2015 Frank Cornelissen ‘Contadino’ Etna DOC

Price: $30
Region: Mount Etna < Italy
Grapes: Field blend of Nerello Mascalese (85%) + Nerello Capuccio, Minella Nera, Allicante Bouschet, Minella Bianco
Vineyard/Cellar Stats: Certified biodynamic farming, 50+year-old vines, clay/limestone soils, ZERO added SO2, aged in amphora
Winemaker: Frank Cornelissen

We featured the previous vintage of this wine last year, and I wept tears of joy when I got my allotment of the 2015 vintage, as it has now become wildly sought-after, thanks in part to rapper dude Action Bronson and his show F*ck, That’s Delicious. If you didn’t try it last time around, here’s the scoop: Frank Cornelissen, Sicily’s eccentric (and some might say extreme) natural winemaker, pays homage to the farmer wines of Etna (contadino is Italian for farmer) with this fragrant and extremely sexy light red. In 2015, Frank decided not to make his Susucaru Rosato and instead put the fruit into his 2015 Contadino, which means this vintage is even lighter and more dangerously drinkable, and exploding with personality. It smells incredible, like wild rose and blood orange juice. A touch wild on entry, this pleasant funk turns to bright, high-toned red fruit on the palate. Neon, vivid and intense, and overflowing with that smoky, spicy, juicy volcanic goodness, you want to drink the whole bottle just to see what happens next. I’m with Action Bronson here – f*ck, that’s delicious! BTW Frank is the man – we visited him on Mt. Etna last summer, tasted barrel samples and debated the meaning of “natural” wine. Check out these pics of our visit: