Benanti

Benanti is one of Sicily’s most iconic estates, with a reputation as a pioneering producer of wines from Mount Etna who have set an incredibly high standard for the area. Etna is located on the eastern coast of Sicily, this fascinating sub region, with its wild landscape and volcanic soils, produce some of the most interesting, most distinctive and sought-after wines of the island.

Benanti winery was founded in 1988 by Giuseppe Benanti, a passion project, built with the aim to preserve this special terroir and develop the unique grape varieties indigenous to Etna. In 2012 Giuseppe passed the reins to his sons, twin brothers Antonio and Salvino Benanti, who very much shared Giuseppe’s vision and had ambitions to take it even further. The brothers immediately implemented a ruthless refocussing program, cutting ties with vineyards of lesser quality, all international grape varieties and re-invested their focus on their core wines and single vineyard offerings. They now own 14 hectares of organically farmed vineyard land across the slopes of Etna.

Benanti Etna Rosso and Benanti Etna Bianco are their flagship wines, the rosso a blend of Nerrello Mascalese and Nerello Cappuccio and the bianco is made from 100% Carricante. These are beautiful expressions of these iconic Sicilian styles, but the really special wines, the wines sought out by top sommeliers and wine geeks across the world are their Superiore, Riserva and Contrada selections, including Pietra Marina, Serra della Contessa, Rovittello, Cantrada Cavaliere and Contrada Rinazzo.