There is one thing that Gaetano Arrigo would say when talking about making wine: if you are on the right piece of land, it is the easiest thing to do. He is talking about a brilliant, unique wine, such as his Nerello Mascalese.

Since the beginning, the approach that leads the company is to intervene as little as possible with the vines, only with specific operations aimed at keeping them healthy and tidy. Herbicides and other chemicals have never been used. The reason is simple: they are not needed. Producing organic wine here isn’t an ethical choice, it is common sense. Nature and the wise work of men are enough. The climate is kind, the land is rich and lavish, the soil is exceptional. Especially in ‘Contrada Pietramarina’ - the exact spot on the Etna hillside where the winery is located. It is made of three different elements: Etna lava rock, sandstone and alluvial deposits, coming from the close Alcantara river. This rare composition gives grapes a distinctive and unique taste and character…the same that will then be found in the wine.

To trust nature also means to make decisions that to many may seem foolish. For example, having less land devoted to vines, letting other spontaneous local trees grow as well. The fruit trees that are scattered around the vineyard - wild blackberry bushes, persimmon and cherry trees, pomegranates and olive trees - are actually responsible for the distinguishing aromas of Arrigo’s Nerello Mascalese. In the estate, there is also a little chestnut forest; back in the days, its food would be used for the barrels and to support the vines. Even if today it no longer serves this goal, it wasn’t cut but rather considered a richness, as it adds variety to the natural environment.

The minimum intervention approach is also applied in the winery. After a strictly manual harvest, the grapes are softly pressed and left to ferment with the skins, while the maceration process is carried out in steel tanks. This might sound like a paradox for a winery that insists so much on nature. As a matter of fact, this choice actually corresponds to the desire of not altering the wine at all, a thing that any wooden barrel would do. In the past, the solution adopted was to use huge, 10,000 liter local chestnut barrels - their impressive size would protect the wine from any added wood flavors. Today, the answer comes from steel.

Gaetano Arrigo’s Nerello Mascalese is a refined and interesting wine that expresses and honors its incredible motherland, made with passion and humble simplicity. And love, of course.