PELLEGRINO Marsala Old John Ambra

Paolo Pellegrino founded Cantine Pellegrino in 1880 in Marsala, the port town on Sicily's west coast that gave its name to one of Italy's three classic fortified wines (alongside Madeira-style Marsala in production by 1773 under Englishman John Woodhouse). Paolo's son Carlo joined the venture; Carlo's wife Josephine Despagne — daughter of the Sauternais oenotechnician Oscar Pierre Despagne — brought French winemaking practice into the house and became its first female managing director.

Pellegrino remains family-run six generations on. The Marsala line covers Fine, Superiore, Vergine and Soleras-aged styles in dry, semi-dry and sweet expressions. Beyond Marsala, the house produces dry Sicilian table wines from Grillo, Nero d'Avola, Syrah and Zibibbo, and the Passito di Pantelleria from late-harvest Zibibbo grown on the volcanic island of Pantelleria, where the family owns vineyards. A grappa di Marsala — distilled from spent Marsala lees — closes the digestif end of the range.

Desserts, aged cheeses, tiramisu, nut tarts and digestif service; a versatile cellar-list Marsala Ambra for dessert and cooking programs.