Consorzio Tutela Vini Etna DOC gives green light to move toward DOCG status

The historic Etna DOC appellation, established in 1968, is about to begin the path to obtaining the prestigious DOCG recognition.

The assembly of members of the Consorzio Tutela Vini Etna DOC, which met on Friday, November 10, 2023, unanimously decided to start the process of obtaining DOCG recognition for the entire Etna appellation. Some changes to the production specification are planned. Francesco Cambria: "It is a historic decision for our territory."

"We are very happy, this is an important, I would say historic, decision for the whole Etna territory," comments Francesco Cambria, president of the Consorzio Tutela Vini Etna DOC. "The decision was taken unanimously by the many members present during the assembly, within a climate of great collaboration and participation," the president stresses. "The desire, on the part of all the producers of our denomination, is that it be definitively legitimized, also through the achievement of the highest step of the pyramid of the system of denomination certifications, the great work done so far and the prestige that the market has now recognized for our wines.

The process for DOCG recognition involves several steps before the final goal is reached. "There are certain practices that must be followed very carefully by the Consortium," explains Maurizio Lunetta, director of the Consortium. "We will submit, first of all, the application to the Sicilian Region, which will evaluate the documentation and representativeness of the denomination. Then, once this phase is concluded, the National Committee for PDO and PGI Wines, a body of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry, will come into play. It is difficult to make firm predictions, but we think the whole process could take about even less than two years."

The transition from DOC, the first in Sicily and among the first to be created in Italy in 1968, to DOCG will also entail some changes to the current production regulations. As for the Spumante type, the possibility of using the Carricante variety will be added, in addition to the one already present, namely Nerello Mascalese; it will also be possible to produce the Pas Dosé version.

The yield of the Etna Rosso typology with Additional Geographical Unit will be decreased, while the number of Contrade - currently 133, recognized since 2011 and legally equated to Additional Geographical Units - will increase as a result of the request of producers present in areas not yet delimited into contrade. Finally, in the future DOCG regulations, it will be possible to indicate as an Additional Geographical Unit the name of one of the 20 municipalities if the grapes come entirely from that territory.

The overall boundaries of the Etna appellation, however, will not change. In 2022 the number of hectares planted with vines claimed was 1290.82, divided among 442 vine growers. Production, also in 2022, was 43,651.09 hectoliters claimed to Etna DOC, equal to 5,820,145 bottles.

"The changes that will be made to the new specification will allow us to further increase the quality level of our wines and provide consumers with elements that make our production even more distinctive," concludes President Francesco Cambria. "We are a healthy appellation, very careful to defend the specificity of our viticulture, characterized by a wonderful heritage of native grape varieties, bred within a unique territory such as that represented by the highest active volcano in Europe, Etna."

Source: Ufficio stampa Consorzio di Tutela Vini Etna DOC c/o fruitecom srl