The Company
Al-Cantara Winery
Drinkable poems
In 2005, Al-Cantara was born from the intuition that a good wine is "poetry" and it is an "art" to make it. Right from the outset, the winery has established a national and international reputation thanks to its high-quality wines, recognized by several important awards. This culminated in the remarkable achievements at Vinitaly. With eight wines highlighted in the 5 StarWines – The Book, Al-Cantàra was crowned “Winery of the Year – Gran Vinitaly 2023.”
We achieved these results because of the care that our team employes to manage the vineyards and the professionalism of our winemaker, Salvatore Rizzuto from Saccano, a graduate of Alba with experience in Bordeaux and the Langhe.
The sophisticated and modern packaging is another distinguishing feature of Al-Cantàra products, whose unmistakable labels are embellished with beautiful images created by young Sicilian artists (including, most recently, Annachiara Di Pietro) who highlight the traditions, culture, and territory of Mount Etna.
The winery takes its name from the river that, on the slopes of Mount Etna, laps Contrada Feudo S. Anastasia in Randazzo, close to Al-Cantara's land and cellars. The name "Al-Cantàra," which means "bridge" in Arabic, is meant to emphasize the link with Sicily and symbolizes the harmonious and innovative combination of wine, art and poetry that is the winery's hallmark. Not surprisingly, the names of the wines are inspired by poems by Sicilian authors such as Nino Martoglio, Luigi Pirandello, Micio Tempio, Giovanni Meli, Alfio Antico, Salvatore Di Pietro, Francesco Guglielmino, Ercole Patti, Antonio Veneziano and Giovanni Verga. The label of the grappa, the latest addition to Al-Cantàra's rich and varied catalog, is a tribute to one of the best-known compositions of Italian jester poetry, Rosa Fresca Aulentissima by Sicilian Ciullo d'Alcamo.
We have also established a "Museum" which hosts about 400 small and unique artworks in the form of labels, bottles, caps and sculptures created by 300 artists from all over Italy, including Oliviero Toscani, Ferdinando Scianna, Bruno Caruso, Alessandro Bronzini and many others. There are also numerous installations created by other artists using trade objects and tools that are no longer in use.
Our visitors will be shown evidence that Mount Etna, about 20,000 years ago, was at least 400 meters higher than it is now! They will see "pyramids" that, according to some scholars, are "religious symbols" that date back to the Sicans, the indigenous people who lived in this part of Sicily more than 5,000 years ago!
The company, extending over about 20 hectares, produces wines ETNA DOC e Terre Siciliane IGP made only from grapes harvested on its own land. It favours native grape varieties (Nerello Mascalese, Nerello Cappuccio and Carricante) without neglecting research and experimentation (Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon). Al-Cantàra succeeds in making Nerello Mascalese into Red, Rosé, White, Sparkling, Passito and Grappa, thanks to its marked acidity, minerality and structure. Mount Etna's volcanic soil, rich in minerals, gives these wines unique aromas. Each Al-Cantàra wine offers a fascinating and exciting multisensory journey of colors, verses and flavours typical of the most genuine Sicilian cultural identity.
BOOK
your tasting
The Al-Cantàra Winery, nestled between the Nebrodi mountain range and the volcanic slopes of Mount Etna, will offer you a unique experience.
Make a reservation to visit the winery. We welcome groups of up to a maximum of 50 people. You can visit our vineyards, the winery, the "Small Museum" and the space where the grapes arrive and begin fermentation.
You can buy our wines and listen to stories of a wine born in the myths of ancient Greece. We are in the town of Randazzo (CT), Contrada Feudo S. Anastasia, on the northern slope of Mount Etna. Our winery covers about twenty hectares, fifteen of which are vineyards. Reservations are required.
