For most of the 20th century, Sicily's wine went north in tankers to bulk up thin French and northern Italian reds. The world's wine community barely knew the island's own varieties. That changed in the 1990s. Now Etna Rosso appears on the best restaurant lists in New York and Tokyo. Here's how to drink it at source.
The numbers are stark: Sicily produces more wine per year than Australia. Until two decades ago, almost none of it was bottled under Sicilian labels. The island's ancient varieties — Nerello Mascalese, Nero d'Avola, Grillo, Carricante — were unknown outside academic ampelography circles.
Then a generation of Sicilian producers stopped selling bulk and started bottling. The results were staggering. Etna Rosso, made from Nerello Mascalese grown at 700–1,000m altitude on volcanic basalt, turned out to produce wines with the structure of Burgundy at a fraction of the price. Foreign investors noticed: Cornelissen, Terre Nere, Passopisaro, Gulfi are all partly or wholly backed by non-Sicilian capital attracted by the quality.
The most fashionable zone right now. Nerello Mascalese for reds, Carricante for whites, grown on volcanic basalt terraces (called terrazzamenti) maintained by hand at elevations up to 1,000m. The vines are old — many over 100 years, some over 150 — because Etna's elevation and volcanic soil meant phylloxera (the 19th-century aphid that destroyed most of Europe's vineyards) couldn't survive at altitude. You're drinking wine from pre-phylloxera vines as a matter of routine on Etna.
Best cantinas to visit: Terre Nere (Randazzo side, north slope), Benanti (Viagrande, near Catania), Cornelissen (Solicchiata — controversial natural wine approach, fascinating regardless of whether you agree with the methods). Tours €15–30pp, must book ahead.
The southeast corner of Sicily, around Avola, Pachino, and Noto. Nero d'Avola is the dominant grape — a thick-skinned, deeply coloured red that produces wines of extraordinary concentration. The best producers here are Gulfi (near Chiaramonte Gulfi — the best Nero d'Avola outside the DOC), Planeta (multiple estates across Sicily, the most professional visitor experience), and Cos (Vittoria — natural wine, certified organic, spectacular site near the Valley of the Temples).
The fortified wine capital. Marsala DOC was created in 1969 but the wine style dates from 1796 when English merchant John Woodhouse arrived at Marsala in a storm, tasted the local wine, and added grape spirit to stabilise it for the voyage home. The British Navy adopted it. Nelson served it to his fleet before Trafalgar. Today it's primarily a cooking wine in the rest of the world, which is a shame — real Marsala Vergine, aged 5+ years in oak, is a serious aperitivo or dessert wine.
Visit: Cantina Florio (Marsala, founded 1833 — the oldest continuously operating cantina in Sicily, tour includes cellar dating from 1833 and a museum of 19th-century wine trade). Pellegrino (family-run since 1880, more intimate). Tours from €10pp.
The only DOCG in Sicily — the highest classification. Made from Nero d'Avola and Frappato. The wines are lighter than straight Nero d'Avola, fresher, more food-friendly. The Frappato grape produces something almost Pinot Noir-like in its delicacy. Cos (mentioned above) is the benchmark producer; also look for Valle dell'Acate and Planeta's Vittoria estate.
Full day, drive the SP59 north from Catania through Nicolosi to Zafferana Etnea, then west via the Etna circular road through Linguaglossa to Randazzo. Three cantinas, lunch at a farmhouse. Self-drive: rent a car in Catania (€40/day), cantina tastings €15–25 each. Guided: €120–150pp with transport and lunch. The self-drive gives you flexibility; the guided tour gives you access to producers who don't do English-language visits independently.
Half-day from Trapani or Palermo. Two Marsala cantinas plus lunch in Mazara del Vallo (the town with the largest Tunisian immigrant community in Italy — the couscous is more accurately North African than anything in Sicily's mainstream restaurants). Cost: €80–100pp guided, or free if self-drive and you just pay cantina entry.
