OUR ESTATE

Our farming philosophy is based on our acceptance of the fact that man will never be able to understand nature's full complexity and interactions. We therefore choose to concentrate on observing and learning the movements of Mother Earth in her various energetic and cosmic passages and prefer to follow her indications as to what to do, instead of deciding ourselves. Consequently this has taken us to avoiding all possible interventions on the land we cultivate, including any treatments, whether chemical, organic, or biodynamic, as these are all a mere reflection of the inability of man to accept nature as she is and will be.

The divine ability to understand the 'Whole' was obviously not given to man as we are only a part of this complex and not god himself. Though, evermore man pretends to be god, altering nature's delicate balance, for reasons of productivity, with all due consequences...

Our products are the result of this philosophy and our hands, with team. Wines and olive oils which reflect ultimate territorial identity and mineral depth carry the name Magma®. These are single cru and vintage wines and olive oils from various superb terroirs at 650-980 metres altitude in the North Valley of Mount Etna, Sicily. Magma® Rosso is fermented from our best Nerello Mascalese grapes; the golden Magma® Bianco is produced from ancient white varietals. Magma® Olio di Oliva is pressed from perfectly ripe San Benedetto olives.

The surface area of our estate is 12 hectares, of which 8.5 are vines in the classic free standing alberello training system (aka Gobelet, or bush-vine). The remainder is olive, fruit and nut trees, and brush. In abandonning monoculture to avoid classic diseases we have interplanted various local fruit varieties and keep bees to regain a complex ecosystem. The new vineyard (2003-4) was planted without grafts, using the cuttings of our existing pre-phylloxera vines. The training system used is the alberello, at a lower density of vines per hectare than is traditional. This greatly improves ventilation, as well as facilitating cultivation of other plants and species inbetween the vines, such as buckwheat, rebalancing soils low on organic material without recourse to compost. We avoid soil-moving, and all treatments whatsoever in the vineyard, orchard and surroundings, in which we succeeded even in difficult vintages such as 2004 and 2005. Unfortunately we still had to treat once in 2002 and 2003 with copper sulphate/sulphur mix which was, under the extremely wet circumstances, an unbelievable achievement. If still not good enough

Our grape yields are low, around 300g per vine, realised by pruning very short in the dormant season. Every bunch is then tailored, with tails cut away, and unripe or damaged berries delicately picked out. We harvest quite late, from the end of October to mid November, effected in multiple passes, obtaining perfectly ripe and healthy grapes. We refuse to add any product in every aspect of our (non)winemaking and bottling, thus also avoiding the use of sulphur dioxide. The grapes are transformed in a delicate way, fermented and aged according to ancient traditions in terracotta giarre of 400 litres, buried up to the neck in the cellar in ground volcanic rock. Maceration periods are long, until after malolactic fermentation  (up to 7 months and in a vintage like 2003, 14 months), in order not to disturb the complex natural processes of fermentation. The skins, seeds and nascent wine remain unseparated during the entire transformation, maintaining a cosmic link, and enabling extraction of all possible aromas of soil and territory. After basket-pressing maturation continues in terracotta until several full cosmic cycles have passed (e.g. 18 months) before the wine is ready for gentle, slow bottling.

Olive oil has become a real passion, obsession even! The idea of making a no-compromise olive oil has taken us back to basics. We employ the same philosophy and standards of quality and selection of Magma® wine. Starting with the truly great San Benedetto variety which gives the highest territorial definition and most delicate aromas, selecting terroirs that have the capacity of high definition, hand picking in multiple passes only the ripe ones, then deselecting olive by olive(!) to keep just the perfectly healthy/undamaged. These are taken to the press house in jute-lined cases of just 5kg, in order to avoid damage. Slow, traditional stone crushing maintains the molecular integrity of the olive paste before slow pressing. The oil is then decanted into glass demi-johns for resting, before being bottled. Obviously, this oil also carries the name Magma® reflecting its mineral roots.

As bread is a daily need and the roots of the most nutritious cereals are in Sicily, we were drawn to produce this obvious and classic farming product, abandoned for many years in our region. Searching around we rediscovered two indigenous "grano duro" cereals, Preziosa and Timilia. Unfortunately our farm horse Asturia unexpectedly died and so this project is sadly postponed. However we continue to grow buckwheat on our terraces, in between our olive grove and vineyard, as this is a plant that also helps regenerate soil and nourish bees. Our ultimate goal is to evolve towards a self-sustainable agricultural reality without exploiting Mother Earth, to produce whilst also returning, evolving towards an equilibrium of the land, which will take time.

Making such products without compromise in quality, profoundly authentic and with respect for nature has a certain cost. Initially we arrived at prices for Magma® and MunJebel® that we felt were a little high for some  wine and olive oil lovers. We therefore lowered MunJebel®, our second label, and raised Magma®. We offer Magma® as the highest possible terroir definition wine and olive oil, and MunJebel® as a broader regional terroir wine and oil, which remain accessible for more appassionati. 'A social price-setting.' Our Rosso del Contadino is a less elaborate, high value natural wine produced from local red and white varietals and contradas, obviously less defined than MunJebel® and Magma®, yet expressing the same philosophy in the glass!

Our products are made without the use of preservatives (i.e. no added sulphur) in order to be able to develop freely to their full potential. This requires transportation and storage below 16°C. When you open a bottle, we suggest not to decant. Rather, take the wine at cellar temperature (12-16°C), pour into Burgundy balloons, nose immediately, and follow its full aromatic progression as it expands, warms up. If a little frizzante upon opening, keep the bottle cool at 14-16°C, and allow to settle for circa 15 minutes. Our wines have only natural  - no added - protection against colour degradation, so if left open a few hours, you will see the colour evolve from granite red to volcanic black ash!!! Don't worry - the flavours become more complex with time, as the colour turns.

Please contact us if you would like to visit our farm or to receive more information.