Marsala's fortified wine is post-Greek, but the region's viticulture is ancient.
Modern producers make both traditional Marsala and excellent dry wines from Grillo and
other varieties. The English-invented fortified style built on millennia of winemaking
tradition.
What to do there
3 things to do
John Woodhouse landed at Marsala in 1773, tasted local wines aged in cask, added grape spirit to stabilize them for the voyage home - and accidentally created one of the world's great fortified wines.
In 1773, a Liverpool merchant named John Woodhouse was forced to shelter in Marsala during a storm. He discovered that local winemakers were already aging wine in perpetuum (a solera-like system), which concentrated it naturally. He added wine spirit (to stabilize it for the sea voyage) and sent 60 pipes back to England. It was immediately popular. Walk the cantina district at Lungomare Boeo (seafront) and look for the historic Florio (now Duca di Salaparuta group) and Pellegrino facilities — both are descendants of the original 19th-century operations. By 1796 he had a full operation. By 1806 Benjamin Ingham (from Leeds) arrived. By 1833 Vincenzo Florio built a third winery between them. Three Brits and a Sicilian built an empire. The Florio cantina museum explains the full history - look for the portrait of Vincenzo Florio who bought out Woodhouse and consolidated the industry.
Backup:The Museo degli Arazzi (Tapestry Museum) is nearby and can be combined with the cantina visit for a fuller picture of Marsala's historic wealth built on wine.
Marsala Superiore aged 2+ years in cask is not a cooking ingredient - it's a complex fortified wine that deserves the same consideration as Sherry or Port.
Almost everyone who thinks they don't like Marsala has only had the cheap 'Fine' version. The aged styles are entirely different wines. At Cantine Florio (Via Vincenzo Florio 1) or Cantine Pellegrino (Via del Fante 39) in Marsala, ask specifically for the Marsala Vergine or Superiore Riserva tasting, not the standard tasting which may default to Fine. Marsala comes in several styles: Fine (1 year, 17% ABV - the cooking ingredient), Superiore (2 years, 18% ABV - worth drinking), Vergine (5+ years, 18% ABV - the serious version), and Stravecchio Riserva (10+ years - comparable to aged Oloroso Sherry in complexity). Serve at room temperature or very slightly cool. The flavors are dried fruit, toasted nuts, orange peel, and a distinctive oxidative quality that rewards sipping slowly.
Backup:Both cantinas sell their aged Marsala for home. A bottle of Pellegrino or Florio Vergine is an extraordinary souvenir that few non-Sicilians have ever seen, let alone tasted.
Grillo is the main grape of Marsala - but in its dry, unfortified form it's a completely different and increasingly celebrated Sicilian white.
Grillo was brought back from near extinction in the 1990s when winemakers realized that the grape behind Marsala (traditionally dismissed as only fit for fortification) made extraordinary dry white wine when harvested earlier and fermented without spirit addition. At either Florio or Pellegrino tasting rooms, or at a local enoteca in Marsala's historic center, order a glass of dry Grillo and compare it mentally to a glass of the Marsala you just tasted - same grape, radically different wine, same ancient vineyard tradition. Ask: 'Questo Grillo viene dalle stesse vigne del Marsala?' (Does this Grillo come from the same vineyards as the Marsala?). The answer is often yes. It has thick skin (which survived the Marsala fortification process), high natural acidity, and intense citrus and floral character when made dry.
Backup:Inzolia (also called Ansonica) is the other Marsala grape worth finding in its dry form - lighter than Grillo, with more delicate floral notes.
