SICILIANS

When, we arrived in Contessa Entellina, we were in a business partnership with the Benanti family, the wine and olive oil producers of Filari della Rocca; when we left them, we were part of the famiglia! Filari della Rocca, spearheaded by the young, passionate and talented Ciro Benanti, was for us the first and only Sicilian wine we import, and for them it was their first foray into the American market, so we feel we are really growing up together😊 Ciro, the face of Filari della Rocca, is constantly dreaming of ways to grow and improve upon the wholly organic Sicilian wine & olive oil they produce while finding ways to get them to wine drinking foodies worldwide; however, the entire Benanti family from brother Filippo in the field, parents Katia & Pino, sister Martina, Zio Salvatore, Zia Jasmine, cousins Caterina and young Ciro, are all behind the scenes from the vineyard to the cucina to tours to get the products to the market. And they all do this while holding down other jobs to subsidize this work!  

We realized immediately during the trip, that making wine in Sicily is not easy. From the roads to the government, the family is overcoming obstacles every day. We are in awe and have so much respect for the attention to detail they have for these spectacular small production products. The Benantis have together created a true family business with huge community support, but limited resources. The QUALITY of their wines (Catarrato, Rosato di Nero d’Avola, Merlot and Nero d’Avola) and olive oils (Biancolilla & Nocellara del Belìce), especially given these circumstances, are astonishing and we are honored and grateful to be a part of it! We are so thankful for a beautiful time together and look forward to growing together.