The Calabretta estate is one of the Etna’s best and just about any wine you pick from their impressive lineup of offerings will turn out to be a crowd pleaser. For example, their 100% Nerello Cappuccio has an absolute gem over the years, but all the Nerello Mascalese wines are amongst the best of the volcano too. The owner, Massimiliano Calabretta (a part-time college professor in Genoa) is also fairly unique in that he believes in releasing the wines only when ready. Therefore, his estate’s wines reach the market well after everyone else’s (for example, six to eight years after the wines of the other Etna producers). The winery owns organically farmed vines that are as much as eighty years old and planted between 300-900 meters above sea level in some of Etna’s best terroirs.