Mortellito is the name of the territory of my roots: a two-hectare countryside where, in the early twentieth century, my great-grandparents lived. A place I am in love with, which enhances my greatest passions: the Earth and the Sea.

Here I decided to embark on my journey as a winemaker, moving away from the city and its conventions to return to the land. Here I began my search for genuine wines, made without forcing and coming from organic farming .

Today we have around 23 hectares, in the Noto valley, between the Bufalefi, Maccari and Cozzo Tronzo districts, a beautiful territory for environmental and artistic reasons. I run the company together with Valentina, Mario and Melina who dedicate themselves to it every day, together with many friends who come to help us.

We grow our grapes with a sapling system, without the use of pesticides and synthetic chemical fertilizers. We produce Nero d'Avola, Moscato di Noto, Frappato/Nero Capitano (a practically extinct historical Sicilian grape variety, of which we have planted a few thousand plants) and Grillo. We harvest the grapes by hand, without the help of machinery that could damage them, and we make three wines from them.

We work to obtain perfectly ripe and healthy grapes: we believe that wine is mainly made in the vineyard . Our work in the cellar aims to respect the wine and its most intimate qualities. Therefore spontaneous fermentations without added selected yeasts and absence of wooden barrels to avoid altering the flavors. The only intervention is given by the addition of a minimum quantity of sulfur dioxide during bottling, to ensure better preservation.

We aim to create wines that reflect the natural characteristics of the territory, wines with a strong personality and far from the fashions of the moment .

Dario