Wine of the week: a cosmic red from a vinous necromancer

2010 Il Passo, Nerello Mascalese, Vigneti Zab, Sicily, Italy (£13.99, www.sipplondon.com; Field & Fawcett, 01904-489073; Noel Young, 01223-844744).

I am going through a very exciting Italian phase right now and it is the perfect time of year to roll out a few sensual, unique, striking reds for you to savour.

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He and his team have now changed all of that. Made from young Nerello Mascalese and Nero d'Avola vines, grown on the hills around Lake Arancio in Sambuca di Sicilia, this is the most impressive modern Italian red of the moment.

Valentino's trick is to allow the grapes to dry naturally in the hot Sicilian sun, so that they concentrate their sugars a touch. He then makes this cosmic red in the usual way only with a longer maceration on the skins to extract delicious, plush notes.

It is bottled after six months ageing in barrique, which is pretty short, so it doesn't mark the wine too much. Hey presto, you have a stunningly luxurious, mouth-coating smorgasbord of black plums, root liquorice, blackberries, espresso beans, tar, violets and balsamico. It is a terrific wine.

Matthew Jukes is a winner of the International Wine & Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year (www.matthewjukes.com).

Matthew Jukes has been the MoneyWeek wine correspondent since 2006.

He has worked in the UK wine business for well over three decades and during this time has written 14 wine books. His four highly-acclaimed, annual wine reports – the Burgundy En Primeur Report, the Bordeaux En Primeur Report, the Piemonte Report and the 100 Best Australian Wines – are published on his website.

Matthew is a winner of the International Wine and Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year Trophy. His thoughts, recommendations and tastings notes are followed very closely by the wine world at large.