The 2013 Alcamo Classico Vigna Casalj is Catarratto from the Casalj vineyard located 600 meters above sea level. It is a certified sustainable wine with a special marketing push behind this product. Lemon curd, passion fruit and papaya are followed by distant tones of chopped herb and green olive. There’s a slight heaviness to the wine that comes forward in the mouth. Drink 2014-2015. Tenuta Rapitala is part of Gruppo Italiano Vini (GIV) although the face and soul of the winery very much belongs to Laurent Bernard de la Gatinais, a tireless promoter of Sicilian wine excellence. I had the pleasure of knowing Laurent’s parents, French Count Hugues Bernard de la Gatinais and Gigi Guarrasi from one of Palermo’s main noble families. Together they developed Tenuta Rapitala, located near Alcamo and Camporeale in western Sicily, and played important roles in the greater Sicilian wine renaissance. When both passed away about a decade ago, in one sad sweep, Sicily lost its first lady and leading gentleman. Importer: Frederick Wildman & Sons, www.frederickwildman.com