I was fortunate enough to visit Pietradolce, one of Sicily’s top wineries and a top 100 wineries of the world on several respected lists. For those who have not yet tried the magic of Sicilian wines, especially those from the Etna DOC region, I will attempt to share the essence of the place, the vineyards and the wines.
The visit was gratefully arranged with Giuseppe Parlavecchio, who I met at the last Armit trade tasting, and led by Angelo Silverstro who looks after hospitality at the winery. Nestled in the northern foothills of Mount Etna (Mama to Sicilians) within the Etna Nature Park, you wind your way inland from the east coast through beautiful towns and countryside until you arrive at the winery, a cool 750m above sea level. The drive was quite civilised compared to other roads I had to navigate to reach the villa where we were staying!
The winery was rebuilt in the past 10 years to blend seamlessly into the background of the mountain. The volcanic nature of the area, stemming from eruptions centuries and millennia before, meant that lava flows carved out natural divides between vineyards while depositing a wide variety of minerals and water in the soils. Amongst the vineyards stand a variety of fruit and oak trees with the vineyards planted to Nerello Mascalese (red) and Carricante (white). Vines are individually trained using the Alberello method, where each vine is treated as its own little ‘tree’ supported by a stake. We had a meander through the Archineri vineyard where vines date back up to 110-120 years, many planted on their original roots. Angelo explained that the area was fortunate to escape the ravages of phylloxera, possibly due to the nature of the soil. The great fortune of this area is these old vines that are still producing an abundance of ripe fruit with the character of this unique volcanic terroir.
Harvesting is done entirely by hand and we arrived in the midst of destemming the day’s pickings. We were lucky to witness the first filled open tank of Nerello Mascalese. Fermentation is carried out in stainless steel and raw concrete wine bulb shaped tanks. Reds are aged in a mix of 500-700 litre in mostly used oak barrels while the whites are aged in stainless steel. All wines spend months to years in bottle prior to release. While all the wines show great character, Pietradolce focus on vineyard-specific ‘crus’ including a ‘grand cru’, Barbagalli, from their most precious vineyard. We were fortunate to taste many of these wines with Angelo.
Tasting notes
Etna Bianco DOC 2025 – 100% Carricante, aged in stainless steel.
Mid lemon with a slightly green tinge. Nose of lemon, pungent lime, hints of green herbs, honey blossom, green apple. Palate of green apple, lime juice, and pears with a clean mineral finish. Very precise and pure.
Etna Rosato DOC 2025 – 100% Nerello Mascalese from a single vineyard of 40 year old vines with 3 hours skin contact, aged in stainless steel
Blush orange and pink in appearance. Nose of apricot, orange skin, pear drop, a touch of banana and seawater. On the palate, just ripe apricot, fantastic salinity and stoniness, with a savoury sweet finish brightened by the lively acidity. A fantastic rosé with great intensity and long finish.
Archineri – Etna Bianco DOC 2024 – 100% Carricante from a different site in Milo at 850m. Aged in stainless steel with 10 months in bottle pre-release.
Deep lemon. Aromas of pears, green apples, lemon peel, a stronger white blossom and a hint of sulfur. More austere intense than the Etna Bianco, very lemon, mineral, with intense acidity and a smoky essence with a long finish. Just emerging from its shell, this is a youngster that needs several more years to rest before blossoming.
Archineri – Etna Rosso DOC 2021 – one of the ‘crus’, pre-phylloxera vines averaging 90 years at 850m above sea level. Aged for 3 months in the concrete vats followed by 14 months in barrel then left for 3 years in bottle before release.
Pale appearance with slightly orange rim. Nose of red currants, strawberry, ripe cherry, cherry lollipop, roasted, smoky meat, steak spices and cola. Palate is very complex, savoury dark cherry, smoked meat, sandalwood and spices. Tannins are very fine and balanced. Very long finish, a beautiful wine.
Rampante – Etna Rosso DOC 2021 – Another of crus from pre-phylloxera vines next to Archineri at 850m. Soils are richer sandy-loam with more direct sunlight but also more wind exposure. Fermented in concrete tanks, aged in oak for 14 months then 3 years in bottle.
Deep ruby colour. Nose of spiced ripe plum, dark cherry with a balsamic and meaty character. Fuller bodied than the Archineri, ripe red and dark cherry with a savoury meaty quality, a chalky mouthfeel and more evident tannins. Powerful while retaining grace, with fine acidity and balance.
Santo Spirito – Etna Rosso DOC 2021 – the 3rd cru tasted, once again from pre-phylloxera vines at 900m in a very exposed vineyard with wide temperature fluctuations. Like the others, aged 14 months in barrel and 3 years in bottle prior to release.
More orange to light pink, very bright coloured. A somewhat reluctant nose of red cherry, some orange peel, smoke. Palate shows red cherry and is very pinot noir (Volnay?) with rose petals and a savoury edge. Very fine tannins in evidence in this truly elegant complex wine, just lovely.
Barbagalli – Etna Rosso DOC 2020 – 14.5% ABV. The Grand Cru wine from a 0.5 hectare vineyard with sandy-loam soil interspersed with volcanic rock. Pre-phylloxera vines at 900m. Aged 20 months in oak then bottle for several years. 1500 bottles made.
