Feudo Maccari Saia 2014
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Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
A superb match for full-flavored meats and game, especially stews and roasts.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A big and rich red with plum and berry character. Lots of blueberries, too. Full and velvety. Flavorful finish. Polished yet flavorful Nero d'Avola.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
From the Noto area of southern Sicily, the 2014 Sicilia Saia is a pure expression of Nero d'Avola that reflects some of the characteristics of the limestone soils found in the area. There is a faint mineral vein that runs through this wine. It pulls together the various elements of ripe fruit and spice. Despite the opulence and the grandeur of the wine, it also shows an elegant side that comes in large part thanks to that mineral definition. This wine is exceptionally well balanced and beautiful in this classic vintage.
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Wine Spectator
A harmonious, medium-bodied red that layers fine tannins with a creamy mix of crushed black cherry, dried marjoram, orange peel and ground anise flavors. A lasting mineral note marks the elegant finish. Nero d'Avola.
Other Vintages
2020-
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The Feudo Maccari lies just over a mile from the sea, and basks in a dry, sun drenched climate verging on torrid in the summer months. Mediterranean winds moderate the climate and aerate the clusters, and some irrigation is required during the hot, dry season. The vineyards lie 240 feet above sea level on southerly exposed slopes, and the predominant volcanic soil profile is mixed in a few areas with white sand and chalk deposits. The Nero d’Avola vines are trained on trees in the traditional Sicilian manner, with the other varieties to more conventional systems. The first vintage of Saia, composed entirely of Nero d’Avola, is in the 2002 vintage; experimentation continues with other varieties.
The diversity of the estates’ soil and climatic conditions dictates that cultivation and winemaking follow the demands of the environment and pursuit of quality. Yields are restricted, and at harvest the clusters are handpicked, sorted, destemmed, and put into a conveyer-belt apparatus which breaks the skins rather than crushes the berries. Fermentation takes place in a combination of temperature controlled stainless steel and lined open-top fermentors with maceration periods appropriate to the varietal in question followed by natural malolactic fermentation in tank. Cooperage consists primarily of 225-liter barriques with some capacity in 500-litre tonneaux, and is of new and one year’s use; length of oak contact depends on both the wine and vintage, but generally lasts for a period of twelve to eighteen months. A first blending of lots takes place when the wine is placed in barrique; a second at the first racking. The wines are then bottled with minimum intervention.