Wines from another Planet(a)

There are those who maintain Planeta does not have a very territorial approach. Well, one need only taste their latest masterpieces to realize how absurd such an assumption is.

Being prone to preconceptions is not a sign of intelligence. At most it has to do with fear and a desire to have confirmation of certain positions due to a misplaced conservatism cloaked by rhetoric. This came to mind the other day while I tasted two wines from Planeta, the very famous Sicilian producer that initially had great success for his “oaked” Chardonnay, which many liked while others thought it was the devil’s work. “Fat, heavy, woody” were the accusations made at the time, even if some similar wines, perhaps Californian or even Marcassin or Grghic, were not much different.

The Diego Planeta, the deus ex machina of the family winery, as well as of Settesoli in Menfi, brought from Australia Carlo Corino, a brilliant and very modern enologist at the time, the mid-1990s, and the “international” style of that Chardonnay was the direct result.

For years, after Alessio, Santi and Francesca took over the company, many continued to consider Planeta wines to be too market orientated, with too much wood, too many non-native varietals and so on.

After that Chardonnay, they produced many other wines, in Noto, Vittoria, on Etna and not just the initial ones from their vineyards in Sambuca and Menfi, in the province of Agrigento. Alessio, in particular, became an extraordinary winemaker and dreamed up and created many new wines, from Cometa to Santa Cecilia, from Cerasuolo di Vittoria to wines called Eruzione 1614, made from vineyards at the highest altitude possible for an Etna DOC wine. Then came Didacus, an evolution of the initial Chardonnay and it was dedicated to Diego, his uncle, who had that nickname as a boy.

And the stylistic evolution in regard to winegrowing and winemaking was incredible.

The two wines I mentioned before were a Riesling Eruzione 1614 and a Sicilia Menfi Chardonnay Didacus, both 2018, both white wines and both made from non-native varietals. Both, however, are stratospheric. The first is one of the best Rieslings in Italy, a blend of ice and fire, the north and the south with the varietal’s notes of hydrocarbons and those of orange blossom. The second wine is an international-class Chardonnay, composed, elegant, with an engaging Mediterranean touch. Two exceptional wines that only those who have preconceptions could criticize. Worse for them. 

Riesling Eruzione 1614 2018

98/100 - € 32

Made from Rhine Riesling grapes cultivated on Etna at 850m above sea level. Fermented and matured on the lees only in stainless steel. An intense yellow-green color and a bouquet that is both original and varietal at the same time with notes of grapefruit and hydrocarbons but also ginger and candied citrus. The mouthfeel is taut and lively and also has a nice body that is agile and deep with an excellent persistence. Surprising and extraordinary. The ice from the volcano and the sun of Sicily seem to come together in this wine.

Sicilia Menfi Chardonnay Didacus 2018

97/100 - € 65

Made from Chardonnay and matured in barriques for 10 months. A luminous, straw-yellow color. The bouquet is very defined with scents of yellow plum, flint, citron. Fresh almond and sweet spice. The mouthfeel is composed and taut, very elegant, saline, with an excellent body without being heavy. A masterpiece.

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