I've always loved the wines of Planeta, but they've occupied a very special place in my heart since our visit to the winery last year during our wine and culinary tour of Sicily. While they produce wines from five different vineyard sites on the island, the estate in Sambuca is the oldest, having been in the family since the 1600's.
On a windy Sunday afternoon, Chiarra Planeta met us at the winery in Sambuca for a tour, tasting and lunch. It is quite a journey to get there, lots of winding roads through small villages that ends with the town of Sambuca, Lago Arancio and the simple but elegant centuries old buildings of the estate. The property is beautiful with the vineyards gracefully sloping down to the shores of the lake. Chiarra was a gracious host who led us through wonderful tasting of wines that are produced at the various vineyards sites and many of which are not available in the US.
Having just finished the tasting, we were heading into the dining area of the 16th century farmhouse for lunch, when I noticed a beautiful fig tree on their property. After more wine, a delicious lunch of local foods including the best fresh ricotta any of us had every eaten (believe me, we ate a lot of it on this trip!) I asked Chiara if I could possibly have a cutting from their fig tree. She said of course and cut off a small piece about 6-8" long. And most of you know that I was able to get the cutting through customs and now have a sapling that will be ready to put in the ground this fall!
It was an enchanting afternoon, as most were in Sicily, but Chiarra's warmth and hospitality made it all the more special. And I am now a Planeta fan for life!
Click here to view a slide show of our visit: Slide show
I have not given an update in a while on my Sicilian fig cutting since nothing much was happening. Well Kerry fed it a little miracle grow last week and suddenly 3 new leaves have sprouted!
For the full story on my fig cutting's journey given to me the Planeta winery in Sicily by Chiara Planeta, click here: For the Love of Figs
Sicily's only DOCG region, Cerasuola di Vittoria, is not known very well outside the island. Having received DOC status in 1973 and DOCG as recently as 2005, this area of south eastern Sicily produces one of the most distinct Sicilian red wines. Cerasuolo wines are bright and lively, thoroughly refreshing, and while not the most complex wines in the world their lightness and vivacity insistently invite you back for another glass. They're versatile with food and actually stand alone beautifully as well.
This delightful wine is named for its remarkable color as cerasuolo means "cherry red" in Italian. Made from two local grapes, the Frappato imparts ripe berry flavors and freshness, while the Nero d'Avola gives it a supple tannic structure, richness and intensity.
The Planeta Cerasuolo is 60% Nero d’Avola, 40% Frappato and aged for four months in 100% stainless steel. It offers an immediate bright cherry fruit component that dominates the aromatics, but then gives way to the blacker, earthier fruits of the Nero on the palate. Soft, supple, fresh and lively it is a wonderful change for Pinot Noir lovers looking for something on the wild side! A GREAT pick for Thanksgiving, it will really shine with turkey and cranberries!
I've been wanting to plant a fig tree for a while now. We were at our friend Kaysey's house in Covington last year and picked fresh figs from a tree right off of her balcony one morning for breakfast. Drizzled with a little honey and spread with fresh goats cheese, they are to die for! So I start looking online, trying to figure out what kind of fig tree I wanted and where I would get it. Should I order one? Should I just find one locally? Could I grow one from a cutting?? For the last year I've been contemplating planting a fig tree but somehow it never seemed to happen.
Sometime before we went to Sicily I was again looking at growing from a cutting. I found out it was relatively easy, but how would I decide where I wanted to do a cutting from? The right answer didn't come, until we were in Sicily...
On a windy Sunday afternoon in Sambuca di Sicilia, we were walking the beautiful grounds of Planeta's Ulmo winery with Chiara Planeta. Having just finished an amazing tasting of way too many of their wines, we were heading into the dining area of the 16th century farmhouse for lunch, when I noticed a beautiful fig tree on their property. After more wine and a delicious lunch of local foods, I asked Chiara if I could possibly have a cutting from their fig tree. She said of course and cut off a small piece about 6-8" long. As delighted as I was to have it, I now just had to figure out what to do with it!!
So, I put the cutting in my purse and tried to recall what I had read about propagating fig trees from cuttings. When we got to our next lodging spot, Mandranova, I was so enthralled with the place that I had forgotten about my cutting. Four days later at our last agriturismo, I found it and decided to put it in a glass of water. Our next stop was Roma for a few days and then home so I wrapped the bottom in a paper towel soaked with water and then put it in a plastic bag. I was a little nervous about getting it through customs, but it made it into the states and into our kitchen.
Well we came back with way too many things to do, so I just stuck it in water again until I had time to do something with it. Another week went by, it was now more than 2 weeks since Chiara had cut it for me, when I found a post about propagating fig trees at gardenguides.com. By this time is was starting to get brown and I really didn't have much hope for it, but I figured what the hell, it couldn't hurt to try. Here are the instructions that I followed:
Step 1 Cut stems for rooting in late winter. Cut 1-year-old stems growing in the center of the tree. Make the stems between 6 and 8 inches long and approximately as thick as a finger.I kind of got this right, but we did not take it from the center of the tree and it wasn't late winter...
Step 2 Line the bottom of the plastic container with newspaper and place 2 to 3 inches of potting soil into the bottom. Place as many as four cuttings in one plastic container, standing them so that the cut ends are in the soil. Add more potting soil to fill the container--you should see just the tips of the cuttings.
Step 3 Water the soil and place the container in a location where there is bright sun, but not direct light. Keep the temperature at 70 degrees F or higher.My office at home seems to be working well. It has lots of windows and gets light from the east and south.
Step 4 Cut off the bottom of a plastic bottle--a soft-drink bottle works well--and place the bottle over the container. Keep the cap on the bottle.I used an orange juice container that Ron had left in the frig during his house/dog sitting stay.
Step 5 Water the cuttings only when the soil dries out completely. Lift the container and if it feels light, place it in a shallow pan filled with water. Allow the soil in the container to soak up water from the pan. Remove the container when the soil is moist again. I have not had to do this yet, probably in a few days. Step 6 When new shoots and leaves extend from the cuttings, remove the bottle cap. If the cuttings continue to grow after several days, remove the bottle. If they wilt, replace the bottle and try again in a few days. If they thrive, it is time to transplant the cuttings. This where I am now, I just removed the cap, take a look at my photo!! I am amazed that this thing is actually growing after what I've put it through...
So, I'll keep you posted as to how the rest of this goes, but so far so good! Keep your figures crossed and hopefully one day I can be giving some of you cuttings from my Planeta fig tree from Sicilia!!
