The Terre Nere estate is located on the northern slopes of Etna, situated within the hilly belt that extends between Solicchiata and Randazzo, historically recognized as the finest in the appellation for fine red wines. The estate consists of approximately 45 hectares divided into 30 plots and in nine Contradas (crus). With the exception of about 7 recently planted hectares, the rest are between 50 and 100 years old. Less than one hectare has reached the venerable age of over 140 years, surviving the phylloxera, and is therefore ungrafted.

500,000 years of volcanic eruptions have created endless soil variation in neighboring plots of land, many of them radical. The soil at Terre Nere is mostly volcanic ash speckled by black pumice and peppered with abundant volcanic rock. The weather variations in the area are profound and generally characterized by exposure, altitude, and ‘airiness’. Above all else, the extraordinary elevation yields dramatic temperature variations between night and day, making the wines of Etna fine and elegant, devoid of the heat and overripe flavors that usually define southern wines.

Production is simple, classic, and Burgundian in style: the grapes are grown organically, using only bordelaise mixture and organic fertilization – mostly dung. Vinification follows the same lead: maceration-fermentation lasts 10-15 days, followed by malolactic fermentation and aging in oak – 25% new – and bottling around 18 months later.