The Strada del Vino e dei Sapori is a mapped route covering all four zones over 4–6 days. Hire a car, book cantinas ahead (2+ days minimum notice), and combine with the baroque towns of the Val di Noto (Noto, Modica, Ragusa Ibla — all UNESCO). The route is well-documented on the Movimento Turismo del Vino website (movimentoturismovino.it/sicilia).
Catania for Etna wines — the eastern slopes are 30–45 minutes from the city centre. Palermo for western wines (Marsala is 90 minutes; many tours run from Palermo). If you want to cover both, consider a 5-day trip based in Taormina (central enough for day trips in both directions). Avoid Palermo as a base if you only want Etna wines — the traffic makes day trips painful.
For Etna, yes — public transport reaches the volcano towns but not the cantinas themselves, which are typically 2–5km off main roads on unmapped tracks. For Marsala, there's a train from Palermo (1h45) and the main cantinas in town are walkable from the station. For Val di Noto, Avola and Noto are on the train line from Catania; Gulfi requires a car. The rule of thumb: if you want more than two cantina visits per day, get a car.
Huge range. Entry-level Etna Rosso from a producer like Cottanera or Benanti: €10–15 at the cantina. Single-contrada (single-vineyard) Etna Rosso from Cornelissen or Terre Nere: €35–80. Nero d'Avola from Val di Noto cooperatives: €6–12. Gulfi single-vineyard Nero d'Avola: €18–28. Marsala Vergine Superiore Riserva (10+ years): €22–45. All of these are significantly cheaper at the cantina than in restaurants or export markets.
All of them, if packed correctly. Red wines (Nero d'Avola, Nerello Mascalese, Frappato) are robust travellers. The delicate whites — Carricante, Grillo — are more temperature-sensitive; try to avoid putting them in checked luggage on long flights. Cantinas will sell you wine boxes with foam inserts designed for airline travel. Marsala, being a fortified wine, is essentially indestructible and travels perfectly.
Etna Rosso (Nerello Mascalese) pairs best with local dishes: pasta alla norma (eggplant and ricotta), salsiccia di maiale (pork sausage with fennel seeds), grilled lamb chops. The tannins are softer than Barolo, the acidity higher than Nero d'Avola — it's a food-friendly red. Etna Bianco (Carricante) is exceptional with grilled swordfish or raw seafood — pair it at La Pescheria in Catania if you can get a glass. Most cantina tastings include bread, local salumi, and cheese; ask if they do a full tasting menu (antipasto + wines) which typically runs €25–35pp.
Etna has attracted a disproportionate number of natural wine producers — no or minimal sulphites, wild yeast fermentation, no fining agents. Frank Cornelissen is the most polarising: his wines either taste of volcanic terroir expressed with crystalline purity, or they taste oxidised and unstable, depending on who you ask and which bottle you open. The debate is genuine and ongoing.
What's unambiguous: the natural wine movement has attracted international attention to Etna, which has raised prices for all producers (good and bad). If you want to taste the difference between conventional and natural Etna wines side by side, the wine bar Vino Divino in Catania (Via Dusmet 13) pours both styles with knowledgeable commentary. Glass prices: €7–15.
Related reading: Complete Sicily Travel Guide | Mount Etna Day Trip | Catania Markets | Puglia Wine Tours
Etna cantina visits, Marsala cellars, and multi-day wine routes — designed around your palate and budget by people who live here.
Get Expert Advice →The story of Marsala is one of the great accidental discoveries in wine history. In 1796, British merchant John Woodhouse was forced to shelter in Marsala harbour during a storm. He tasted the local wine, found it excellent, and added grape spirit to stabilise it for the long voyage home — a standard practice for long-distance wine shipping at the time. The result was a fortified wine that arrived in Britain in exceptional condition.
