Marsala loses its champion

Last Friday, Marco De Bartoli, Marsala wine's undisputed leader and one of the most admired wine personalities in Italy, died at the age of 66 after a short illness.

De Bartoli, descendant of one of Sicily's oldest Marsala-producing families, singlehandedly saved true Marsala from extinction at a time when flavoured and industrialised Marsala started to flood the market, reducing prices as well as Marsala's reputation to an all-time low.

How to turn the tide in Marsala's favour was a hotly discussed topic among producers in the region last year but so far has not resulted in any definite answer or...