Masseria Del Faudo

A century ago, Francesco Cucurullo's great-grandfather bought his first parcel of land from the local Marchese and began a pastoral, Sicilian career harvesting corn and wheat. 20-30 years later, his grandfather added dairy cows to the equation and, eventually, Francesco's own dad, Salvatore, began planting fruit orchards and then vines. Today, Francesco and his sister, Carolina, have 110 hectares of farmland: 70 are still devoted to a combination of grain, hay, apricots, plums, and peaches; 5 hectares are planted with olive groves and 15 are currently covered by vineyards. All their vines are certified organic, are planted on a gradual slope, and include one (recently planted) hectare each of Frappato and Nerello Mascalese. While he and Carolina both initially aspired to other careers, they have both more recently been called back to their family's land and fallen in love with enology. Ever patient, their father helped with their training and, as a family, they replaced all the international varieties once sold to the local co-op (except Syrah, whose spicy component they love), electing instead to bottle their own brand and focus almost entirely on local, Sicilian grapes. That said, wine remains just one part of Masseria del Feudo's vascular whole: "When people come," says Francesco, "we love to have them visit the whole farm, not just the winery... we love to have them taste our plums and peaches, and to understand that wine, too, is a product of agriculture, not industry."

While Masseria del Feudo's average annual production is 80,000 bottles, warmer temperatures have seen this number decrease in certain years (for example, in 2021, when the quality ran high but only 50,000 bottles were made). Located between the Valley of Temples in Agrigento and the Nissenti Hills of Caltanisetta, their high plateau only receives about 15 cm of rain per year... so working their land inch by inch, staying nimble in the field, and listening to the vines is crucial to their success as winemakers over time. We have no doubt in their heartfelt abilities, of course, and with a stellar Pet Nat already under wing, can't wait to see what artisanal, countryside creation they dream up next!