Reviving the vineyards in the Stagnone area of Marsala is the goal. Three Italian Masters of Wine have come up with the idea and, more importantly, taken concrete steps to achieve it. The project, named "Officina del Vento," is spearheaded by Gabriele Gorelli, Andrea Lonardi, and Pietro Russo. By the end of the summer, they will be able to uncork the first 4,000 bottles of wine made from Grillo grapes (aged in steel and barrique) from this southwestern Sicilian area at risk of being abandoned.
The idea and purchase of the land
Gorelli bought a hectare of land in the Stagnone area of the Trapani region, which represents the largest lagoon in all of Sicily. Gorelli told Corriere della Sera's Cook that in 2022, Pietro Russo (a Sicilian Master of Wine) proposed making a wine from a small abandoned plot of land, with vines over 30 years old, surrounded by shallow waters and postcard-like landscapes.
A manifesto wine
As Andrea Lonardi explained, the vineyards do not suffer from drought due to the abundance of fresh water in the subsoil, and the grapes have character thanks to the salt: "We hope to see many producers settle here in a few years. We offer our experience to share this vision with others." The name "Officina del Vento" signifies strength, hope, and rebirth. It is a manifesto of the Stagnone, as it has been called, that the three professionals hope will bear fruit in the short term, fostering generational change.
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