Producer

Graci

I have reviewed two wines from Graci, from the 2023 to 2024 vintages, all from Etna. Scores range from 94 to 94, averaging 94; the highest is the 2024 Graci Etna Bianco (94 points). Graci also features in one journal article on this site.

Graci is one of Etna’s most important estates and one of the most iconic modern voices on the volcano. Founded by Alberto Aiello Graci in 2004, it works exclusively on the cooler, wetter north slope, the zone around Randazzo and Passopisciaro that produces Etna’s most structured and long-lived reds. There, extreme altitude, ancient pre-phylloxera Nerello Mascalese vines and complex basaltic soils give wines of tension and finesse.

The approach is rigorously non-interventionist: certified organic farming, native yeasts and minimal additions in the cellar. The single-contrada bottlings, particularly Arcurìa and Quota 600, have become reference points for how much terroir shifts from one lava flow to the next.

Even the Annata wines show the style. The Etna Bianco is taut and precise, with apricot wrapped in lemon peel and an umami depth that reflects the volcanic ash. The Etna Rosso is refined and wickedly fresh, bursting with violet, lavender and wild strawberry on a stream of bright acidity. Alberto Graci is also a partner, with the Gaja family, in Idda.