Curiosities

When Liverpool merchant John Woodhouse arrived in the port on his sailing ship he had an opportunity to sample a drink which was very similar to drinks he had tasted on his voyages to Spain and Portugal which were very popular at the time with his fellow Englishmen. On this basis he decided to load around fifty barrels. The product sold so well that Woodhouse decided to return to Marsala, purchased a commercial property and commenced production. Admiral Nelson even took the product far and wide on his battleships.
During the 19th century around two thirds of the total production of Marsala wine was exported to England. The remaining quantities were sold mainly in Italy, Germany, Russia and France and, to a lesser extent, also in the USA and Australia.
Today Marsala DOC wine is produced in many forms: "Marsala Fine", aged for one year; "Marsala Superiore", aged in wooden barrels for two years and with an alcohol content of more than 18 degrees; "Marsala Superiore Riserva", aged for four years in wooden barrels; "Marsala Vergine Soleras", aged for five years which gives the wine a rounded and full-bodied character; "Marsala Vergine Soleras Stravecchio" and "Marsala Vergine Soleras Riserva".

Between the Wineries and the Barrel Makers

The wine route includes a visit to the workshops of the barrel makers, the craftsmen who have inherited from generation to generation the skills required to produce the oak barrels in which Marsala wine can be aged for more than ten years. Following the route that leads to the vines there are around eigthy old wineries, some of which have been restored and can be visited. "Baglio Biesina", at a distance of 11 kilometres in the direction of Salemi, houses the museum of country crafts which includes tools, both antique and modern, used in wine making and local agriculture and provides a fascinating insight into their history and evolution.