A blend of 25% Minustellu, 25% Carcaghjolu Neru, and 50% Niellucciu, all sourced from the Ravagnola vineyard. Fermented and aged in stainless steel. Carcaghjolu Neru: 15 day maceration half destemmed half whole cluster with light daily pumpovers. Minustellu: same but all destemmed. Niellucciu: direct press and vinified like a rose before blending with the other two. After blending, aged one year in tank.

Clos Marfisi

If you aren’t familiar with Corsica, the main event is Patrimonio. This AOC covers 400ha with half of them being owned by the two largest producers, and the other half split up amongst 30 smaller growers. If you haven’t already guessed, Clos Marfisi is part of the latter. Brother and sister, Mathieu and Julie are fifth generation at the helm of this estate, having taken over from their father, Touissant, when Julie returned in 2001, and her brother in 2012, after having careers elsewhere in France.

Clos Marfisi’s vineyards (which Touissant planted about 40-50 years ago) rise up from the Mediterranean with southern and western exposures on steep slopes that are practically white with large chunks of broken up limestone. Seriously impressive. Equally impressive is the fact that they never gave into outside pressure and the entirety of the estate is planted to local varieties, so you won’t find any Grenache here. Their father is still very active in the vineyards, and is the main reason that this estate has never been touched by pesticides or herbicides, which were shunned for one reason or another by previous generations of vignerons on the island. Vestiges of the old guard remain in the cellar as well where native yeasts have always been used for fermentations, and sulfur levels are kept to a minimum. Their commitment to honoring the past while shaping their own future is incredibly exciting to us.