Passito di Pantelleria DOC

Pantelleria is a volcanic island in the Sicilian channel, closer to Africa than to Sicily itself and 70 km from Tunisia. The DOC covers the entire territory of the island, in the province of Trapani. Soils are lithosols, regosols and andic brown soils; mean annual rainfall is 409 mm, and mean monthly temperatures range from 11.7 to 25.6 °C. Drought comes from five rainless summer months and is aggravated by continuous winds, recorded on an average of 338 days a year. The island falls into three bioclimatic belts: an inframediterranean coast up to 200 m, a thermomediterranean belt over most of the island, and a mesomediterranean summit. Temperatures stay above zero even in winter, with hot, dry periods of at least five months (May to September) and rain concentrated in autumn and winter. The scirocco and the greco levante winds blow frequently and violently across the island.

• Volcanic island; the DOC zone is the whole island of Pantelleria, province of Trapani
• Mean annual rainfall 409 mm and mean monthly temperatures of 11.7 to 25.6 °C
• Five rainless summer months; winds recorded on an average of 338 days a year
• Scirocco and greco levante winds blow frequently and violently

The alberello pantesco is a very small shrub grown on narrow terraces bounded by dry-stone walls of lava stone, set in hollows (conche) dug into the volcanic soil to collect rare rain and night-time humidity. The vine is trained below ground level in a wide conca to shelter plant and fruit from the scirocco and greco levante winds, and no machine can replace the grower. Cultivation follows three phases: dig a conca and plant the vine in the middle so that it is only a few centimetres above ground level; prune it to six branches while reshaping the hollow; and harvest by hand, beginning at the end of July. The technique is believed to have been first developed by the Phoenicians, who arrived on the island more than 2,500 years ago. On 26 November 2014 UNESCO, meeting in Paris, inscribed the agricultural practice of the Vite ad Alberello di Pantelleria as intangible heritage of humanity, the first time it gave this recognition to an agricultural practice; the Consorzio credits itself with a decisive part in promoting the candidacy. Work in these vineyards takes at least three times the hours per unit of an ordinary vineyard on the mainland. The lava-stone terrace walls extend for more than 7,000 kilometres in all, and the tools behind the survival of the alberello vineyard are almost only the hoe, along with the plough drawn by the Pantelleria donkey. In 2014 Decanter counted around 30 growers working these vines, and Donnafugata's Josè Rallo estimated around 500 hectares in total.

• Vines trained below ground level in a wide conca, sheltered from the wind
• UNESCO inscription on 26 November 2014, the first for an agricultural practice
• Three phases: dig the conca, prune to six branches, harvest by hand from the end of July
• Labour at least three times the hours of an ordinary mainland vineyard; lava-stone terrace walls over 7,000 km in total

Every Pantelleria DOC type must come exclusively from Zibibbo, except the Bianco, which may include up to 15% of other white varieties. Zibibbo, also known as Muscat of Alexandria, belongs to the large Muscat family, and its thick skins are ideal for the passito process. Some authors date the variety on Pantelleria to Arab rule (835 AD), naming it after Capo Zebib in Africa; a second possible root is the Arabic 'Zaibib', meaning dried grape. For Passito di Pantelleria the grapes must be dried in the sun, wholly or in part, on the vine or after picking, and protecting them from bad weather is allowed. No enrichment of must or wine is permitted apart from adding sun-dried grapes with a maximum sugar concentration of 60%, which may happen even after 30 November, and all winemaking, including the drying, must take place on the island. A significant proportion of the grapes is picked in early August and dried under the sun. At Donnafugata, as of 2014, grapes were dried for 20 days on open-air racks and mats, then placed in greenhouses and turned daily, and fermentation took between 30 and 40 days. Fermentation and refermentation of Passito wines may continue until 30 June of the year after the harvest.

