Castello di Solicchiata

Castello di Solicchiata sits on Etna's western slope above Adrano, at 800-1,000 metres on volcanic terraces, and is the wine arm of the Feudi Spitaleri estate. The vineyards were planted in 1855 by Baron Felice Spitaleri di Muglia after a Grand Tour of France, making this the first Italian estate vinified by the Bordeaux method and one of Italy's earliest plantings of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Pinot Noir. The vineyard terraces, designed by Andrea Scala (architect of Catania's Teatro Bellini), fan up the slope; the castle itself was completed around 1875. The estate is now run by Baron Arnaldo Spitaleri, descendant of the founder, and remains closed to the public; total output is around 35,000 bottles a year across three Bordeaux blends and three Pinot Noirs, with Planeta now handling distribution. The house philosophy is glacial: wines are aged for years in barrique and then in bottle before release, and current releases are typically a decade or more behind the vintage on the label.