ETNA'S NATURE

Few words are needed to describe the natural beauty of such an extraordinary location as Etna. All that’s needed is a quick glimpse to appreciate the palette of colour which paints the area surrounding the Cavanera Etnea Resort & Wine Experience.
The black soils of the ancient, terraced lava flows; the yellow broom flowers, and the dark green hazelnut orchards which stretch along the country tracks form a chromatic contrast with the intense green of the vineyards, while against a backdrop between earth and sky the volcano rises in all its majesty. This is a perfect snapshot of the enjoyment to be had from the unique and unusual nature on Etna, where by day you can hear the volcano breathing and by night admire the blazes of fire and red-hot lava that stand out against the deep blue sky of twilight. Here, immersed in Etna’s nature, Firriato has decided to employ mountainside viticulture in full sun. We are at the heart of the area most adapted to vine growing on Etna, the north-eastern slope. The vineyards are housed on a lava flow from 1556, on a soil with unique characteristics. In fact, this area is one of the few that avoided the phylloxera plague, so much so that the ancient vines are planted directly into the soil and not on rootstock. This is the landscape where Firriato’s century-old vine specimens are kept—a rare and precious treasure consisting of extraordinary plants, a result of the close link between Etna and nature. Time has not scraped away their greatness, but has brought them to us full of history and life.