo named his farm Lamoresca, and it is the only winery in the area.
Filippo is the best version of a ‘Natural’ winemaker. No dogma, simply a desire to craft wines with as little intervention as possible. The hot days, cool nights and dry conditions help him to work without the aid of any chemical or pesticide. All wines are naturally fermented without temperature control and no sulfur is used at all throughout the process.
