Benanti, Etna Rosso 2023

Why we love this bottle

Benanti is one of the founding names of modern Etna winemaking. Giuseppe Benanti established the estate in 1988, focused entirely on the native grapes of the volcano, Nerello Mascalese and Carricante, when almost nobody was paying attention. His sons Antonio and Salvino continue that work today, farming old alberello vines on sandy, mineral-rich volcanic soils across all four slopes of the DOC. No other producer has vineyards on every side of the volcano.  We love it because Benanti doesn’t try to modernise Etna. They just let it be what it is.

From one of Etna's founding estates, established 1988. Old alberello vines on volcanic sandy soils between 700 and 950 metres altitude, fermented with indigenous yeasts selected from the estate's own vineyards. Pale ruby with garnet hints. Sour cherry, blood orange zest, pomegranate and a hint of volcanic ash. Fresh and linear with fine powdery tannins and lifted acidity. Earthy, saline and long. Nerello Mascalese at its most honest.