Interesting about the Ripasso / Ripassa' / Appassimento / Recioto / Passivento / Passivento thing which seems to be a range of related techniques in rack-drying and/or addition of partially-dried new grapes or second-use to make wines.Provost Drunk wrote:Amarone has long been my favourite style and is the true king of Italian reds IMO (all due respect to Barolo and Brunello), so I couldn't pass at the opportunity to try out the Sicilian take on the style.
I could see the dual appeal; the added concentration of dense wine grape flavors and potentially also a bit of an umami / meaty / wild herbal element from all the additional exposure to wild flora in the open air, maybe a little positive oxidation - is this accurate to surmise?
I have tended to avoid Ripasso, etc wines, probably biased toward the 'purer' styles of Barbaresco, Barolo and so on b/c inclined to believe they will be kinder to my head afterwards to be quite honest. But I would be up to the taste challenge of a few outstanding examples eg. Ripasso Amarone or Recioto Valpolicella. Drier the better for me but intensity and finesse are of course more important.
Nero D'Avola is also a classic Sicilian workhorse grape so that's not a bad value point and I may check it out. It's VERY tough getting exceptional & well-finished wines in Canuck Land for less than a yuppie food stamp (that's a twenty bill.)