Arianna Occhipinti

History

Arianna Occhipinti, born in Vittoria in 1982, was drawn into wine at sixteen by her uncle Giusto Occhipinti of COS, studied oenology in Milan, and rejected its interventionist teaching to return home and farm naturally. In 2004, aged twenty-two, she bought a hectare of abandoned vines in Contrada Fossa di Lupo and released her first commercial vintage in 2006 — becoming one of the most influential figures of Italian natural wine.

She now farms 20-25 hectares across the Ippari valley near Vittoria, in the historic Cerasuolo di Vittoria DOCG zone, entirely biodynamic since 2009. Winemaking is minimal-intervention: spontaneous fermentation with native yeasts, no fining or filtration, little or no added sulfur — aimed at transparency and vitality.

The everyday wines, SP68 Rosso (Frappato/Nero d'Avola) and SP68 Bianco (Albanello/Zibibbo), are named for the county road she lives on; above them sit the pure Frappato 'Il Frappato', the Nero d'Avola 'Siccagno', and the single-contrada Cerasuolo di Vittoria 'Grotte Alte'. She is a global reference for Sicilian natural wine.