Introduction
"The year 2024 was the year we entered the hard core of the profession."
I remember coming back from the vineyard in despair after yet another fire had consumed a plot. A chemically pure despair gripped me on August 2, 2024. And then Etna erupted that evening, offering my sad eyes an astonishing spectacle of vitality, strength, and beauty. Magma burst forth in geysers hundreds of metres high, shifting, polymorphic forms, somewhere between mystical apparition and incandescent Rorschach test.
This moment caught me in my fall. I took my camera and photographed it from our terrace, long exposure, black and white. Etna rebuilt my will. We must continue. When beauty erupts here, it is immense, galvanizing.
The domaine
La Nave is a prestigious contrada on the northern side of Mount Etna — above the town of Randazzo at around 1,000m altitude — on an ancient lava flow that dates back 5,000 years. Ginger Ringer and Romain Cole fell in love with a small piece of land here, discovered through a tip from Eric Narioo (Vino di Anna, Les Caves de Pyrène). The 3ha are co-planted with 1ha of ungrafted century-old vines — nerello mascalese, cappuccio, grenache, grecanico, carricante, minella — alongside olive, chestnut, almond, hazel, persimmon, cherry, apricot, apple, pear, fig and kaki trees. More than a vineyard: a garden (giardini in Italian) of Eden surrounding an ancient farmhouse with its own volcanic stone palmento.
The young couple started a new life on Etna with their two children in the aftermath of the pandemic (2021). Ginger was a full-time actress; Romain worked as a photographer and editor-in-chief of a cinema magazine. The pandemic sparked the idea of reinventing themselves, away from Paris, in direct contact with nature.
A wine geek and regular at the best Parisian bistros, Romain had published Es Brutal in 2021 after investigating the Catalan natural wine scene, and made documentaries interviewing growers in Champagne (Emmanuel Lassaigne, Anselme Selosse, Olivier Horiot) and Sicily (Frank Cornelissen, Aldo Viola, Arianna Occhipinti) — the couple jumped at the opportunity to embrace agriculture on "the most stunning place on earth, Mount Etna, an island within the island".
Creativity, experimentation and freedom are the driving forces behind Giardini ColeRinger's approach. They operate outside the Etna DOC — its rigid rules too limiting. No machinery in the vineyard or cellar: the soil is aerated with a broad fork, grass pulled by hand, straw mulch laid between vines, bunches destemmed grape by grape, pressed with an old basket press, vinified in open vats, aged in stainless steel, chestnut barrels and glass demijohn. Labels handmade one by one with old wooden printing block letters. Nothing removed, nothing added — pursuing lightness and drinkability even when experimenting with skin-contact and oxidation. The result: wines of strong mineral character, vibrant fruit expression and raw energy.
— Written by Alessandra Saponara
Our cuvées
Ten cuvées, ten stories. Old pre-phylloxera vines at 1,000 metres, ultra-clean négociant grapes, a garden vermouth, an olive oil. Everything done by hand, nothing added.
Nerello Mascalese, Nerello Cappuccio, Grenache, Catarratto, Carricante, Minella — Allegre Cuore, Piano Dario, 700–750 m
Négociant grapes from below Randazzo, at 700 metres above sea level. Family vineyards, organically farmed. Four days of maceration. Ten months in chestnut demi-muids. Light, cloudy, gourmand — it evolves constantly, gaining substance with each glass. At some point, you look at the bottle and seriously wonder whether it might be leaking.
Nerello Mascalese, Grenache — Santa Caterina, via Torre, Contrada Nave, 850–1050 m
From four vineyards above Randazzo, between 850 and 1,050 metres. Twelve days of maceration. Eleven months in chestnut. Six months in bottle. On the palate, a full, almost juicy cherry, a line of licorice, spices that vibrate. The wine of chosen families, friendships that weather storms.
Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon — Montepaone, Calabria, 650 m
Cabernet Franc / Cabernet Sauvignon from Calabria, purchased when downy mildew destroyed all harvests on Etna. Macerated three weeks. Dark, deep colour. Notes of green pepper, structure, and length. A natural wine that takes you by the hand and leads you on a walk between France and Italy. But at night.
