Massimo Lentsch Etna Rosso, Sicily, Italy 2022
Massimo Lentsch is an entrepreneur and winemaker whose path to viticulture came through passion rather than inheritance. After a successful export career, he discovered the Aeolian Islands during a sailing voyage and in 2005 established Tenuta di Castellaro on Lipari, where his wines — including a wine from the TOP 100 Wine Discoveries 2020 list — earned international recognition. Drawn by Etna's complexity and the challenge of its highly competitive northern slope, he created a second estate on the volcano in 2016, the first vintage emerging in 2017, under his own name. The estate, Società Agricola Fuori Bolla, occupies 10.4 hectares across four contrade in the communes of Castiglione di Sicilia and Randazzo: Feudo di Mezzo, Calderara Sottana, Chiusa Politi, and Pianodario. Lentsch's philosophy is consistent across both projects — a pursuit of freshness and mineral tension over weight and alcohol, guided by consultant oenologist Emiliano Falsini and agronomist Stefano Dini. All wines are produced organically and are vegan-certified.
- WINEMAKER: Massimo Lentsch; consultant oenologist: Emiliano Falsini
- FARMING: Organic and vegan certified (EU BIO). No herbicides or chemicals. Vineyards managed by hand. Ungrafted alberello etneo (head-trained bush vine) system on volcanic soils at high altitude. Harvesting assessed on a per-vine basis.
- VARIETY: 100% Nerello Mascalese
- TERROIR: Vineyards across the northern slope of Mount Etna in the contrade of Feudo di Mezzo, Calderara Sottana, Chiusa Politi, and Pianodario, at elevations between 600 and 800 meters above sea level. Soils are volcanic sand and lava blocks with volcaniclastic deposits — the product of successive lava flows — rich in mineral microelements. The northern slope is recognized as Etna's premier growing area for Nerello Mascalese, with a high-hill continental-Mediterranean climate marked by significant diurnal temperature variation and an extended, cool ripening season. 2022 was a dry and warm growing season until mid-August, when near-constant rainfall reinvigorated the vines; targeted green harvesting preserved freshness. Nerello Mascalese was harvested in the second half of October.
- VINIFICATION: Hand harvested with careful vine-by-vine selection. Partial destemming. Native yeast fermentation. Maceration approximately 15 days with gentle extraction. Unfined.
- AGING: 12 months in French oak barrels followed by stainless steel tank stabilization prior to bottling unfiltered. Minimum 6 months bottle aging.
- TASTING NOTES: Transparent ruby with violet highlights. The nose is fine and delicate — small red fruits, wild aromatic herbs, mineral tones, and a characteristic note of clove. The palate is balanced and harmonious, with fresh acidity, savory mineral depth, and a persistent finish. Precise and elegant rather than weighty.
- FOOD PAIRINGS: Grilled fish, mushroom-based dishes, roasted poultry, pecorino, aged vegetable preparations.
Massimo Lentsch Etna Rosso, Sicily, Italy 2022
Massimo Lentsch is an entrepreneur and winemaker whose path to viticulture came through passion rather than inheritance. After a successful export career, he discovered the Aeolian Islands during a sailing voyage and in 2005 established Tenuta di Castellaro on Lipari, where his wines — including a wine from the TOP 100 Wine Discoveries 2020 list — earned international recognition. Drawn by Etna's complexity and the challenge of its highly competitive northern slope, he created a second estate on the volcano in 2016, the first vintage emerging in 2017, under his own name. The estate, Società Agricola Fuori Bolla, occupies 10.4 hectares across four contrade in the communes of Castiglione di Sicilia and Randazzo: Feudo di Mezzo, Calderara Sottana, Chiusa Politi, and Pianodario. Lentsch's philosophy is consistent across both projects — a pursuit of freshness and mineral tension over weight and alcohol, guided by consultant oenologist Emiliano Falsini and agronomist Stefano Dini. All wines are produced organically and are vegan-certified.
- WINEMAKER: Massimo Lentsch; consultant oenologist: Emiliano Falsini
- FARMING: Organic and vegan certified (EU BIO). No herbicides or chemicals. Vineyards managed by hand. Ungrafted alberello etneo (head-trained bush vine) system on volcanic soils at high altitude. Harvesting assessed on a per-vine basis.
- VARIETY: 100% Nerello Mascalese
- TERROIR: Vineyards across the northern slope of Mount Etna in the contrade of Feudo di Mezzo, Calderara Sottana, Chiusa Politi, and Pianodario, at elevations between 600 and 800 meters above sea level. Soils are volcanic sand and lava blocks with volcaniclastic deposits — the product of successive lava flows — rich in mineral microelements. The northern slope is recognized as Etna's premier growing area for Nerello Mascalese, with a high-hill continental-Mediterranean climate marked by significant diurnal temperature variation and an extended, cool ripening season. 2022 was a dry and warm growing season until mid-August, when near-constant rainfall reinvigorated the vines; targeted green harvesting preserved freshness. Nerello Mascalese was harvested in the second half of October.
- VINIFICATION: Hand harvested with careful vine-by-vine selection. Partial destemming. Native yeast fermentation. Maceration approximately 15 days with gentle extraction. Unfined.
- AGING: 12 months in French oak barrels followed by stainless steel tank stabilization prior to bottling unfiltered. Minimum 6 months bottle aging.
- TASTING NOTES: Transparent ruby with violet highlights. The nose is fine and delicate — small red fruits, wild aromatic herbs, mineral tones, and a characteristic note of clove. The palate is balanced and harmonious, with fresh acidity, savory mineral depth, and a persistent finish. Precise and elegant rather than weighty.
- FOOD PAIRINGS: Grilled fish, mushroom-based dishes, roasted poultry, pecorino, aged vegetable preparations.