2024 Vigna di Gabri, Donnafugata

• Style: Crystalline Sicilian white
• Taste: Green-apple snap, citrus, flinty freshness with mineral grip
• Food: Shellfish, grilled fish, fresh seafood, vegetables
• Occasion: Warm evening aperitivo, Sunday lunch, date night
• Serve: Chilled, 13% ABV, no ceremony required

In the Glass — Tasting Notes

Bright and refreshing, the 2024 Vigna di Gabri opens with green-apple and citrus notes — the kind of flinty freshness that speaks to Inzolia's early ripening and natural acidity. At 13% ABV, it sits at the perfect balance between substance and drinkability, neither heavy nor ephemeral. There's enough mineral spine to cut through food without demanding ceremony, with a sea-salt minerality that runs through every sip.

The Winery — Donnafugata

The Rallo family has crafted wine in Sicily since 1851, and their 1983 launch of Donnafugata marked a turning point: recovering the region's capacity for refined, food-friendly table wines after centuries devoted to Marsala production. Four estates — spread across Contessa Entellina in the hills east of Marsala, Vittoria to the island's south-eastern tip, Pantelleria's volcanic soils, and Etna's slopes — give them unmatched knowledge of indigenous varieties. The Vigna di Gabri is neither tired bulk wine nor self-conscious showpiece, but a working wine that understands its purpose: modern care applied to what the terroir naturally offers.

At Your Table — Food Pairing & Serving

Serve this with grilled sea bass, fritto misto, fresh vegetables, or good olive oil. The acidity shines brightest with shellfish and calamari, where the sea-salt minerality plays to seafood's briny character. It's the wine for warm evenings, Sunday lunches, or the moment before dinner proper begins — an aperitivo that doesn't fade when food arrives. If you're building a Sicily selection, this sits alongside the finest expressions of what the island's white varieties deliver. It's worth exploring the broader Italy range and other Donnafugata bottlings to see where the family's four-decade vision continues to lead.