Our first stop is a winery that has done an enormous amount for the reputation of local wines. Planeta. Innovative. Sustainable. Hospitable. Diverse. Magnificent. Wine critic Luigi Veronelli already noted this in 1996. With this, Planeta's Chardonnay became the epitome of the breakthrough and modern wine culture of Sicily. A wine icon for Italy. Planeta has by no means stood still. On the contrary. More and more vineyards, vines, wines, and locations have been added. The winery knows only one direction: skyward. Today, there is a corresponding cellar on every terroir. Since 2022, all of them, as well as the grain, almond, and olive production, have been organically certified. No wonder Alessio Planeta was crowned "Winemaker of the Year" in 2023 by the international Wine Star Awards with this prestigious title. He is the fourth Italian to receive this honor. And the family's story continues. Anyone who wants to discover the wine world of Planeta needs more than three days to visit the locations in Palermo, Capo Milazzo, Castiglione di Sicilia on Etna, Noto, Vittoria, and Menfi. They are spread around the island. Fortunately, one can experience the family's warm hospitality at the various locations. From the Beach Club (Menfi) to the Palazzo (Palermo) and the private houses, everything can be wonderfully experienced and tasted in peace.

The vineyard sites of Graci are similarly complex but much closer together. We are at the northern foot of Etna, in Passopisciaro, in the center of the Alcantara Valley, where time and the volcano have composed the soils so complexly that they can be completely different within a single vineyard. A difference of fifty meters results in a different wine. Fortunately, you can experience this in the glass at Graci, because this winery has completely specialized in the volcanic soils and sites of Etna. The vineyards are located in Contrada Muganazzi, Contrada Santo Spirito, Contrada Feudo di Mezzo, Contrada Arcurìa (and Vigna sopra il Pozzo), and in Contrada Barbabecchi, at an altitude between 600 and 1000 meters above sea level. Here, with careful and classical winemaking, three white wines, one rosé, and five red wines are produced. Each expresses the natural microterroir and vintage typicity precisely and profoundly. A winery that you should definitely know, at least in the glass. At Graci, interventions in the cellar are kept to a minimum; the work happens in the vineyards, and no chemical agents are used there either. Everything that disturbs the balance and energy of the soil disturbs.

Impressive and harmonious, this is also how the estate (Sua Altezza) of the Lombardo family from the eponymous winery presents itself. In 2013, they acquired the old farmhouse, restored it, and built a modern wine cellar inside. There is no more stylish place to taste the wines of the passionate brothers Salvatore, Gianfranco, and Roberto. Wood, technology, and tranquility are the main features of the production, but here too, the wines are made in the vineyard. The grapes thrive on 30 hectares, in six different locations, at altitudes between 550 and 650 meters above sea level. This allows temperature differences between day and night of over 15 degrees, resulting in elegant, consistent, fresh, and often award-winning wines.