Regional Institute of Wine and Oil

The passito wines of Pantelleria are protagonists in Asti

After the experience of Passitaly, the first event dedicated to Sicilian sweet wines which has just concluded with great success, the action to promote and enhance this type of wine made in Sicily continues. Saturday 13 September, as part of the "Tasting Evenings" of the "Douja d'Or" in Asti organized by the Special Agency of the Asti Chamber of Commerce in collaboration with the ONAV (the National Organization of Wine Tasters), in fact, the sweet wines of Pantelleria will be tasted.

The aim of the evening is to introduce the public to the dessert wines of the Mediterranean and in particular of Sicily, a forerunner in their production. A tasting-excursus that will benefit from the testimonies of the Extraordinary Commissioner of IRVO, Antonino Di Giacomo Pepe, the Mayor of Pantelleria, Salvatore Gabriele and the Regional Councilor for Agriculture Paolo Ezechia Reale. The tasting will be led by the oenologist and Onav national vice-president, Gianni Giardina.

An event that aims to retrace and continue the results achieved during the Passitaly event: “This Pantelleria event which had its baptism this year, was born not only with the intention of shining the spotlight on it but on the whole of Sicily. – states Di Giacomo – We intend to underline the importance of the heroic viticulture practiced on the island by giving a strong support to the companies, from small to large, and asking them in return for a greater effort of unity and collaboration with a view to a common improvement”. 

“Bringing the Passito di Pantelleria – comments Councilor Reale – into a prestigious event like the “Douja d'or” is an opportunity to make Sicilian excellence known at a national level, but also to anticipate a theme which will be the leitmotif of our presence at Expo 2015. The viticulture practiced in the smaller islands represents, in fact, a whole way of living according to the Mediterranean style. A lifestyle in which age-old values, traditions, perfumes, history and nature blend and confuse. The nectar of Pantelleria, celebrated in recent days by the first edition of Passitaly, has all the strength and passion of Sicily. “The Pantelleria tree” – currently being examined by the UNESCO International Commission for recognition as an intangible heritage of humanity – represents not only the symbol of an Island but also the emblem and identity of a people who through his “heroic agriculture” challenged nature, managing to extract a concentration of strength and beauty from every grape”.