Louis/Dressner Selections

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producer profile 08.12.2023

Tanca Nica Producer Profile

In an era of increasingly homogenized, <glossary term="post-terroir" title="1474">post-terroir</glossary>, <glossary term="Natural WIne" title="708">natural-ish wines</glossary> that taste more of process than place, producers like Nicoletta Pecorelli and Francesco Ferreri feel like a throwback to a core, increasingly lost tenet of what drew us to this world of <glossary term="Viticulture" title="1103">viticulture</glossary> and winemaking in the first place. For us, the <glossary term="Natural WIne" title="708">natural wine</glossary> movement has always been a philosophy revolving around healthy grapes from a specific place and <glossary term="Vintage" title="1109">vintage</glossary> being transformed into the purest, most honest representation the farmer could achieve. We'd tasted the Tanca Nica wines and were already believers, but a recent visit confirmed Pecorelli and Ferreri's passion and dedication for the wines and island of <glossary term="Pantelleria" title="759">Pantelleria</glossary>. Moreover, it showed us just how unprecedented and ambitious the Tanca Nica project actually is. Before diving into the intricacies of Tanca Nica itself, let us provide some context on <glossary term="Pantelleria" title="759">Pantelleria</glossary> and its <glossary term="Viticulture" title="1103">viticulture</glossary>. A tiny island and Italian territory 55 miles southwest of <glossary term="Sicily" title="951">Sicily</glossary> and only 35 miles from Tunisia, it's most famous for its <glossary term="DOC" title="1156">DOC</glossary> capers and sweet <glossary term="Passito" title="765">passito</glossary> wine made from <glossary term="Zibibbo" title="1131">Zibibbo</glossary> grapes. While long known to be capable of making some of the world's most captivating wines, the weather conditions do not make it easy: because of constant <glossary term="Sirocco" title="1484">Sirocco</glossary> winds year round, the vines must be <glossary term="Training System" title="1039">trained</glossary> in <glossary term="Gobelet" title="497">gobelets</glossary> just a few centimeters off the ground to avoid breakage. Despite being smack-dab in the Mediterranean, <glossary term="Pantelleria" title="759">Pantelleria</glossary> lacks any natural water resources and sees little rain. In such, circular basins - concas in <glossary term="Pantelleria" title="759">Pantescan</glossary> dialect - are dug around each <glossary term="Gobelet" title="497">gobelet</glossary> to retain winter rainfall. A technique called 'pizzicatura', which lasts from bud break to <glossary term="Flowering" title="1179">flowering</glossary>, involves manually breaking off the taller vine shoots to make sure that the vines grow within the concas, which then serve a double purpose of water retention and additional protection from the <glossary term="Sirocco" title="1484">Sirocco</glossary> winds. Finally, since vegetal competition is so intense, vines must be planted at low density, with traditional plantations measuring two meters by two meters. This <glossary term="Training System" title="1039">training system</glossary>, dubbed Alberello Pantesco, dates back thousands of years and is so unique it actually received UNESCO world heritage status a few years ago!  World heritage or not, maintaining these vines requires painstaking manual labor for very little wine. Francesco estimates it takes 800 hours of work per <glossary term="Hectare" title="523">hectare</glossary>, with <glossary term="Yield" title="1129">yields</glossary> averaging out to 20<glossary term="hl/ha" title="528">hl/h</glossary> in a normal <glossary term="Vintage" title="1109">vintage</glossary>. This is somewhat offset with the fact that <glossary term="Zibibbo" title="1131">Zibibbo</glossary> is one of the only varieties capable of bringing <glossary term="Second Growth" title="937">second-growth</glossary> grapes to full <glossary term="Maturation" title="639">maturity</glossary>, but not by much (<glossary term="Second Growth" title="937">second-growth</glossary> <glossary term="Yield" title="1129">yields</glossary> average 2. 