• Exclusively Zibibbo (Muscat of Alexandria) for every type except Bianco
• The name may come from Capo Zebib in Africa or from the Arabic 'Zaibib', meaning dried grape
• Sun-drying, wholly or in part, on the vine or after harvest; drying and winemaking on the island
• Only enrichment allowed: sun-dried grapes up to 60% sugar concentration; fermentation may continue until 30 June after the harvest

The Pantelleria DOC was approved by DPR of 11 August 1971 (G.U. 239 of 22 September 1971) and last amended by DM of 26 August 2024 (G.U. 205 of 2 September 2024). It covers eight types, among them Moscato di Pantelleria, Passito di Pantelleria and Pantelleria Passito liquoroso. Passito di Pantelleria must reach at least 20.00% vol total alcohol, of which at least 14.00% vol actual, with minimum total acidity of 4.0 g/l and minimum non-reducing extract of 31.0 g/l; the Passito liquoroso needs 22.00% vol total with at least 15.00% vol actual. Maximum grape yield is 10 tonnes per hectare for both; the Passito may yield no more than 40% wine from fresh grapes, or 4,000 litres per hectare, and the Passito liquoroso 55%, or 5,500 litres. The Passito liquoroso comes from grapes dried naturally or in a conditioned environment, with a mandatory addition of alcohol of grape origin. Passito di Pantelleria cannot be released before 1 July of the year after the harvest, and the Passito liquoroso not before 1 February. Passito di Pantelleria must be bottled within the vinification zone, with individual exemptions for bottlers in Sicily who had bottled it for at least three years before the disciplinare of 27 September 2000 took effect. The label must put 'Passito' before 'Pantelleria', joined by 'di', and must state the vintage; it may add 'vino ottenuto da uve appassite al sole', while terms such as 'classico' and 'riserva' are banned. The wine may be sold only in glass, in sizes from 0.375 to 1.5 litres, with no metal closures. Typically it takes 4 kg of grapes to make one bottle, with residual sugar of around 200 g per litre and around 14.5% abv (2014 figures).

• Passito: minimum 20.00% vol total alcohol, at least 14.00% vol actual; release from 1 July after the harvest
• Passito liquoroso: minimum 22.00% vol total, at least 15.00% vol actual; natural or conditioned-environment drying; release from 1 February after the harvest
• Maximum 10 t/ha; wine yield 40% (4,000 l/ha) for Passito and 55% (5,500 l/ha) for Passito liquoroso
• About 4 kg of grapes per bottle, around 200 g/l residual sugar, around 14.5% abv (2014 figures)

The Consorzio Volontario di Tutela e Valorizzazione dei vini a DOC dell'Isola di Pantelleria was founded in 1997, holds Erga Omnes recognition and has Benedetto Renda as president. Figures for 2025 show 343 growers, 321 hectares under DOC and 16,586 quintals of DOC grapes. The bottling and vinifying members are Azienda Agricola Basile, Carlo Pellegrino & C., De Bartoli, Donnafugata, Emanuela Bonomo, Prosit, Salvatore Murana Vini, Serraglia and Vinisola. Donnafugata cultivated 68 hectares of vines on the island in 2014 and makes Ben Ryè Passito di Pantelleria, which Decanter's Raffaele Mosca (2025) calls a benchmark expression that defies the category's downward commercial trend.

• Consorzio founded in 1997, with Erga Omnes recognition; president Benedetto Renda
• 2025: 343 growers, 321 ha under DOC, 16,586 quintals of DOC grapes
• Bottling and vinifying members include Basile, Carlo Pellegrino, De Bartoli, Donnafugata, Emanuela Bonomo, Prosit, Salvatore Murana Vini, Serraglia and Vinisola
• Donnafugata: 68 ha on the island (2014) and Ben Ryè Passito; Decanter's Raffaele Mosca (2025) calls Ben Ryè a benchmark expression

Primary sources (MASAF and the Consorzio di Tutela dei Vini DOC Pantelleria): https://www.masaf.gov.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeAttachment.php/L/IT/D/1%252F2%252F3%252FD.8ccd09a077f2ec35dc9b/P/BLOB%3AID%3D4625/E/7z?mode=download, https://www.vinipantelleriadoc.it/il-consorzio/, https://www.vinipantelleriadoc.it/riconoscimento-unesco/, https://www.vinipantelleriadoc.it/pantelleria/, https://www.vinipantelleriadoc.it/anima-vulcanica-etna-e-pantelleria-protagoniste-a-vinitaly/. Secondary sources: https://www.decanter.com/wine-news/vine-growing-on-remote-italian-island-gets-unesco-heritage-status-4275/, https://www.decanter.com/premium/the-hidden-wine-gems-of-the-italian-coast-561456/, https://www.jancisrobinson.com/articles/wwc25-ode-zibibbo-joseph-rosenfeld. Last verified 2026-10-05