Summer in the Aeolian Islands: Discover Malvasia in the cellar

The Malvasia delle Lipari Consortium promotes visits to local wineries during the archipelago's peak tourist season. This is an opportunity for the wineries to become places of storytelling as well as production, spaces where visitors can discover Malvasia delle Lipari , understand its connection to the islands, and observe how vine cultivation contributes to the preservation of an agricultural landscape shaped by time. Winery tours offer a hands-on experience of this heritage: the public can meet the producers, learn about the different interpretations of the denomination, and understand why, in the Aeolian Islands, talking about wine also means talking about landscape, agriculture, and sustainability.

Recognized as a DOC in 1973 , Malvasia delle Lipari is today one of the symbols of Sicilian and Mediterranean winemaking. The islands, with their volcanic soil and microclimate shaped by the wind and sea, have offered this grape variety the ideal habitat: here, wine is born from a constant dialogue between land, exposure, climate, and human intervention. It is a heroic viticulture , made up of bush vines, steep slopes, and terraces that endure especially on Salina, Lipari, and Vulcano, where each harvest is still a physical challenge rather than an agronomic one.

"Opening the cellars means telling the story of the region: by inviting visitors to see the vineyards, the terraces, and the producers' daily work, we can truly convey our uniqueness," says Mauro Pollastri , President of the Consortium. " We owe our heritage to the constant commitment of the wineries , who keep the vineyards alive, care for the slopes, preserve the traces of traditional agriculture, and pass on a production knowledge that is part of the archipelago's history. It is a region characterized by delicate natural balances, where environmental sustainability is not an abstract concept, but the only possible condition for allowing the vines to continue growing: for this reason, protecting the landscape also means making it understandable to those who travel through it."

The winery tours are part of a broader hospitality project, developed thanks to the collaboration between the Consortium, the Salina Isola Verde Hoteliers' Association, and local restaurants, as part of a wine tourism itinerary designed for a stay on the archipelago . The result is an experience that is not separate from a vacation, but becomes an integral part of it: a way to get to know the islands through the wine that best represents them.