A Life Shaped by Mount Etna
"I never wanted to become simply a winemaker. I wanted to create a place capable of generating beauty."
When Davide Bentivegna left a successful corporate career after many years at Siemens, he wasn't simply changing professions—he was choosing a different way of life.
Without inherited vineyards, without a family winemaking tradition and without generations of experience behind him, he started from nothing. In 2008, on the north-eastern slopes of Mount Etna, he planted the first roots of what would become Casa Etnella.
At the beginning, the dream was to produce authentic wines that could faithfully express the extraordinary volcanic landscape of Mount Etna. Over time, however, that vision evolved into something much larger.
Today, Casa Etnella is not simply a winery.
It is a working agricultural estate where artisan wines, biodiversity, seasonal Sicilian cuisine, education and genuine hospitality come together to create meaningful experiences.
For Davide, wine has never been the destination.
It has always been the beginning of a conversation.
A conversation about Mount Etna, its landscapes, the people who live here and the deep connection between agriculture, culture and hospitality.
Every vineyard is different.
Every vintage tells its own story.
Every bottle is an attempt to preserve the identity of a place rather than the hand of the winemaker.
This philosophy is reflected in every decision made in the vineyard and the cellar: sustainable farming, spontaneous fermentations with native yeasts, no filtration and minimal intervention, allowing each wine to express the character of its vineyard, altitude and volcanic soil.
Over the years, Casa Etnella has become a place of learning and international exchange.
Students, researchers and young wine professionals from around the world come to Mount Etna to experience heroic viticulture first-hand, sharing knowledge, ideas and daily life alongside the people who work the vineyards.
The project collaborates with leading academic institutions including Geisenheim University, the Edmund Mach Foundation in San Michele all'Adige, the University of Florence and the International School of Wine Tourism in Bordeaux, while proudly sharing the values of VinNatur and its commitment to sustainable, transparent and authentic viticulture.
An important chapter in the evolution of Casa Etnella began when Carla Romano joined the project.
An agronomist by education, Carla later trained as a chef at ICIF in Piedmont before opening her own Italian restaurant in Brazil. Today she works alongside Davide, bringing together agriculture, gastronomy and hospitality into one shared vision.
Together they continue to shape Casa Etnella as a place where guests are invited not only to taste wine, but to experience the culture, landscapes and traditions that give every bottle its meaning.
Today, visitors arrive from all over the world.
Some come looking for great wines.
Others come searching for Mount Etna.
Many leave having discovered something they were not expecting: a place where wine is only one chapter of a much larger story.
Because at Casa Etnella, wine is not the final destination.
It is simply the language through which Mount Etna tells its story.