5<glossary term="hl/ha" title="528">hl/h</glossary>). Most of the vines are very old, and its not uncommon for their roots to have dug over six meters into the <glossary term="Mother Rock" title="690">mother rock</glossary> to find their nutrients. For those willing to put in the time, effort and passion to see it through, the <glossary term="Concentration" title="324">concentration</glossary> and flavor in the grapes is exceptional. Sadly, it's no surprise that few if any are still up for the challenge. At its height, 5000 <glossary term="Hectare" title="523">hectares</glossary> of vines were planted on <glossary term="Pantelleria" title="759">Pantelleria</glossary>'s 32.5 square miles; down to about 150 today, a good amount of those vines remain abandoned. Ok, four paragraphs in and we can finally start talking about Nicoletta Pecorelli and Francesco Ferreri! Francesco is a <glossary term="Pantelleria" title="759">Pantescan</glossary> native and Nicoletta is from <glossary term="Sardinia" title="917">Sardinia</glossary>. The two met in Milan by total chance: Nicoletta worked as a sales assistant in Turin and was in Milan that day to fly back to <glossary term="Sardinia" title="917">Sardinia</glossary> for the holidays! Once Francesco had finished his <glossary term="Enology" title="422">enology</glossary> studies in <glossary term="Verona" title="1084">Verona</glossary>, the couple moved to New Zealand to work at a company that produces <glossary term="Biodynamic Preparation" title="826">biodynamic preperation</glossary>s before returning to <glossary term="Pantelleria" title="759">Pantelleria</glossary> to start Tanca Nica in 2015. Francesco is from a long line of fisherman, but got the wine-bug in his teens working the family vines with his father and grandfather. While he'd always felt the desire to return to <glossary term="Pantelleria" title="759">Pantelleria</glossary>, he is quick to point out it wouldn't be possible without Nicoletta:  "Tanca Nica is OUR project, not mine. Without her this would never gotten off the ground or continue to exist." Ferreri and Pecorelli work 3.5 <glossary term="Hectare" title="523">hectares</glossary> spread over 15 <glossary term="Parcel" title="760">parcels</glossary> within nine <glossary term="Contrada" title="330">contradas</glossary>. 50 <glossary term="Are" title="1208">ares</glossary> are from Francesco's family, the rest is rented from locals who don't want to see the vines go abandoned and an increasing amount of wealthy foreigners whose summer homes came with nearby vines. As they are the only <glossary term="Estate" title="427">estate</glossary> actively looking for new <glossary term="Parcel" title="760">parcels</glossary>, it is actually common for them to be offered <glossary term="Plot" title="1133">plots</glossary> to rent. The couple has used this to their advantage, trading off and dropping certain areas in search of the very best <glossary term="Terroir" title="1026">terroirs</glossary>. Most are isolated by woods and were abandoned before they took them over. As Francesco explained during our visit, <glossary term="Pantelleria" title="759">Pantelleria</glossary> is a tiny island but has an incredible diversity in soil compositions, <glossary term="Microclimate" title="656">micro-climates</glossary> and <glossary term="Elevation" title="419">elevation</glossary> levels. As you will discover below, the Tanca Nica project is an unprecendented exploration and celebration of this diversity. Francesco elaborates: "Every year we seek to capture the grapes’ life in the glass, in all of its phases (with regular tasting) until we put it in bottle. Especially regarding the <glossary term="Cru" title="1152">cru</glossary> wines, we do not add a gram of <glossary term="Sulfites" title="993">sulfur</glossary>, not because we are dogmatic in this discourse, but because we would like the wine to express all of itself with as much aroma as possible. For this reason, the <glossary term="Cru" title="1152">cru</glossary> wines feel tight and closed off for a longer period than the other wines, needing at least a year in bottle (a thing we cannot do because we are still not able to keep in our storage to overcome the summer heat - but it is our objective for the future.)" In <glossary term="Pantelleria" title="759">Pantescan</glossary> dialect, the term "Tanca Nica" means small, hilly land cultivated and arranged in <glossary term="Terrace" title="1022">terraces</glossary>. Each <glossary term="Terrace" title="1022">terraced</glossary> <glossary term="Parcel" title="760">parcel</glossary> - tanca in  <glossary term="Pantelleria" title="759">Pantescan </glossary>- is <glossary term="Vinification" title="1104">vinified</glossary> individually with various amounts of <glossary term="Maceration" title="610">maceration</glossary> - one day to three weeks - depending on the <glossary term="Phenols" title="784">phenolic</glossary> <glossary term="Maturation" title="639">maturity</glossary> of the <glossary term="Vintage" title="1109">vintage</glossary>. Most are pre-destined to go into Tanca Nica's