Raise your hand if you’ve never dreamed of sleeping inside a lighthouse, becoming its keeper for at least one night. In Salina, not only is this possible, but you also become the guardian of much more: the secret of Malvasia wine, the tricks of Aeolian cuisine, and, not least, the island’s ancient heartbeat. This happens at Capofaro Locanda & Malvasia, the wine destination of the Tasca d'Almerita family, who in the early 2000s decided to settle in the Aeolian Islands and, a few years later, restored the old 19th-century lighthouse adjacent to the estate, creating six suites. Today, the Mediterranean high-hospitality project includes the inn, 6.5 hectares of vineyards (a rarity on the island, where vineyard plots typically don’t exceed one hectare), and 27 rooms. Sea views are part of the package.
The feminine cuisine of Patrizia Di Benedetto
But this year, there’s another excellent reason to come here: the arrival of Patrizia Di Benedetto, one of the most significant and original figures in recent Sicilian culinary history. Her gastronomic offering, supported at Capofaro by resident chef Yuki Matsuguma, is decidedly feminine, as she likes to describe it. “By feminine, I mean a cuisine driven by instinct, emotion, and creativity. A cuisine shaped by exchanges of knowledge and relationships with the people who inhabit the territory and those who seek its essence.” This ongoing dialogue primarily involves local producers.
From seafood to plant-based cuisine
The sea surrounding the island is the starting point. An entire menu is dedicated to fish (five courses, €115): it begins with red prawn tartare, a warm vegetable and squid salad, bottarga mayonnaise, and ends with seared fish fillet, citrus sauce scented with Malvasia, and charred lettuce.
But Salina is also known as the Green Island, as those familiar with it know well; it’s the most agricultural of the seven Aeolian sisters. Hence, another important dialogue with the local plant-based world, including the estate’s vegetable garden and local suppliers. The second menu (five courses, €95) ranges from gratinated aubergine rolls to courgette parmigiana, including a three-tomato pasta alla Norma and risotto with lemon cream and garden vegetables. There’s also room for meat dishes, like beef tartare on brioche toast with peppers or “vastasa” Palermo-style salad with sliced beef and vegetables. This is a nod to the chef’s origins, who, thirty years ago, opened Bye Bye Blues in Mondello with her husband Antonio Barraco, soon after becoming the first woman in Sicily to earn a Michelin star.
Certification for one of Italy’s most beautiful skies
Finally, there’s another reason to visit Capofaro, one that’s hard to replicate elsewhere: the starry sky. Just a few months ago, the wine resort received certification for one of Italy’s Most Beautiful Skies, awarded by Astronomitaly, the first Italian company dedicated to the development of Astrotourism in Italy. Forget artificial lights: the only interruptions to the twinkling Milky Way are the red flashes from Stromboli’s eruptions. A unique spectacle best enjoyed with the various expressions of Malvasia from the estate. Ready for this (wine and food) trip to the lighthouse?
Tenuta Capofaro - via Faro, 3 – Salina Isole Eolie (ME) tel. +39 090 98 44 330 - capofaro.it
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