Terrazze dell’ Etna winery was founded in 2008 by Nino Bevilacqua, an engineer from Palermo, when legendary Italian winemaker Riccardo Cotarella helped him to plan and build this extraordinary property. Stretching over 36 hectares including a mix of vineyards, olive trees, cherry trees, chestnut trees, and oaks, the estate grows all of its own grapes at altitudes that range from 600 to 950 meters a.s.l. — some of the highest-lying vineyards in the world.
The name of the winery was inspired by the traditional terracing method (terrazza means terrace in Italian) that the Bevilacqua family revived when it purchased the farm more than a decade ago. Although the family also grows some international varieties for its classic-method sparkling wines, here the focus is on the native Nerello family of red grapes, Nerello Mascalease (the primary grape used in Etna wines) and Nerello Cappuccio. Farming here is only done by hand and the estate employs integrated farming techniques which encompasses upkeeping a variety of crops and livestock to enhance biodiversity. The soils are volcanic in nature, produced over the centuries by Mt. Etna in the vicinity. Terrazze dell’ Etna also practises a traditional approach to winemaking, with minimal intervention to create one of the appellation’s purest expressions.