Nerello Mascalese, Grenache — old vines, Contrada Nave, 1000 m
One month of maceration, half semi-carbonic, half open. One year in demijohn. Dense yet luminous fruit. Spices in successive layers. Taut minerality, caressing texture. This wine murmurs a long, winding story — fresh herbs, lava stone, cocoa, tobacco, leather.
Nerello Mascalese, Nerello Cappuccio, Grenache, Catarratto, Carricante, Insolia, Grecanico, Minella — Baia Monte, 970 m
A vineyard at the edge of the forest, under the shadow of an old extinct crater. Fifteen days of maceration. One year in demijohn. The result is of disarming obviousness. No effect, no posture. Just accuracy, simplicity, pure goodness. Perhaps our favourite wine this year. Perhaps more than that.
Zibibbo, Catarratto — Contrada porcheria, monts Peloritani
Direct press, plus one year of maceration in Mantonico chestnut barrels. On the nose: miso, ripe melon, almond paste. On the palate: green apple, a saline frame, citrus. A Mediterranean white, welcoming yet taut. A spring walk on Etna, when it is cold and sunny.
Grecanico Dorato — old vines, Contrada Nave, 1050 m
Direct press into chestnut demi-muids for ten months. Topped with 20% of a Mantonico maceration. Incisive, nervous, disconcerting complexity. Roasted pineapple. Notes of whisky. An unexpected smoky touch. A gastronomic wine, built for bold and demanding palates.
Grecanico, Catarratto, Minella, Carricante, Malvasia, Insolia — old vines, Contrada Nave, 1000 m
Five days of maceration, one year in stainless steel. Dried herbs, lightly raisined grapes, present tannins — almost disconcerting for a white. Or rather, a red in disguise. Broad, dense, it opens in stages. Something "umami" here, combined with an unexpected aerial fluidity evoking certain sakes. A wine of intimacy. Of silence.
Macerazione di piante — grappa artigianale + Mantonico
Maceration of plants, fruits, herbs and seasonal flowers harvested from our vineyards, in an artisanal grappa, then added to a one-year maceration of Mantonico.
Mountain olive trees — 1,000 m, first cold press
Olives harvested by hand in early November, still green and rich in polyphenols. Immediate first cold pressing. On the nose: frank, vegetal, precise. On the palate, a light bitterness, clean spiciness. Artichoke, almond, caper leaves, sweet pepper. A piece of warm bread, and everything else becomes secondary.
100% cotton · 300 g/m² · Screen-printed · Made in Italy
Our first piece of merch. Heavyweight unisex tee, screen-printed with the Giardini ColeRinger crest. Limited run.
Our event
In 2024, the first edition of Solo Uva took place — the no-input wine fair we created on Etna. A gathering of winemakers, cooks, and enthusiasts who believe wine can be alive, honest, and deeply rooted in its terroir.
Each edition brings together producers from across Sicily and beyond — around open bottles, a winemakers' dinner, and one shared conviction: solo uva. Nothing else. This year, we celebrated the third chapter, with 26 winemakers and chef Sven Chartier, who took over from Masa Ikuta to cook the winemakers' dinner.
No-input wine fair · Etna
3rd edition — 2026
26 winemakers
Dinner: chef Sven Chartier
Palazzo Previtera, Linguaglossa
Dates to be confirmed
2nd edition — 2025
19 winemakers
Dinner: Masa Ikuta
Palazzo Previtera, Linguaglossa
1st edition — 2024
16 winemakers
Dinner: Gianmaria Errico
Palazzo Previtera, Linguaglossa
Gallery
Join the domaine
Come and work with us in Sicily, at Contrada Nave, on the north slope of Etna. 5 hours of work a day. Accommodation and a car provided. Anyone with goodwill and good character is welcome — to learn, share, and give.
Pre-phylloxera old vines at 1,000 m, volcanic soils, biodiversity in full bloom.
Accommodation and vehicle provided. 5 hours of work per day.
No racists, no misogynists, no classists. Just good people who love concrete work.
2025 availability
Get in touch
To order our wines, join Solo Uva, apply for a work stay, or simply say hello — we read every message.
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Delivery Info & Terms
Shipped via SpedisciVino, specialist wine carrier.
| 6 bottles | €24 |
| 12 bottles | €36 |
| 6 bottles | €39 |
| 12 bottles | €60 |
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