Åsa’s Wine of the Month: ”Behind the island” there is a sweet wine filled with sunshine – Dietro l’Isola from Salvino Gorgone

Salvino Gorgone owns two hectares on one of the southernmost islands of Italy, Pantelleria, south of Sicily. He makes a wonderful sweet wine using the passito method (drying of the grapes for some time after the harvest) called Dietro L’Isola, “behind the island”. It has aromas of sun-ripened peaches, apricots and honey. It has an astonishing fresh acidity so that it is sweet without being cloying. The balance between sweetness, fruit and acidity makes this wine a wonderful example of a passito di Pantelleria. On the palate it is filled with figs and citrus fruit. It’s made from a grape called zibibbo. It’s a wine that is best drunk on its own, without any food. My suggestion is to simply replace the cheese or the dessert with a glass of Dietro l’Isola so that it can shine on its own. A half-litre bottle costs some 20 euro. Salvino Gorgone does not have a web site but can e reached on salvino.gorgone [at] libero [dot] it