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“[Nerello Mascalese] is to Marcello Mastroianni as John Wayne is to Cabernet.” Alberto Graci, Graci Winery, Passopisciaro, Sicily. My mission is to explore the Etna DOC (Denominazione di Origine Controllata) wine region and find out what is percolating on Mt. Etna, other than the still-active volcano.
Technically, it’s the French who say rosé; the rest of us have adopted their usage of the word. It’s right that we use the French version; France is the indisputable land of rosé wine.
The Tormaresca estate is almost as remote as Tasca D’Almerita’s Regaleali in central Sicily, and both are well worth the trip. We parked in what we later found out was the back of the winery and searched on foot for five minutes to find the entrance.
The trump card of the terme is an outdoor Roman thermal pool perched up against the mountain that looks out over the ski slopes and picturesque Alpine valley.
Attempting to be undaunted, I set out on my Metropolitan Lady bicycle every day, my computer in tow. I rode to coffee bars, restaurants, and friends’ homes and places of business to use my laptop and wireless card, much to the amusement and chagrin of the Salentini, who would say to me, “You are fixated. Stop the computer. Go to the sea!”