COS Pithos Rosso 2011

pithos_rosso_2011Made in the Cerasuolo di Vittoria region in Sicily, this has the correct grape varieties – Nero d’Avola and Frappato – to be called Cerasuolo di Vittoria DOC were it not for the winemaking. What is wrong with the winemaking? Well, there’s nothing actually wrong, but it’s made in large clay vessels that are often called amphoras. After fermentation the wines remain in amphora for several months until bottling. See here for more about the producer and the winemaking, and here for note on earlier vintages of Pithos Rosso.

Note that the label design has changed since those vintages, and it changed again for the 2012, which also has the new designation Vittoria Rosso DOC. If you’re trying to find this wine on your wine merchant’s shelf, it is the words Pithos Rosso on a squat-shaped bottle that you need to look out for.

This is a wine that I have drunk many bottles of, from several different vintages, and it never fails to impress me. A recent bottle of the 2011 seemed particularly good, and that is what persuaded me to put fingers to keyboard on this occasion. If you understand what I like in this wine, I think you will have gone a long way towards knowing how my vinous mind works.

Here’s the tasting note for my recently drunk 2011, pictured above… Pale garnet ruby. On the nose, intense, delicate, fragrant, soft cherry, spice and herb complexity. High acidity. Medium low tannin. Aromas as on the nose, though the cherry aromas seem more vibrant with the acidity. Excellent length. A green note that reminds me of shelling broad beans – also on the nose now – nothing negative about this. Sweet red fruit now I am more accustomed to the acidity, which does not seem so stark after a few sips. Drink now I think. There’s a lot of enjoyment here. Can it really get better? Tossing up between 5 and 6 stars, I’ll go for ******

To try to put into words the aspects of this wine that I like so much, I think it is the delicate complexity of the fruit, spice and herb notes. It is almost as if this is a wine mature before its time – in a good way that is. In fact, I would say it is mature in the best possible way as far as I am concerned, as there is absolutely no tendency towards oxidation. Good acidity is also important – I like my wines to be refreshing and food friendly. Combine that with a price tag of around £20 and good availability, and it is a winner for me.

Author: Steve Slatcher

Wine enthusiast

2 thoughts on “COS Pithos Rosso 2011”

  1. I like Pithos a lot. It was one of the first really exciting Sicilians made from local grapes and not from a co-operative that I ever tried, it was in the first ever case I purchased from Les Caves de Pyrene, and it might possibly be the first amphora wine I tried.

    I currently only have COS’s equally fine Frappato, but I know there’s some Pithos waiting for me in a couple of weeks.

  2. Yes, the Frappato is good too, as are COS’s other wines. But as I said on my related FB post, after dedicated “research” the Pithos Rosso stands out for me.

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