Old vines in Sicily

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Bold

Alta Mora's premium single-contrada Etna Rosso from the celebrated Guardiola contrada: the estate's most structured and mineral expression from high-altitude old-vine Nerello Mascalese.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Low tannin · Racy acidity · Contemplative · Elegant

The benchmark Etna Bianco Superiore from Milo: Carricante of crystalline mineral purity, volcanic salinity, and piercing acidity that rewards 8-plus years of cellaring.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Savoury

The Pietrarizzo contrada on Etna's north slope at 800 metres yields Benanti's most mineral and savoury Nerello Mascalese: a wine of austere mineral precision and remarkable ageing potential from pre-phylloxera vine material.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Rustic

From Rovittello on the north slope, this Benanti red shows the classic Etna paradox: light ruby colour but profound mineral depth, firm tannins and soaring acidity demanding patient cellaring.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Elegant

Benanti's top-tier Etna Rosso from the Serra della Contessa contrada at 700 metres: concentrated, structured, and among the most age-worthy expressions of Nerello Mascalese on the volcano.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Medium tannin · High acidity · Rustic · Funky

Calabretta's classic Etna Rosso: the blend of Nerello Mascalese and Nerello Cappuccio from century-old ungrafted vines, biodynamically farmed and made without additions, produces a wine of honest rustic charm and deep mineral character.

Dry · Light-bodied · Low tannin · High acidity · Easygoing · Funky

Gaio Gaio is Calabretta's most accessible wine: a light-bodied, vibrant Nerello Mascalese with the biodynamic estate's characteristic freshness and minimal-intervention purity.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Rustic · Contemplative

Vigne Vecchie (old vines) showcases the depth of Calabretta's ungrafted Nerello: light in colour but profound in mineral detail, with the incense-and-iron character of century-old Etna vines.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Rustic

Cottanera's single-contrada Calderara Sottana Etna Rosso: firmer and more structured than the estate red, showcasing the depth of this historic north-slope contrada.

Dry · Full-bodied · High tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Bold

Vrucara is from Feudo Montoni's oldest pre-phylloxera Nero d'Avola vines in the high plateau of central Sicily: austere, iron-mineral, demanding years in bottle to reveal its full complexity.

Dry · Full-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Savoury · Contemplative

Ribeca is one of Sicily's most important varietal Perricone wines: this nearly extinct native grape produces a wine of austere iron-mineral character, tart red fruit and high acidity that is unlike any other Sicilian red.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Funky

Magma is one of Italy's most sought-after cult wines: pure Nerello Mascalese from ungrafted pre-phylloxera vines above 1,000 metres, no sulphur added, aged in amphora. The wine embodies volcanic terroir at its most extreme and unfiltered.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Bold

The prestige Russo single-vineyard: 'A Rina (dialect for 'la rena' - the sand) from some of the deepest sandy volcanic soils on the north slope, producing the most austere and age-demanding wine in the portfolio.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Savoury

Feudo is the most structured of the Russo single-contrada range: darker-fruited, firmer in tannin, with a chalky mineral depth that demands patience but rewards handsomely.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Medium tannin · High acidity · Rustic · Easygoing

San Lorenzo is the most immediately accessible of the Russo single-contrada range: fragrant, iron-streaked, with vibrant sour cherry and a saline volcanic freshness that makes it the most drinkable Russo Etna Rosso in its youth.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Elegant

Arcuria is the Graci flagship: from 52 acres of ungrafted pre-phylloxera vines on the north slope, it epitomises Etna's Burgundian paradox - light ruby colour belying deep mineral complexity and firm, precise tannins.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Bold

From the Barbabecchi contrada at higher elevation than Arcuria, this Graci red is the most structured and demanding of the range: dense, chalky, and extraordinarily long-lived.

Dry · Full-bodied · Firm tannin · Medium acidity · Bold · Savoury

The Baronj contrada produces a more herbal-mineral Nero d'Avola than Bufaleffj, with a finer-grained tannic structure and exceptional length.

Dry · Full-bodied · High tannin · Medium acidity · Bold · Contemplative

The Bufaleffj contrada produces Gulfi's most powerful Nero d'Avola: dense, iron-mineral, dark-fruited and structured with high tannins needing several years to integrate.

Dry · Full-bodied · Firm tannin · Medium acidity · Contemplative · Elegant

Sanlorenzo is the most elegant of Gulfi's quartet: the highest-altitude contrada delivers a more refined palate structure with exceptional aromatic complexity.

Dry · Full-bodied · Low tannin · Medium acidity · Contemplative · Funky

Vecchio Samperi is Marco De Bartoli's life work and Sicily's most important wine: un-fortified perpetuo Grillo aged in a 5-tier solera at Samperi, achieving Marsala-like depth and complexity entirely through natural oxidation - no fortification spirits added. Among the world's most distinctive and debated fortified-style wines.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Medium tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Elegant

Occhipinti's top-tier DOCG from the Bombolieri single vineyard: equal parts Frappato and Nero d'Avola in their most complex and age-worthy expression, mineral-driven with remarkable persistence.

Dry · Full-bodied · Firm tannin · Medium acidity · Bold · Contemplative

Siccagno is the Sicilian dry-farming term for unirrigated cultivation; Occhipinti's varietal Nero d'Avola is richly dark-fruited with a characteristic iron-mineral finish from Vittoria's ferrous soils.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Elegant

Di Me (meaning 'of me' or 'for me') is Palmento Costanzo's prestige expression: single-vineyard Nerello Mascalese from the oldest vines in the Santo Spirito contrada, displaying the estate's most complex mineral and structural character.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Elegant

Contrada C Chiappemacine is among the lightest and most elegant of the Passopisciaro contrada series: fragrant, iron-tinged, with firm but fine-grained tannins.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Bold

Contrada R Rampante, from the highest-altitude Passopisciaro site at 1,000 metres, produces the most structured and slow-evolving wine of the range: taut, mineral and built for exceptional longevity.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Bold

Vigna Barbagalli is Pietradolce's prestige single-vineyard Etna Rosso from ungrafted pre-phylloxera vines at 850 metres: among the most collectible and age-worthy Nerello Mascalese produced on the north slope.

Dry · Full-bodied · High tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Elegant

Sicily's most historic prestige red: Tasca's Rosso del Conte blends Nero d'Avola with Perricone from the Regaleali plateau, aged two years in large oak. It is the island's longest-established benchmark for structured, age-worthy Sicilian reds.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Elegant

Il Picciolo is Tascante's prestige single-vineyard Etna Rosso from old Nerello vines in a specific parcel within the Rampante contrada: the estate's most structured and complex expression.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Elegant

Calderara Sottana is a benchmark for north-slope Etna Rosso: Burgundian elegance with volcanic minerality, tart red-fruit purity and the structural firmness that demands 8-plus years.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Elegant

Feudo di Mezzo is the most aromatic and perfumed of the Terre Nere lineup: complex, multi-layered, with chalky depth and remarkable persistence.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Bold

The Guardiola contrada yields the most powerful and structured of the Terre Nere single-vineyard range: darker fruit, greater density, and a long mineral-chalky finish.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Medium tannin · High acidity · Rustic · Easygoing

San Lorenzo's lower-altitude vines yield a more accessible Terre Nere red: fragrant, iron-streaked, with vibrant sour-cherry acidity and a mineral iron finish.

Dry · Medium-bodied · Firm tannin · High acidity · Contemplative · Elegant

Musmeci is Fessina's prestige single-vineyard Etna Rosso from old Nerello Mascalese vines in the Rovittello contrada: structured, mineral-driven and among the north slope's most refined expressions.