Nero d'Avola

Nero d'Avola is a bold, dry red from Sicily, Italy, packed with black cherry, plum and blackberry alongside herbs, spice and a touch of liquorice. Rich, smooth and sun-soaked, it’s brilliant with pizza, lasagne, spaghetti bolognese, steak, lamb, sausages and rich tomato-based dishes.

Taste:

Dark fruit with a distinctly Sicilian amount of sunshine behind it.

Nero d'Avola is typically dry and medium to full-bodied, with moderate acidity and tannins. Expect black cherry, blackberry, plum and sometimes raspberry, often joined by liquorice, black pepper, dried herbs and earthy spice.

Richer or oak-aged styles can bring chocolate, coffee, vanilla and tobacco into the mix, while fresher versions put juicy fruit and Mediterranean herbs front and centre.

There’s plenty of flavour here, but good Nero d'Avola keeps enough freshness to stop all that ripe fruit becoming too much of a good thing.

Bold, warm and charming. Sicily in a glass is a cliché, but annoyingly it does sort of work.

Food Pairings:

Nero d'Avola and rich Italian food are very happy together.

Its combination of ripe fruit and acidity makes it brilliant with tomato-based pasta dishes such as lasagne, spaghetti bolognese, beef ragù, meatballs in tomato sauce, sausage pasta and aubergine parmigiana.

Pizza is another easy win. Try it with pepperoni, spicy salami, sausage, meat feast, mushroom or a classic Margherita.

For meat, pair Nero d'Avola with steak, roast beef, burgers, Italian sausages, lamb chops, roast lamb or slow-cooked beef.

Mediterranean flavours work beautifully too, including moussaka, grilled aubergine, roasted peppers and dishes with tomatoes, olives, oregano or rosemary.

For cheese, try Parmesan, Pecorino, mature Cheddar or aged Gouda.

Similar Wines:

If you enjoy Nero d'Avola, Primitivo is a great next move for another rich southern Italian red with plenty of ripe fruit.

Montepulciano offers dark fruit with a smooth, food-friendly character, while Shiraz turns up the body and spice.

You might also enjoy Malbec if blackberry, plum and full-bodied reds are firmly your thing.

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More About Nero d'Avola:

Nero d'Avola is Sicily's most famous red grape and is grown across the island. Its name translates roughly as "Black of Avola", referring to the town of Avola in southeastern Sicily and the grape's deeply coloured skins.

Sicily's warm Mediterranean climate gives Nero d'Avola plenty of opportunity to ripen, helping produce its characteristic dark fruit and generous body.

The grape can be made in a surprisingly wide range of styles, from fresh, fruity everyday reds to concentrated wines matured in oak and capable of ageing.

It was once frequently used as a blending grape to add colour and body to other wines. These days, Nero d'Avola is more than capable of putting its own name on the bottle.

About time, really.