Passopisciaro, Passobianco Terre Siciliane 2018

92 points Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate
“A pure expression of Chardonnay, the Passopisciaro Vini Franchetti 2018 Passobianco is a generous wine with lots of honey, dried apricot and apple baked in butter. Ultimately, this expression from the volcanic soils of Etna stands apart from other great renditions of this versatile grape thanks to those dusty or ashy mineral notes as well as those slightly exotic hints of saffron and ground cumin. It is aged in oak casks and cement for 10 months. The wine’s appearance is golden and bright, and the palate carries generous fruit weight and concentrated flavors. Grapes come from high-density vineyards at an impressive 850 to 1,000 meters in elevation from the terraces of Contrada Guardiola and Monte Dolce. Some 40,000 bottles were made. Drink 2021-2026.”

Jancis Robinson
"100% Chardonnay from an 18-year-old vineyard at between 800 and 1,000 m above sea level planted at a density of 12,300 vines/ha. Fermented in stainless steel and aged for 10 months in concrete tanks and large oak casks followed by six months in bottle.
Deep straw yellow. Savoury and minerally and a little iodine, with more than a peppery tingle on the nose, like smelling lava, but it might be my imagination now running away with me. Certainly intriguing. Opens up very slowly so I would have no qualms about decanting this. Garden herbs. Same slowness on the palate. More orange than lemon and with a long bitter, salty sensation. Stones and orange fruit on the finish. Captivating. 17.5/20 points. (WS)"

Vinous Reverie Notes
Instead of the indigenous Carricante, which grows on the eastern side of the volcano, Passobianco is made of 100% Chardonnay. 4 hectares of the grape was planted on steep terraces between 850 and 1,000 meters in the contrada of Guardiola, in very loose, deep, powder-like lava that is high in minerals. Its complexities bring together the specific light, drastic changes in temperature, altitude, and volcanic influences of Etna, and the choice of Chardonnay was meant to allow these influences to meld and evolve over time as the white ages, inspired by the aging potential of the great whites of Burgundy.