WESTERN SICILY: The winter was mild and rainy ensuring a good water supply for the vines. In July the temperature was very high for a week. Luckily the indigenous Sicilian grape varieties (from which the range of wines of Centonze Srl is made) were at an early stage of maturation so that they were not affected.

Centonze Srl. The Company was established in 1998 by a family of oenologists, Giovanni Centonze together with his son and daughter Nicola and Carla. Approximately 20 hectares of vineyards belong to the Company in the area of Trapani and the Centonze family manages the best vineyards and selects the best grapes in the most representative Sicilian terroirs (Cerasuolo di Vittoria DOCG, Sicilia IGT). “..2015 was a good vintage. The harvest was very satisfying. We picked the whites at the beginning of September, Nero d’Avola and Zibibbo in mid September and Frappato at the end of September. The fermentation of the musts proceeded well. The fermentation was a bit slower than usual for the whites, but this was positive as it made the wines more complex. The reds have a good structure and are rich. The grape yield was good, 10%-15% higher than in 2014…

MESSINA: The winter was mild. In the springtime there wasn’t much rain. The temperature was high in July. In August it wasn’t very hot. There was hail before the harvest, but luckily without too much damage. Maurizio Costantino of Istituto Agrario P. Cuppari (Faro DOC – 60% Nerello Mascalese 20% Nerello Cappuccio 10% Nocera 5% Nero d’Avola 5% Sangiovese): “…as our first vintage of Faro DOC was 2010, this is our 5t h harvest. We harvested Nero d’Avola at the end of August/beginning of September and the other grape varieties that make up the blend of Faro on the 20t h of September. The fermentation of the wine went well. The forecast for the 2015 wine is good. We are now using more tonneaux than barriques in order to maintain the characteristics of the grape varieties…..”