Breaking Omertà for this Sicilian Wine

I read about Toto Riina, crack open a special bottle from Frank Cornelissen, and strap on my lupara for this deep dive.

Frank Cornelissen Magma Terre Siciliane Rosso 2020

Varieties: Nerello Mascalese

Region: Etna, Sicily, Italy

Producer: Frank Cornelissen

Costs: $325-$375

Breaking Omertà for this Sicilian Wine

I’m back. Thou hath returned, much like the prodigal son. I have had fewer nights recently to really just sit down and enjoy a bottle of wine to write about. The summer season for the retail side has definitely been busier, which is great in its own right. My brain works in mysterious ways, however, and I always make such a ritual out of these writing pieces. Circumstances have to be correct, wine must be had, and then the thoughts flow much easier. It’s a celebration of the night alongside the wine itself. Well, tonight offered one of these opportunities. This will be an ode to everything Sicilian today. I am currently reading Octopus: The Long Reach of the International Sicilian Mafia by Charlie Sterling. To go with that, you have one of the more iconic Sicilian wines of recent times: Magma by Frank Cornelissen. There were only six bottles that came into the state of Maine, from what I hear. I was able to grab three of them for the shop. We call that strategic investment right there. Well, I guess it may not be an investment if you open it for yourself. Anyways, I digress, and here we are. The last couple sips of a cult wine, looking up pictures of Luciano Leggio, and ready to spill the beans for all of you. Omertà will be broken to discuss this wine. But how did we get here? What is the wine itself like? Does it justify that price point? We will get into all that and more. As always, I got to start with the wine to keep the folks around. Then I can get into all the different pairing ideas of true crime novels detailing the Sicilian Mafia.

*Roc Marciano plays in the background* - Frank Cornelissen is one of the more celebrated producers in Sicily. Embraced by the natural wine movement and folks adjacent to that, his star has risen fast since his first vintage in 2001. I have had the pleasure of enjoying a few of his wines in the past. Susucaru, a few of the Munjabels, but never the Holy Grail. Never did I imagine that I would be able to open one of his Magma’s. The production alone for the 750’s is minor, coming in at less than 3,000 bottles annually. Add in the distribution factor stateside where cities like New York and Boston just gobble them up. Only SIX bottles came into the state of Maine. It really just blows my mind. I feel very fortunate to be able to enjoy wines such as these. This wine, in my opinion, is totally justified in the price tag. When you consider the age of the vines, the true expression of terroir, and the power of the wine itself… you can come to understand it. I experienced it as a vino da meditazione in its singular form. You could pair it with a whole host of meats, aged cheeses, and Sicilian pasta dishes. I wanted it to punch me in the face so that I could tussle with it. It’s like the end of those viral fight videos when the two guys dap each other up. The wine and I are currently in that phase.

Magma. Over 100 year old Nerello Mascalese vines planted in the North Valley of Mt. Etna. Cool breezes, vibrant sun, and incredible soil result in a wine of power. There is a restrained grace when you open it up that ultimately leads to a wine of intensity and complexity. Intense fruits like blackberries, cherries, and plums? The wine is intriguing because it balances those aspects that you would find in a Pinot Noir or Cab Franc, alongside that of a Nebbiolo. This thing is very reminiscent of a Nebbiolo when it comes to the grip and fruit aspect. The fruit is extremely intense at first, coming out with this stewed aspect. But the wine is balanced because there is a lifted brightness and acidity that keeps it all floating. And here is where things get fun. A pretty apparent graphite note comes out, alongside this eucalyptus and almost rosemary element. When I say this thing is layered… it would be an understatement. Plus, the interesting aspect is that there is no wood in the cellar. No French barriques, Slovenian oak barrels, nothing! So you are really getting the true expressions of the grape itself. Heck, I am as big of a fan of French barriques as the next guy, look at my previous odes to folks like Roberto Voerzio. But there is something so intriguing about a powerful grape like Nerello Mascalese with nothing taming it. This thing is really BOOM, in yo face, but in the best way possible. It certainly mellows out as it opens, which it has been for about 4 hours now. The fruit has become riper, the tannins a tad more relaxed, but the grip has not dissipated. That’s what I mean - it’s an intense wine. Each sip has a little settling aspect on your back molars and the finish is long. I think the most intriguing thing in my mind was the graphite aspect. An intense earthy spiciness that is hard to replicate anywhere but Mt. Etna. Maybe that factor alone is enough to make certain Etna Rosso easy to identify in a blind tasting. I would not know as that stuff is a bit above me when you start to see the spoon dangling from the neck. Anyways, it is certainly a note that I will look for in future Etna Rosso wines as a point of comparison, because this thing is singing.

An incredible wine, great company, and a spread of food that would make your eyes pop. Ribs, hamburgers, hotdogs, fresh watermelon, onion dip with some Irish potato chips… need I go on?!? A feast that ended in a wine to remember, truly. Who knows when, if ever, I will get access to this wine. Plus, if I do, will I choose to drink it or hold it for the retail side? Well, I certainly cannot indulge in $300+ wines on a consistent basis. Also, as stated, it’s not like the wine has a higher price point in addition to being readily available all the time. I just wanted to reiterate this again to highlight how special of a wine, and night, this was. I shall ultimately end it by cracking open Octopus and reading about the Great Mafia War of 1981-83. When you read about those times in Sicily, even New York, it does not seem real. The level of violence that it reached between various cosca is one thing, but the direction it went against the state is unfathomable. You have a guy like Salvatore Riina who would do anything, truly. The ends justify the means seems to be an underlying theme apparent in these larger than life people. A lot of these gentlemen that are described, even taken from the Mafia members personal testimonies, highlight the charm many of them had. Certainly some of them were good looking in their own right, but it was something deeper than that. Take a guy like Tommaso Buscetta for example. There’s an excerpt to the book that goes as follows: “I’m a normal person, but Mother Nature gave me charisma; I have something extra… as soon as I came in, they’d close up like clams. Nobody wanted to say hello first… I enter a restaurant, maybe a hundred people are there, and ninety look at me…”. That is coming from the guy's own mouth! I don’t know, I just find this stuff shocking. My rationale in the wine and book pairing, which did not come about intentionally until the writing piece, lay in this charismatic aspect. The ability to put this wine on a shelf and have people turn their necks to catch a glimpse. It walks in with a certain swagger and completely backs it up with the stature and profile you’d expect. Not lacking in fruit, yet providing elements that make serious wine enjoyers do a double take. This is a wine of terroir, truly, because you get every bit of that volcanic soil on every sip. It may mellow out with time, but it certainly does not become flat or anything of the sort. The ends justify the means with the price on this one.

And there you have it. I may be running my writing luck into the ground with that last aphorism. A book detailing the international reach of the Sicilian Mafia is calling and I MUST answer. The wine is finished, the bottle is cleaned in order to preserve, and the night is calling. A day of drinking, company, good food, and a series of good wines culminating in this bad boy. A wine that you can tango with, or tussle with as I chose to do. Hit me in the face why don’t ya, I can take it! And you can too. If you find yourself staring at one of these wines on the shelf, or are able to source one of them, just go for it. Life is short, the cellar is calling, and you can always find an important life event to celebrate with this wine. Here is to iconic wines, some newlyweds, and celebrating everything Sicilian!