The Under-the-Radar Sicily Province You Should Explore This Summer
Vittoria
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A 30-minute drive south brings you to Frappato’s heartland, where Sicily’s only DOCG, Cerasuolo di Vittoria, named for its cherry-red color (“cerasa” in Sicilian), was born from the marriage of Frappato’s elegance and Nero d’Avola’s structure. “For me, Frappato is much more than a grape variety; it has been a traveling companion,” Arianna says. “I needed its elegance, its story to tell, its layered beauty, its oenological potential: Frappato took me by the hand and accompanied me as I built this path. At the same time, I believe it needed someone to harvest it with love and pride.”
It all started 18 years ago in Fossa di Lupo, where earth turns red in the evening and wind from the Iblei combs through the vines. That first hectare sits along the SP68, the oldest wine road ever recorded, connecting Gela to Kamarina three millennia ago. For generations, farmers walked it to bring wines to the coast. Her SP68 wine is named after this ancient road. From that single hectare, the estate has grown to 30 hectares across 10 contrade, including Bombolieri, where vines over two decades old stretch across limestone ridges (and why Il Frappato BB is so delicious), plus several hectares of ancient olive groves, Tumminia wheat, pear orchards, citrus, and vegetable gardens. It’s anything but just a winery.
The region’s pioneering spirit lives at Azienda Agricola COS, founded in 1980 by Giambattista Cilia, Cirino Strano, and Arianna’s uncle, Giusto Occhipinti, where wines mature in terracotta amphorae rather than oak. After tasting my way through COS, I checked into Baglio Occhipinti, an eco-luxury retreat run by Arianna’s sister Fausta. I was handed freshly made almond milk at check-in instead of wine, which threw me off, but one sip explained everything—still the best almond milk I’ve ever tasted. It’s the kind of gesture that defines this place, serving what the land produces rather than what’s expected. Book two nights for the Sicilian tiles, the pool shaded by fruit trees, and the restaurant that draws people from across Sicily. Breakfast is a regal event: freshly baked goods, local meats and cheeses, the most beautiful produce you’ve ever seen, and yes, a glass jar filled to the rim with the delicious almond milk.
