Carricante

Carricante is the leading white grape of Mount Etna in north-eastern Sicily, grown high on the volcano's slopes and forming the base of Etna Bianco, including the prized Etna Bianco Superiore from the commune of Milo. Its name derives from its historically generous ('caricare', to load) yields.

It is prized for exceptionally high acidity that gives its wines freshness, minerality and real ageing potential, unusual among southern Italian whites. Young Carricante shows citrus, green apple and white flowers with a saline, volcanic-mineral edge, developing honeyed and anise-like complexity with bottle age.