Cantine Barbera, Tivitti Menfi Inzolia 2025

100% Inzolia (Ansonica)

Menfi, Sicily, Italy

Soils of clay with calcareous components, very rich in limestones and sea minerals. Vineyard planted in 2007, vertical shoot positioning, Guyot training. Harvested at night. Alcoholic fermentation from a pied-de-cuve of wild yeast. Soft pressing after 24-hours skin contact, in stainless steel tanks. Malolactic fermentation spontaneous. 6 months on fine lees in stainless steel tanks. Unfined. VEGAN. 8,500 bottles produced.

Fresh and pleasant like the briny wind blowing from the Mediterranean, this Inzolia comes from young vineyards planted in Tenuta Belicello and is a charming white wine that offers pure Sicilian pleasure at every sip. Bright straw yellow with a greenish hue, the wine has a fresh and charming bouquet of zesty citrus, white peach, and almond
blossom, underscored by delicate floral undertones. On the palate, it is fresh and fruit-driven, with bright salinity and a long, savory finish. Pair with fried shrimp, a simple Spaghetti Marinara, orange salad with anchovies and artichokes, or lentils with olive oil.

Inzolia is a very traditional Sicilian grape variety. Inzolia is able to absorb the sea brine from the air and from the soil, and its flavor is enriched by pleasant savory notes that can compensate the variety's innate low acidity. This grape variety is so well linked to Menfi's terroir that it grows spontaneously on the beach: it's fascinating to see its extraordinary adaptation during your morning walk along the Mediterranean shores. Marilena Barbera created this vineyard of Inzolia in 2007, by grafting old fruiting wood picked in Dietro le Case vineyard onto new rootstocks: a careful massal selection that aims to preserve the ancient genetic material that has lived here for 100+ years.

Cantine Barbera is a family-run winery in Menfi, on Sicily’s southwestern coast, where the Barbera family has been farming for generations. The family’s agricultural roots date back to the 1920s, when Marilena Barbera’s grandfather planted the first vineyards at Tenuta Belicello. For much of the family’s history, however, the grapes were sold to larger wineries rather than bottled under their own name. Marilena eventually returned to Sicily after studying political science in Florence and spending time away from the family estate, and after the unexpected death of her father, she became increasingly involved in the vineyards and cellar. In 2001, she officially established Cantine Barbera and began transforming the family’s traditional grape-growing operation into an estate winery focused on expressing the character of Menfi and its Mediterranean landscape.

Today, Marilena farms organically and biodynamically, with the estate receiving organic certification in 2016 and biodynamic certification in 2023. In the cellar, she takes a similarly hands-off approach, relying on indigenous yeasts and spontaneous fermentation, avoiding fining, and keeping filtration and sulfur additions to a minimum. The vineyards’ proximity to the Mediterranean Sea is an important part of the wines’ identity: intense Sicilian sunshine brings ripe fruit and generous texture, while constant coastal breezes help preserve freshness and contribute a distinctive saline, savory character.