Delicious and complex, Sicilian Marsala wine deserves its own time in the spotlight (and alongside your aperitivo)! Along with Port, Sherry, Madeira, and even Vermouth, Marsala is a fortified wine, a higher-alcohol wine through the addition of a grape-based spirit during production. Producer Florio Marsala is here to show everyone that Marsala will be your new favorite drink.
LET'S FALL IN LOVE WITH MARSALA WINE
With complex notes of stewed apricot, vanilla, brown sugar, and acacia honey, Marsala wine is unlike any other wine or spirit. You might already know that it can be added to an Italian sauce for extra complexity and richness, but it can also be sipped neat as an aperitivo or digestivo or even added to a cocktail! With it’s unique salty-savory-sweet flavor profile, Marsala is a great wine to pair with foods. Look no further than Marsala’s own flavor profile to start out when thinking about pairings – apricot, vanilla, brown sugar, honey, and spices. The ocean and volcanic influence will also add savory notes like green olives, fennel, and bay leaf. If you’re feeling savory, try pungent blue cheeses or nutty Parmigiano-Reggiano drizzled with honey, or a classic Sicilian crostini with anchovies. For a sweet bite, lean into the dried fruit aromas with dried apricot and nuts, or even chocolate. Just be sure that the Marsala is as sweet as or sweeter than the bites you enjoy so it doesn’t get lost.
Let's break down three of our favorite ways to enjoy Florio Marsala:
In Food
Florio Marsala has a complexity and depth of flavor that will instantly add a boost to any dish you add it to. Try it in a classic Italian dish, or swap it in for any recipe when you'd use wine, vermouth, or a spirit. You can even try it with sweet dishes! We love drizzling some over a scoop of gelato. Whether you're cooking sweet or savory, be sure to cook with something you'd want to drink. Taste the difference of using a premium Marsala when you add a splash of Florio Marsala. We especially love the Vecchioflorio Line.
Neat, Sicilian-Style
Let's do as the Sicilians do and try our Florio Marsala all on its own. Chill your Marsala slightly before serving it to around 55°F, which should take a little over two hours in the refrigerator. Historically Marsala was served as an aperitivo, so adding little bites to munch on while you sip your Marsala is key. Any Florio Marsala is fantastic when enjoyed this way, as you can best taste each line's unique style.
In Cocktails
Want another way to enjoy Marsala? Try swapping it in for another fortified wine like vermouth in your cocktails or mix it with tonic water for a fizzy fun beverage. Our favorites? The Florio Vintage or Vecchioflorio lines (but truthfully all the Florio Marsala are delicious in their own way in a cocktail!). One of our favorite ways is a Sicilian Spritz:
Sicilian Spritz
1 oz Florio Marsala Superiore Riserva Semisecco 2015 (or VecchioFlorio Marsala Superiore Dry)
Prosecco DOC, as needed
Splash of soda
Orange peel
In a mixing glass filled with ice, stir the Marsala until it is well chilled. Strain into a wine glass filled with ice, then top with Prosecco and a splash of soda water. Gently remove a 1-inch wide strip of the orange peel, and squeeze over the glass to spritz the oils. Add peel to the glass and serve.
MEET CANTINE FLORIO
Founded in 1833 by Vincenzo Florio, Florio Marsala was a key player in creating a global love of Marsala in the 1800's. Today, they are the oldest Marsala winery in the world at nearly 200 years old. They remain committed to helping others fall in love with the beauty of their Marsala.
Florio Marsala is one of the only wineries that produces their authentic Marsala in the actual town of Marsala. The winery is situated right along the Sicilian coastline and has built its wine cellars to capture the impact of the sea. Florio Marsala starts out using an extreme method of extraction to hard press the must (or juice) from 100% native Sicilian Grillo grapes. This must is then fermented into the base wine, Vino Florio, which is bold on its own but only the first step in the grand scheme of Marsala.
