2023 Graci - Etna Bianco DOC Muganazzi (750ml)

Alberto Aiello Graci left a career in Milan investment banking to return to Sicily and found his winery in 2004 on Mount Etna's northern slope. He became part of the small group of producers who helped revive Etna's reputation after decades of neglect, focusing exclusively on the volcano's indigenous grapes. Muganazzi is one of five contrade the estate farms, sitting alongside better-known crus like Arcuria and Feudo di Mezzo in Graci's organically certified vineyard holdings.

This wine is made entirely from Carricante grown in Contrada Muganazzi, a 5.5-hectare parcel at roughly 700 meters elevation on Etna's northern slope. The vines here are largely bush-trained and, like much of Graci's property, planted on their own volcanic rootstock, since the mountain's soils have historically resisted phylloxera. After fermentation, the wine ages in a combination of steel and oak, a treatment that builds texture while preserving the site's mineral-driven character.

Straw-yellow in the glass, the wine shows light apricot, dried apple, and tropical fruit layered over pronounced volcanic minerality. Full bodied yet lively, it carries generous fruit alongside crushed stone, flint, and dried lemon through a long finish. Serve it with grilled swordfish, seafood risotto, or a simple plate of fresh burrata.