ITALY

CANTINE PAOLINI, MARSALA, SICILY 

Cantine Paolini has a long history of winemaking that began in 1964 in Marsala, the westernmost town in Sicily. This is fertile land for the cultivation of vines and cooperation: In 1972 a group of forward- thinking winemakers thought of combining their individual strengths and expertise to improve the production of wine grapes which resulted in the high quality, good value wines we see today.

Originally from Tenerife, Eduardo arrived at Sicily in 2012, first doing a harvest in Vittoria at Azienda Arianna Occhipinti, shortly after taking on the role of oenologist at Azienda Passopisciaro. With a background in agronomy and oenology and some experience in working with volcanic soils, Eduardo found himself at home on the Northern slopes of Mount Etna. Looking to experiment and explore, in 2014 he started his own project with five rented plots, located in different areas of Etna Nord (Sciaranuova, Pietramarina, Allegracore) in the cooler, north facing part of the region (700 – 1000 m above the sea level). His vineyards (merely 3.5 hectares) are predominantly planted with Nerello Mascalese, interspersed with other local varieties (red and white). Mostly old, low yielding, bush vines, trained in the traditional albarello way. Establishing his own micro winery in 2017 in the village of Solicchiata, in proximity to his vines, allowed Eduardo to pick the grapes gradually, at optimal ripeness and vinify plot by plot. Ultimately, this is what interests him the most: to capture.