2019 Pietradolce Santo Spirito Etna Rosso Sicily 750 ml

Mark our words as lovers of Italian wine: There is no Italian category whose quality is more undervalued—and imbued with more world-class pedigree—than Sicily’s Etna Rosso. 

And Pietradolce’s 2019 Santo Spirito Etna Rosso is just lights-out for the money.

This 100% Nerello Mascalese is stunning, and what you get in this bottle is simply unreal for the price. From pre-phylloxera vines over 90 years old, grown on the north slope of Etna in rocky volcanic ash, it’s a wine that anyone who loves Pinot Noir or Nebbiolo is going to fall in love with.

Sitting on Europe’s most active volcano has its perks. Years of eruptions and lava flows have shaped the mountainside, painting streaks of stony, sandy loam. Here, the high altitudes and rich soils nurture thick-skinned Nerello grapes that harbor ample tannins and acidity. These features come together perfectly in wines from the Santo Spirito contrada (vineyard), but without the heaviness you’ll find in some other Italian reds.

A deep respect for these sun-drenched slopes flows through everything Pietradolce does. They tend every ancient vine by hand and strive for minimal human intervention. In short, they trust the land to work its magic, and the land always delivers. By the time the fruit emerges from vines planted in black volcanic rock, it’s imbued with boundless potential, which gets unlocked by a 14-month rest in 500-liter oak casks. 

All of this adds up to a treasure of Sicilian patrimony: vines lovingly tended for nine decades, amidst lava flows and a world war. Today, their fruit is given their most reverent treatment ever by the Pietradolce team, who have won 13 Tre Bicchieri in 15 years.