Woodhouse immediately recognised the commercial opportunity. He established a cantina in Marsala in 1796 and began exporting. The British Navy adopted the wine enthusiastically — Admiral Horatio Nelson ordered 500 barrels before the Battle of the Nile in 1798, and the wine accompanied his fleet to Trafalgar in 1805. The association with Nelson gave Marsala international recognition that money couldn't have bought: "Admiral's wine" was drunk across the British Empire.
Vincenzo Florio, a Calabrian entrepreneur who had made his fortune in Sicily's tuna canning industry, bought into the Marsala trade in 1833 and eventually merged his operation with the Woodhouse cantina. The merged entity became Cantina Florio — still operating today as the world's most historically significant Marsala producer, with barrels dating from the 1860s in their cellar and a museum documenting the wine's global reach.
What most visitors don't know: premium Marsala (Vergine Superiore Riserva, aged 10+ years) is not cooking wine. It's a serious aperitivo or dessert wine with extraordinary complexity — oxidative notes of dried fruit, walnut, salted caramel, and sea air. Drink it chilled in a white wine glass alongside aged Sicilian cheeses. The image of Marsala as a cooking ingredient comes from low-grade versions used in commercial kitchens; the real thing is a different product entirely.
Palermo to Catania: Trenitalia runs intercity trains in 2h30–3h (€13–20). From Catania, Etna cantinas are 30–60 minutes by car depending on location. There is no convenient direct train from Palermo to the Etna wine zone. If based in Palermo and wanting to visit Etna cantinas, the most practical option is a guided day trip with transport from Palermo (€120–160pp including train or van, tastings, and lunch). The scenic Ferrovia Circumetnea railway circles the base of Etna connecting Catania, Randazzo, and Riposto — tourist rather than practical, but passes through wine country with occasional views into cantina vineyards.
Several, and the organic movement on Etna has grown fast. Cornelissen is certified organic and effectively biodynamic in practice (no official biodynamic certification, his own more extreme protocol). Terre di Trente is certified biodynamic. Vino di Anna (Australian winemaker Anna Martens, based in Milo on the east slope) makes natural wines of extraordinary precision with no additions. Fischetti Vini in Santa Maria di Licodia works without any added sulphites. The concentration of natural wine producers on Etna relative to the zone's size is unusually high — partly because the old, healthy vines don't need chemical intervention, and partly because the international attention has attracted winemakers philosophically aligned with natural methods. Ask any Catania wine bar for their natural Etna selection; you'll get a genuinely diverse tasting.
Standard European travel insurance covers medical emergencies, trip cancellation, and lost luggage. EU residents with an EHIC card have basic public healthcare access in Italy. Non-EU visitors need full medical coverage — Italian public hospitals are free at the point of care for EU residents; non-EU visitors may be billed. For a food-focused trip with expensive restaurant reservations, insurance that covers trip cancellation due to illness is worth the extra premium. Check that your policy covers activities like cooking classes, market tours, and wine tastings (all are standard tourist activities and covered by any reputable policy).
Cards are accepted at restaurants and hotels (Visa and Mastercard universally; Amex at higher-end establishments). Markets, small street food vendors, and neighbourhood bars: cash strongly preferred. Many traditional trattorias in working-class neighbourhoods are cash-only — check before ordering. ATMs (Bancomat) are widely available; use machines attached to bank branches rather than standalone tourist-zone ATMs to avoid additional fees. Dynamic Currency Conversion (when an Italian ATM or card terminal offers to charge you in your home currency) always works out worse than accepting the local currency charge — always decline this option.
TheFork (also called LaFourchette) is the primary restaurant reservation platform in Italy — most mid-range to high-end restaurants use it, and it often offers discounts for booking through the platform. Google Maps reviews for Italy are generally reliable for basic quality assessment. TripAdvisor is useful for English-language reviews but remember that the highest-ranked tourist-facing restaurants often aren't where Italians eat. For wine specifically, Vivino allows you to photograph a label and get instant ratings and producer information — useful when navigating a wine list in another language. For navigating Italian menus, Google Lens in camera mode can translate menu items in real time.