Vigna nica di Maria Genovese

“Nica” is a Sicilian word meaning small.  Vigna nica is in fact a small Sicilian vineyard in Sicily which started off with two hectares of land, which year by year has reached today’s acreage of seven hectares.  My vineyards are located in the province of Messina, overlooking the Aeloian Islands and in the area where the Mamertino D.O.C. (Protected Designation of Origin) wine is produced.

The origins of the Mamertino wine are very old, as the Mamertini (the sons of Mamerte, from the latin Marte , god of war) were mercenaries who planted in the Milazzo area of Sicily “a fine vine for the production of a fine wine”,that is to say the Mamertino.  A warm, generous and easy wine, one of Julius Caesar’s favourites, as testified in several writings of the time.

My wines are produced following the classic organic method of cultivation along with the more recent biodynamic technique. This enables us to experiment new tastes and develop, day after day, a deeper and more respectful knowledge of our territory and environment.

We harvest our grapes early in the morning.  We place 16 kg of handpicked, selected grapes in small fruit crates.  The winemaking process of red wines entails an extended maceration of the grape skins and several operations of pumping over and dèlestage.  The winemaking process of our white and rosè wines takes place at low temperatures in an inert atmosphere recreated by the use of dry ice.  My wines are artisan products: They will never be the same from one year to the next because each plant is different and above all each year is different … and this is the beauty of it!