Marco de Grazia (delleterrenere.com) makes on of the most cogent arguments for the current Mt Etna grape-growing architecture and Milo's place within that space.
For centuries and centuries the northern slopes of Etna have been recognized for the best red grapes in the area ... "That is why I established Tenuta delle Terre Nere here. Nevertheless, some specific areas of the eastern and southern areas of Etna attracted me greatly, whose ancient and recent history testified to excellent viticultural qualities. In short, I became particularly interested in in the viticulture of the smallest municipality of the eastern area, that of Milo. From the 18th century until a dozen years ago, only one company existed in Milo, and it was famous for its whites. And when the statutes of the DOC Etna were drawn up in 1968, only the whites of Etna were allowed to boast the epithet Superiore. In fact, as I see it, the microclimate of Milo makes the production of red wines unlikely, while that of rosés is interesting, and that of whites potentially admirable even if it requires special attention."
The average rainfall in Milo is double that of the northern and southern areas. Its exposures are mostly east-facing, often made difficult and shady by vast ravines. The steepness of the terraces of the entire municipality sees the sun forced to set very early in the shadow of the volcano. Furthermore, the climate is very humid, open as it is to the hot sirocco that, having crossed the Ionian Sean, blows directly onm the vineyards. So much so that it is not uncommon to find yourself wrapped in fog even on summer evenings. No, it is not a climate for red wines. But an extremely interesting one, even if challenging, for whites, which seem to appreciate its particularly fresh, humid and breezy nature.
Marco goes on to describe what he saw as the optimum vineyard location in Milo:
I was looking for the perfect altitude: not too high, to avoid a truly extreme climate; not too low, where excessive heat would negate the austere and sharp character of Milo wines that I had learned to admire. It also had to be well exposed to ensure consistent quality in such a difficult climate.
I have previously described the Milo physical environment at the broader level as well as at the level of the defined contrade. Herein I describe the contrada-level built environment and, specifically, the Superiore wines produced therefrom.
The chart below illustrates how Milo grapegrowers have sought to utilize the physical environment in the deployment of their grapevines. The chart shows a marked preference for planting within Contrada Caselle with 7 producers having put down roots there. Salice and Volpare follow with four producers each, Rinazzo and Praino, with three each, and Fornazzo and Villagrande with one each. I could find no producers in Pianogrande.
There are a number of Multi-contrada producers within the comune: Maugeri (Volpare and Praino), Tenuta di Fessina (Caselle and Volpare) and Eredi di Maio (Caselle, Praino, Rinazzo, and Volpare). There are also a number of producers with interests outside the comune: Tenuta di Fessina, Benanti, Pietradolce, iCustodi, iVigneri, Terra Costantino, and Delle Terre Nere. For many of these producers, Milo is part of a multi-pronged strategy of wine production on Etna.
The average vineyard size in Milo is as follows:
- Caselle -- 1 ha
- Fornazzo -- 1 ha
- Praino -- 1.13 ha
- Rinazzo -- 2 ha (should be noted that the total ha is about 10 of which Benanti owns 7)
- Salice -- 7
- Volpare -- 3.1.
Not all of the producers identified in the above chart are currently producing Superiore wines. The Superiore requirements called for the grapes to be grown within the bounds of the comune and for a minimum of 80% Carricante. As shown in the chart below, only three (Aurora, Contrada Villagrande, and Milus) of the identified Superiore wines are not made in purity.
In terms of elevation, 11 of the wines are produced from grapes grown in the 800 - 900 m zone (as identified in my physical environment post) while five are made from grapes grown in the 700 - 800 m zone and the remaining five in the 500 - 650 m zone.
Eredi di Maio is a multi-contrade wine but most of its vineyards are in Contrada Caselle.
I tasted most of these wines at a VinoMilo2024 event titled Milo, il carricante e l'Etna Bianco Superiore. I will report on that tasting in a follow-up post.
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