I’m not new to wine. My father inherited 3 hectares of vineyard from my grandfather and in the 90s he gave most of the grapes to other wineries in the Marsala area. Wine production was limited to family consumption. My first memories in the cellar are from when I was 15 and helped my father in the production of those few bottles. After a couple of years I decided to study oenology and viticulture, gaining experience in a few wineries, some of which abroad. At university I’ve been taught that wine is a biochemical process, but soon I realised that I saw wine in a different manner. The winemaker staying in his cellar – adjusting the wine, modifying it, assembling it, often tasting it and deciding whether or not to improve it – that’s just not me! It was thanks to my oenology studies that I realised that true wine is not chemistry but territory. I am a winemaker: the one that works in the vineyard, raising and arranging it. I select the best grapes because, thanks to my studies, I’m very familiar with the chemistry of fermentation and when I taste the grapes I know when will be the best time for harvesting.
And then I take the grapes to the cellar and vinify them, as naturally as possible. I produce wine that is the maximum expression of the territory in which I live. - Fabio Ferracane