Regional Institute of Wine and Oil

VINITALY, SICILY AND THE NEW FRONTIERS OF WINE: FROM AI TO EXPERIMENTAL SPARKLING WINES, PASSING THROUGH THE THOUSAND FACES OF NERO D'AVOLA

Research wines and artificial intelligence are reshaping the island's future. A museum has opened in Pavilion 2, showcasing millennia of history and wine.

The Sicilian wine sector is growing with artificial intelligence: the information system for the management and control of theRegional Institute of Wine and Oil (IRVO) With the PICAL platform, it goes from being a mere data repository to an intelligent and interconnected ecosystem, capable of supporting complex decision-making processes and simplifying bureaucratic procedures for companies in the sector. The intuitiveness of the advanced systems – presented today at Vinitaly 2026 during the conference "Nature and technology: data and experimentation in the Sicilian sector” – allows you to monitor certifications, territories, and trends in real time and with precision.

IRVO protects the island's production and also conducts intensive advanced oenological research through its vineyards, winery, and experimental microvinification laboratories at the "G. Dalmasso" winery in Marsala (TP). The conference highlighted the development of new sparkling wines from native grape varieties and a contemporary reinterpretation of Nero d'Avola, which, thanks to research, reveals a thousand facets, including the revival of sustainable amphora winemaking.

The SAQIRVO program reveals a new frontier for Sicilian sparkling winesTwo experimental sparkling wines made with the Classico and Martinotti methods were presented, obtained from Zibibbo grapes, vinified with different pairs of yeasts with the aim of maximising their aromatic profile. project dedicated to Nero d'Avola Instead, it focuses on the new expressive possibilities of one of Sicily's most representative "emotional" grape varieties. The experimental wines tasted at Vinitaly enhance the aromatic profile with fresh, vertical, and easy-drinking sensations; while the sparkling wines veer toward more natural experimentation, with spontaneous fermentation, no sulfites, and vinification in amphorae.

These are just some of the most important frontiers of the Irvo shared during the interventions of Giusi Mistretta (IRVO Extraordinary Commissioner), Vito Bentivegna (IRVO General Director), Fabrizio Carrera (director of Cronache di gusto), Roberto Ragona (Canino Technological innovation), Antonio Sparacio (manager of the UO.B. research, experimentation and transfer of innovation and sustainability), Salvatore Sparla (IRVO winemaker). Monday at Vinitaly in Pavilion 2 concluded with the inauguration of the exhibition by the Sicilian Region's Department of Cultural Heritage "Millennia of History and Wine. Memory Routes in the Mediterranean.During the event the regional councilors Luca Sammartino (Agriculture, Rural Development and Mediterranean Fisheries of the Sicilian Region) and Francesco Paolo Scarpinato (Cultural Heritage and Sicilian Identity) emphasized the importance of a synergy aimed at building cultural itineraries of taste, to strengthen the wine and culture tourism that is already a reality.  They participated in the event moderated by Roberta Garibaldi, president of Food and Wine Tourism, professor at the University of Bergamo and vice-president of the OECD Tourism Commission, the director of the Archaeological Park of Segesta Luigi Biondo and the Superintendent for Cultural Heritage and Sicilian Identity Daniela Vullo.