Overview:
The Frank Cornelissen 2019 MunJebel Rosso MC Monte Colla is a stunning expression of Nerello Mascalese from the steeply-terraced Monte Colla vineyard on Mount Etna. With vines over 75 years old, this wine embodies the unique terroir of one of the island’s most iconic contradas. The sandy clay soils, combined with the high-altitude location, create wines with a remarkable balance of power and elegance. The Monte Colla cuvée is deep and inward in character, yet it radiates a rare beauty. Frank Cornelissen’s philosophy of minimal intervention allows the vineyard's voice to shine through, producing a wine that is both complex and approachable. It is an exceptional example of Etna's volcanic influence, marked by purity, depth, and finesse.
Tasting Notes:
The 2019 MunJebel Rosso MC Monte Colla opens with an enticing bouquet of dried cherries, crushed rocks, and delicate hints of rosemary and balsamic spice. The wine’s texture is luxuriously silky, with vibrant wild red berries and an undercurrent of freshness that brings energy and focus to the palate. A core of lively acidity adds tension, creating a balance between the ripe fruit and the wine’s more savoury, herbaceous qualities. On the finish, the tannins are finely grained, offering a soft yet firm grip, while layers of sweet tobacco, lavender, and a subtle bitter balsamic spice emerge. This wine showcases a remarkable duality – an iron fist in a velvet glove – and promises further development with time, revealing more layers of complexity as it evolves.