Monteleone Etna Bianco 2025
We have 1 in stock (Inventory is live and accurate)
The Land
Carricante's recognized home is not the north slope. The grape's historic heart is the eastern face of the volcano above Milo, the only commune permitted to bottle Etna Bianco Superiore, and that is where most serious Etna white wine comes from. Monteleone works both sides. Fruit comes off the eastern slope at Sant'Alfio, where volcanic soils sit close enough to the Ionian Sea to catch its humidity and rain, and off the northern slope above Castiglione di Sicilia, where the volcanic sand carries clay and limestone and the ground has been cut and reworked by the Alcantara River. Plantings climb to 900 meters, and up there the nights drop hard even in August. That diurnal swing keeps Carricante's acidity intact while the skins finish ripening.
The Wine
This is 100% Carricante, no Catarratto in the blend. Fruit is picked in the early morning to come into the cellar cold, then gently pressed. The juice settles naturally for 48 hours before fermentation in stainless steel. The wine then spends six months on fine lees, split between stainless and concrete tanks, followed by six months in bottle before release. Lees contact in concrete rather than oak builds texture and a faint savory depth without putting any wood between you and the volcano. Expect white flowers, lemon pith, green apple skin and wet stone, then ripe yellow fruit and citrus with a salty, mineral drive and a long, dry finish. The 2025 season was a relief on Etna after the mildew pressure of 2024, cooler and more even, and altitude plus diurnal range delivered whites with real tension and low alcohol.
The People
Monteleone is a micro-estate founded in 2017 by Giulia Monteleone, a Palermo journalist, and her husband Benedetto Alessandro, an enologist who built his reputation consulting at Tenuta di Fessina, with Giulia's father Enrico involved from the start. Their home base is Contrada Cuba in Castiglione di Sicilia, just under 500 meters, which is low by Etna standards, set against the Alcantara canyon with trees nearby moderating temperature. The upper block was planted in 1935 to bush-trained, ungrafted Nerello Mascalese; the lower block dates to 1970. The Carricante parcel at Sant'Alfio went in during 2008. Everything is farmed organically, and parcels are vinified separately. Giulia has campaigned to have Contrada Cuba recognized as its own named contrada, which tells you how seriously this family takes the question of site.
Food Pairing
Carricante was built for fish. Grill swordfish over high heat and hit it with salmoriglio, lemon juice, oregano and olive oil whisked warm, and the wine's salinity meets the char head on. Linguine alle vongole, heavy on parsley and a little chile, works because the wine already tastes faintly of seawater. A whole branzino roasted with fennel fronds and good oil gives the yellow-fruit side of the wine something rich to sit against. Finish with a wedge of aged pecorino, where the acidity cuts the fat cleanly. This is the bottle for the night you detour to the fish counter on the way home and decide to cook properly.
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Sicily, Italy’s largest island, blends ancient wine traditions with a fresh wave of modern creativity. Its star red grape, Nero d’Avola, thrives in the island’s warm, sun-soaked climate, producing intensely flavored wines with dark fruit and a hint of savory spice. Along the western coast lies the historic heartland of Marsala, a fortified wine prized for both sweet and dry styles. Rising above the island’s varied landscapes is Mount Etna, an active volcano whose mineral-rich soils and cooler elevations result in elegantly structured reds and nuanced whites. From coast to crater, Sicily’s wine culture is as diverse and vibrant as the region itself.
Italy - Sicily
Native to Sicily's Mount Etna, Carricante is a high acid white grape known for minerality. It's at its best on the east slope of the volcano, showing saltiness and texture with ample acidity to age for decades.
