Donnafugata : Ben Ryé 2023

Tasting characteristics and serving advice for Donnafugata’s Ben Ryé 2023

Tasting

Appearance
Beautiful golden color with bright amber highlights.

Nose
A remarkably intense bouquet revealing typical notes of raisins, apricot, citrus and candied orange peel. These aromas are enhanced by notes of Mediterranean scrub, delivering a seductive aromatic complexity.

Palate
The palate combines fruity and balsamic notes, harmoniously intertwined with gentle nuances of honey. Intense and persistent, it charms with its perfect balance between freshness and sweetness, offering a memorable tasting experience.

Cellaring

Ben Ryé 2023 can rest in the cellar until around 2052 to fully express its aromatic nuances.

Serving

For optimal enjoyment, serve between 54 and 57 °F (12–14 °C).

Food and wine pairing

This Sicilian wine pairs beautifully with dry pastries, chocolate, jam tarts, ricotta, tuna bottarga, as well as aged or blue cheeses.

The structure and richness of an Italian Passito di Pantelleria wine

The estate

Founded in 1983, Donnafugata—“woman in flight” in Italian—recalls the exile of Queen Maria Carolina of Naples to the lands of a local prince during Napoleon’s capture of Naples. Giacomo Rallo, who founded this estate in northwestern Sicily, is the fourth generation of a family that has been producing wines renowned for their high quality since 1851. Spread across five different sites, the Donnafugata estate draws its uniqueness from a great diversity of terroirs, giving each cuvée a distinctive style that reflects the richness of Sicilian terroirs.

The vineyard

Ben Ryé is a Passito di Pantelleria wine from vines over 60 years old, planted at elevations from 20 to 400 meters above sea level. Some vines, over 100 years old, are ungrafted and survived phylloxera. They are uniquely trained in the alberello (bush-vine) system, half-buried in a small crater—a pruning method inscribed by UNESCO on the Intangible Cultural Heritage list.

The name of this cuvée means “Son of the Wind” in Arabic, a reference to the omnipresent winds that sweep through the vineyards of Pantelleria. This island breeze carries scents so intense they seem almost tangible. The artist’s label pays tribute to the love, dedication and effort of the heroic viticulture practiced on this unique and captivating island.

Vintage

The 2023 vintage was challenging due to heavy rainfall in May and high heat in July, requiring rigorous and eco-friendly farming practices. With 589 mm of rainfall recorded—more than the average of 473 mm—production decreased compared to the previous year, with looser clusters and smaller berries. Despite these challenges, the growing season concluded well, yielding well-ripened grapes.

Winemaking and aging

After manual harvesting, the grapes are carefully selected on sorting tables before being gently crushed. Fermentation takes place in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks. Dried grapes are added to the fresh must in several batches to release sweetness and freshness during maceration. The vinification process (fermentation and maceration) lasts more than a month. Aging in stainless steel tanks lasts 5 months before bottling, after which the wine undergoes an additional aging of at least 16 months before release.

Blend

Zibibbo (Muscat of Alexandria)