Next comes what Florio Marsala calls Innamoramento (falling in love), which is adding the grape spirit to the base wine. This is the transition between making standard wine and officially making Marsala. The winemakers have to decide what sweetness style of Marsala they want to make while the base wine is still fermenting. By tasting, listening, and evaluating the base wine made after each harvest, winemakers imagine how this Marsala will evolve in the future.
Florio Marsala has two types of Marsala: Marsala Vergine and Marsala Superiore. For their Marsala Vergine, they combine the fully-fermented base wine with alcohol and time. These wines are aged for at least 5 or 10 years (for vergine riserva). With Marsala Superiore, alcohol is added to the base wine during fermentation, a process called mistella, in order to keep some of the natural sweetness in the wine. Additionally, motto costo, or cooked must, may be added for the signature amber color and caramel flavor. These wines are then aged at least 2 or 4 years (for superiore riserva).
Florio Winery has more than 3,000 oak containers of varying sizes. Their cellars have four different compartments that all have unique natural climates. The proximity to the sea will change the temperature and salty humidity in the air, which slowly changes the Marsala wines during the aging process. The wines will move from barrel to barrel throughout the cellar to monitor Angel’s Share, or the amount of natural evaporation through the oak vessels during aging. The closer the barrels are to the sea, the lower the temperature and higher humidity, meaning a lower Angel’s Share and therefore a more fruity and gentle Marsala. Further away from the sea means a higher temperature and lower humidity – a higher Angel’s Share and a more concentrated and intense Marsala.
Florio Marsala has redesigned their labels to tell the whole story of their Marsala wines. They have a map of the cellar marked with the journey their Marsala wines take throughout their cellars, going from close to the sea to eventually further away. They also include the year of fortification or Innamoramento, when the wine and alcohol fall in love. They have the years of aging both by number and category, the percentage of Angel’s Share, and individual bottle numbers to all express how unique every bottle of Florio Marsala truly is.
WHAT IS MARSALA WINE?
As mentioned, Marsala wine falls into the category of “fortified wines.” For this process, brandy or a neutral grape-based spirit is added to a fermenting or fully-fermented wine. The point in the fermenting process when the spirit is added will determine how sweet the final wine will be. When the spirit is added while the base wine is still fermenting, the final fortified wine will be sweet. If the spirit is added after the base wine is completely fermented dry, then the final fortified wine will also be dry.
Sicily is the home of Marsala wine, named after the old port town Marsala on the western coast. In the 1700's, Englishman John Woodhouse was the first to make Marsala. Marsala is traditionally made from local grapes, like Grillo, Catarratto Bianco, Inzolia, and Damaschino. It can also be blended with red grapes to make a Rubino port, but these are extremely rare.
Marsala styles can be broken down into a few different categories: one for color, one for sweetness, and one for aging. For color, there is oro (golden), ambra (amber), and rubino (ruby). The types of grapes used and length of aging determines the different color. For sweetness, there is secco (fairly dry, under 4% residual sugar or 40 grams per liter), semisecco (noticeably sweet, 4-10% residual sugar or 41-100 grams per liter), and dolce (very sweet, over 10% residual sugar or 100 grams per liter). For reference, a standard coke has 108 grams per liter or sugar, however its high acid and caffeine (bitterness) content keeps it from seeming so cloyingly sweet.
As for how “old” a Marsala wine is, this is where reading the label can get a little tricky. Marsala wines are not labeled by the harvest vintage like a standard table wine. For Florio Marsala, the vintage indicates the year of Innamoramento when the base wine is fortified. All this to say that Marsala wines will be aged for some length of time in oak, and there are hints on the label to give you an idea of how long it was aged for.
- Fine – 1 year
- Superiore – 2 years
- Superiore riserva – 4 years
- Vergine – 5 years
- Vergine stravecchio or Vergine riserva – 10 years
Learn even more about the world of Florio Marsala. Excited to try Florio Marsala yourself? Shop at your local Eataly or online at Eataly Vino to bring home a bottle today!