It’s been decided just a couple of days ago: Zibibbo, the white wine grape that grown on the isle of Pantelleria in Sicily, has become part of the UNESCO World Heritage. This particular kind of grape is used to make a sweet white wine and is also known as Muscat of Alexandria, since it originally grew in the Northern area of Africa.
UNESCO has acknowledged as part of its World Heritage the practice of cultivation but also the social significance of the grape, that has a deep identity value for the inhabitants of Pantelleria. No country, before Italy, has ever managed to get an agricultural practice on UNESCO’s list.
Today Zibibbo is cultivated outside of the island using the “cordons” technique, but in Pantelleria they kept unaltered the ancient tradition of the vine “sapling”. To get the sugar content necessary for the production of Zibibbo liqueur (without the addition of ethyl alcohol), the grapes are harvested after overripening, and before undergoing the pressing process they are hung out to dry on wooden grates. The island’s best wines are produced following this tradition, which is now part of UNESCO heritage as well.
We’re sure that next summer many of you will be eager to taste the sweet Zibibbo grape or enjoy a glass of the wonderful wine made out of it, so why don’t you take a look at our villas in Pantelleria you can find in the Sicily beach villas selection? To get more detailed information about Pantelleria consult our Sicily Travel Guide.
