2019 Ayunta Nerello Mascalese Rosato Metodo Ancestrale

Region: Mt. Etna < Sicily               

Grapes: Nerello Mascalese

Farming Practice: Organic farming; 50-100 year-old vines on Etna’s volcanic soils; grapes are harvested early, de-stemmed and slow pressed; made in the ancestral method with fermentation in vat and bottled while it’s still fermenting; it finishes in bottle; crown-capped, undisgorged, with no added So2; 12% ABV 

Winemaker: Filippo Ayunta

FUN FACT: Mt. Etna is the highest volcano in Europe, and one of the world’s most active.  It tops out at nearly 11,000 feet (you can ski Etna - yes, skiing in Sicily!) and vineyards dot the black volcanic landscape as pretty high up the mountain.  

We love Etna wines, especially ones that come from small and scrappy one man (or woman) operations, like this project from Filippo Ayunta, who still holds down a day job (as export manager for a big Northern Italian winery). He grew up on the other side of the Sicilian island, where his family grew grapes and made wine until grandpa died and the estate had to be sold off. Years later, walking the slopes of Etna, Filippo met the old owner of a nearly abandoned vineyard in Calderara Sottana who wanted someone to continue his life’s work.  He told Filippo, “Take it. Don’t let this vineyard die.” So Filippo spent his entire savings to buy the vineyard, and now makes wine from a few parcels around Randazzo on northern Etna, totaling 2.8 hectares of super old vines.  Filippo guesses they are up to 300 years old each.  He also renovated the original palmento (open-topped stone fermenter) next to his house, where the wine basically makes itself using the indigenous yeast that has been helping ferment wine since before the early 1800s. 

We love all of Filippo's wine, but his pet'nat is special.  An incredibly beautiful peachy-pink color, this is juicy fizz with an Etna twist: flinty, salty, floral and fruity.  Limited quantities.