Volcanic Wines of Etna
About Etna
History
From the end of the 1800s to the beginning of the 1900s, the Etna area produced approximately 100 million liters of wine using exclusively palmenti.
Terroir
Etna is a perpetually active volcano that never stops, so the terroir is virgin, primordial, visceral, and in constant change.
Grapes
Nerello Mascalese, Nerello Cappuccio, Carricante, Catarratto, Minnella, and what about those gnarly vines?
Wineries
Nerello Mascalese, Nerello Cappuccio, Carricante, Catarratto, Minnella, and what about those gnarly vines?
Featured Wineries
Palmento Costanzo
The iconic structure of the winery itself is a historical palmento, a traditional Sicilian stone structure used for crushing grapes and fermenting wine.
Bonaccorsi
My father taught me to respect the land and its fruits, he told me that we must support nature not try to counter it and change it.
Eduardo Torres Acosta
Since that year I wanted to come and make a vintage in Etna to learn the terroir, to learn the varieties and find some common points between the Canary Islands and Etna which are both volcanic.
Sciara
Part of the reason why I came here, when I realized that I could get a piece of land, was the diversity of the altitude. And also, the old vines are very… they’re very old.
Frank Cornelissen
When I arrived here, I found Piemonte from the ‘80s, the ‘70s and I thought, “Wow, I found a new Piemonte!”
Ciro Biondi
The alberello is a way to train the vines here on Etna, probably since the Greeks or the Romans. We use a chestnut pole like this one, and the vines then grow on it and it will support all the branches and it is well-ventilated. So, there is no barrier and you can access all the vines and not just the row with the wires in the middle.
Tenuta delle Terre Nere
There was a grape producer in Burgundy who said a thing that I think was very wise. He said, “Pinot Noir is not a great grape. Pinot Noir is a great grape in Burgundy.” So Nerello is not a great grape. It’s a great grape on Etna. Outside of Etna, it doesn’t deliver.
Graci
I think that people who live here in contact with a volcano that is beautiful, but also terrifying, that brings with it this activity, also quite often earthquake activity, that it is a symbol of creativity and also of disruption. People that live here, they have a really very unique approach with their inner world.
Etna Stories
A History Born of Fire
The region of Etna boasts a remarkable history of wine production that spans over 6,000 years. Its fertile lands have attracted the attention of various civilizations, from the early medieval period to the Renaissance.
Following the devastating earthquake of 1693 and the subsequent tsunami,... READ MORE
Berenice Lurton of Chateau Climens On Rotten Grapes And Biodynamic Farming
auternes is a village in southeast Bordeaux known for its sweet white wines, also called Sauternes. They are made by a unique process involving a particular kind of useful fungus which can affect grapes in the right weather conditions. Often referred to as “dessert wines,” they are actually much... READ MORE
A Return to the Roots: Ruben Parera and the Natural Wine Revolution in Penedès
There is a quiet revolution taking place in the vineyards of Penedès, the sprawling wine region that stretches from the Mediterranean coast to the foothills of Montserrat, just southwest of Barcelona. It is a revolution that looks backward as much as it looks forward — a rejection of industrial logic... READ MORE