largest production, "Soki Soki". This 100% <glossary term="Zibibbo" title="1131">Zibibbo</glossary> is sourced from 11 tancas within six <glossary term="Contrada" title="330">contradas</glossary>, each averaging 30 <glossary term="Are" title="1208">ares</glossary>. It serves as a snapshot of the island's most common soil composition: <glossary term="Volcanic" title="1117">volcanic</glossary> <glossary term="Sand" title="909">sands</glossary> of <glossary term="Pumice" title="1482">pumice</glossary> and <glossary term="lapilli" title="1461">lapilli</glossary> known locally as Soki Soki. Meant to be accessible in its youth, the wine pops with bright fruit and <glossary term="Aromatic" title="120">aromatics</glossary>. At a whopping 1000 bottles, the second largest production is a <glossary term="Cuvée" title="363">cuvée</glossary> called "Terra Forte". Produced from two tancas of very old vines, here the <glossary term="Zibibbo" title="1131">Zibibbo</glossary> grows on "terra forte" soils composed of <glossary term="Sand" title="909">sandy</glossary> <glossary term="Clay" title="301">clay</glossary> from degraded <glossary term="Basalt" title="145">basalt</glossary> and <glossary term="Obsidian" title="1483">obsidian</glossary>. The result is a much more powerful, structured expression of <glossary term="Zibibbo" title="1131">Zibibbo</glossary> that, while keeping the grapes' trademark aromatic qualities, is more serious and age-worthy.  Next are four <glossary term="Cru" title="1152">cru</glossary> wines, all single-tanca expressions of <glossary term="Zibibbo" title="1131">Zibibbo</glossary>: "Since 2019, we have focused our attention on four <glossary term="Plot" title="1133">plots</glossary> which, due to their characteristics, we consider the  "<glossary term="Grand Cru" title="501">Grand Crus</glossary>" of the island. This type of work can only be done if the soil is alive, as the <glossary term="Microflora" title="658">microfauna</glossary> interacts with the roots of the plants in a symbiotic exchange and are able to read the characteristics of the soil perfectly. To keep the wine as lively and faithful as possible to the territory, we don't add even a gram of <glossary term="Sulfites" title="993">sulfur dioxide</glossary>. The label colors highlight the color of the terrain profile: - Yellow label (from the Cufurà district): a <glossary term="Plot" title="1133">plot</glossary> made up of yellow <glossary term="Pumice" title="1482">pumice</glossary>. The wine is always delicate in its aromas and structure, more immediate than the other three labels. The scents reflect the maquis: alyssum and wild thyme. - Gray label (from in the Rukia district): a <glossary term="Plot" title="1133">plot</glossary> made up of gray <glossary term="Pumice" title="1482">pumice</glossary> with a layer of volcanic <glossary term="Mother Rock" title="690">mother rock</glossary> just 40 cm deep. Among the <glossary term="Cru" title="1152">crus</glossary>, it is the one that needs the most time to express itself: at the beginning it is <glossary term="Reduction" title="847">reduced</glossary>, with a slight <glossary term="Mouse" title="693">mouse</glossary>, but immediately after the summer it becomes complex and acquires an incredible depth. This is the windiest district of the island and I like to think that this is also felt in the wine. - Red label (from the San Marco district): a <glossary term="Plot" title="1133">plot</glossary> made up of red <glossary term="Sand" title="909">sand</glossary> rich in <glossary term="Iron" title="547">iron</glossary> and aluminium. The wine naturally tends to <glossary term="Oxidation" title="754">oxidize</glossary>, so much so that it can seem like a raisin base (that is, a dry raisin wine without sugar). Grapes that ripen near the sea, the wine absorbs all the summer heat. - Black label (from the Khaggiar district): a <glossary term="Plot" title="1133">plot</glossary> made up of black <glossary term="Basalt" title="145">basalt</glossary>, a very hard and heavy rock. The wine resembles the red label, but is much more austere." Pecorelli and Ferreri also produce a micro-<glossary term="Cuvée" title="363">cuvée</glossary> of <glossary term="Catarratto" title="249">Catarratto</glossary> called "Kaffefi". It is named after the contrada where 40 to 80 year old vines grow within a single tanca. It is the only white wine that sees no <glossary term="Maceration" title="610">maceration</glossary>, though it does go through a long, 24 hour <glossary term="Pressing" title="827">press</glossary> to give it extra structure.  