Cornelissen

Frank Cornelissen arrived on the slopes of Etna in 2000, a Belgian former wine merchant who had concluded that the volcanic soils of the mountain, the pre-phylloxera massal-selection vines that survived there in isolated plots, and the altitude-driven diurnal temperature range constituted one of the most extraordinary terroirs on earth — and that almost nothing serious was being made from it.

The farming he established is certified organic, and the winemaking is as non-interventionist as the climate allows — no additives, often no sulphur, vinification in clay and fibreglass vessels. The approach produces wines that provoke genuine disagreement: some vintages show the volcanic minerality and aromatic precision that Cornelissen's supporters consider among the most distinctive in Italian wine; others have shown the instability that comes with minimal intervention in a challenging climate. The recent record has tilted definitively toward the former.

The Magma — a Nerello Mascalese from the highest altitude ungrafted plots on the northern face of the volcano — has drawn 97 points from Wine Advocate. It is one of a small number of Italian wines that creates demand from collectors who have never previously paid attention to Sicily.

Cornelissen's project is, in the most direct sense, the argument that great terroir and honest farming are sufficient. The volcanic slopes of Etna are, on current evidence, proving him right.