Having found his passion for wine and the hospitality industry at the age of fifteen, Federico Graziani has spent most of his life dedicated to the grape. In 1998 he was named best Italian sommelier by the Italian Association of Sommeliers, earning him respect and renown in the Italian hospitality and winemaking industry. Graziani went on to obtain his degree in Viticulture and Oenology and started a new chapter in his life as a winemaker. He was drawn to Etna by the distinctive and complex characters of the wines and began by purchasing a small century-old vineyard in Passopisciaro that was about to be uprooted. Graziani works closely with Salvo Foti, one of the most widely respected producers in Etna, to purchase new vineyards and craft his wines. He is also part of Maestranza dei Vigneri, a guild of winegrowers in Etna dedicated to preserving the tradition and environment of Etna through the use of non-interventionist vineyard and winemaking practices.
The vineyards are located at the foot of Mt. Etna, between 600 and 1,200 meters above sea level, on the northern and north-western slopes. This is a special place with its own unique ecosystem featuring remarkable climatic variability and a variegated landscape teeming with life. For the past 2000 years, people here have been growing vineyards in small plots of land reclaimed from the mountain, living in symbiosis with the volcano and adapting to the power and unpredictability of its elements. This is slow and ancient work, carried out by hand with toil, passion, and respect. Federico Graziani honors these traditions by crafting wines that are expressive, profound, and unequivocally Sicilian.
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