Next in the lineup is "Firri Firri", a <glossary term="clairet" title="1467">clairet</glossary>-style <glossary term="Blend" title="168">blend</glossary> of 85% <glossary term="Catarratto" title="249">Catarratto</glossary>, 10% <glossary term="Pignatello" title="797">Pignatello</glossary> and 5% <glossary term="Ansonica/Inzolia" title="1323">Inzolia</glossary>. It's principally sourced from two  <glossary term="Parcel" title="760">parcels</glossary>, though random vines of <glossary term="Pignoletto" title="798">Pignoletto</glossary> are <glossary term="Co-plantation" title="309">co-planted</glossary> in many of the tancas and end up in the final wine. These varieties have historically always been planted along the walls of the <glossary term="Terrace" title="1022">terraces</glossary>.  Only one "real" red wine is made, and in tiny quantities. It's called "Nivuro Nostrale", and is made by <glossary term="Vinification" title="1104">vinifying</glossary> 97 plants (count em!) of 100+ year old <glossary term="Pignatello" title="797">Pignatello</glossary> and <glossary term="Alicante" title="90">Alicante</glossary>. These grapes come from "the most intimate and least known part of our island."  Two <glossary term="Pétillant Naturel" title="778">petillants naturels</glossary> are produced if the <glossary term="Vintage" title="1109">vintage</glossary> permits. "Ghirbi Bianco" is 100% <glossary term="Second Growth" title="937">second-growth</glossary> <glossary term="Zibibbo" title="1131">Zibbibo</glossary> grapes and "Ghirbi Rosato" is from seven <glossary term="Indigenous" title="1139">autochthonous</glossary> <glossary term="Varietal" title="1071">varieties</glossary> that grow under the walls of the <glossary term="Terrace" title="1022">terraces</glossary>: <glossary term="Catarratto" title="249">Catarratto</glossary>, <glossary term="Alicante" title="90">Alicante</glossary>, <glossary term="Pignatello" title="797">Pignatello</glossary>, <glossary term="Ansonica/Inzolia" title="1323">Inzolia</glossary> Imperiale and <glossary term="Ansonica/Inzolia" title="1323">Inzolia</glossary> Minuta, <glossary term="Grillo" title="511">Grillo</glossary> and <glossary term="Carignan" title="237">Carignan</glossary>. "<glossary term="Vinification" title="1104">Vinifying</glossary> them as an <glossary term="Methode Ancestrale" title="1311">ancestral method</glossary> is a way to enhance these grapes which are often not <glossary term="Harvest" title="521">harvested</glossary>. The sparkling wines are not produced every year." Finally, this is <glossary term="Pantelleria" title="759">Pantelleria</glossary> so there has to be a <glossary term="Passito" title="765">passito</glossary>! Dubbed "Passulata", Francesco describes it as: "the wine that best represents <glossary term="Pantelleria" title="759">Pantelleria</glossary>. Making this wine is an immeasurable act of love towards our island which, like Nature, knows how to be very generous, but also hard, tiring, unpredictable and ever-changing, different with each season." Over the years, we have had the honor of working with some of the most innovative and trailblazing producers in Europe. In our estimation, what binds them has always been a passion for expressing a sense of place, with <glossary term="Organic" title="746">organics</glossary>, <glossary term="Hand Harvesting" title="520">hand-harvesting</glossary>, <glossary term="Native Yeast" title="538">native yeasts</glossary> and <glossary term="Minimal Intervention" title="664">minimal intervention</glossary> serving as tools, a means to an end. As the promotion of <glossary term="Natural WIne" title="708">natural wine</glossary> continues devolving into big business, marketing gimmicks and pigeon-holing a one-funk-fits-all visual/flavor profile, it's both reassuring and a breath of fresh air to meet a couple as dedicated, humble, passionate and visionary as Nicoletta and Francesco. "We don't do this for fame or recognition: we do it for the island. None of the rules I learned in school applied to <glossary term="Pantelleria" title="759">Pantelleria</glossary>. I didn't like <glossary term="Zibibbo" title="1131">Zibibbo</glossary> at first because it didn't conform to what I'd been taught. I had to learn everything with the help of my father and hands-on experience. This liberated me and forged a path that made me love the grape and its place on <glossary term="Pantelleria" title="759">Pantelleria</glossary>. We know our wines are expensive, but we promise this is not speculation and nothing else but the estimated value of our work."  For even more in-depth information and photos, please read our visit recap from November 2023 (coming soon)

producer 22.05.2019

Château Combel la Serre