Sold Out
Frank Cornelissen

Munjebel FM 2018 Magnum

Price: $180.00
Enter your email address below to be notified when this product is back in stock.
Tasting notes

The FM site's deep volcanic ash soils at 600 meters produce a wine with an unusually silky texture for Etna, with sour cherry, red berry compote, wild herbs, and a saline mineral finish that pulls everything into focus. At 50 days of skin contact and 18 months in epoxy, the fruit is vivid but the structure is the real draw. In magnum, the 2018 will continue to develop over the next several years.

BodyFruitTanninAcidity
Taste profile
Sour CherryWild StrawberryEarthSaline Mineral
  • Style: Dry, medium-bodied red; translucent ruby; sour cherry, herbs, saline mineral; 14% ABV; 1500ml magnum
  • Grapes & Terroir: 100% Nerello Mascalese; organic and biodynamic; deep volcanic ash and basalt soils; Contrada Feudo di Mezzo sottana, north face Etna, 600m elevation; 40+ year old alberello vines
  • Winemaking: Hand-harvested; indigenous yeast fermentation via pied-de-cuve; 50-day skin maceration; 18 months in neutral epoxy tanks; 18 months in bottle; unfined and unfiltered; minimal SO2
  • Serving: Serve at 60-64F; 30-45 min decant recommended; magnum format benefits from longer air exposure
  • Pairing: Herb-roasted lamb, braised pork, game birds, pasta all'Amatriciana, aged pecorino
  • Similar To: For fans of village-level Burgundy and Barolo who want volcanic mineral expression and high acidity over power

Munjebel FM is Frank Cornelissen's single-contrada wine from Feudo di Mezzo, one of the largest and most distinctive contrade on the northern slopes of Mount Etna. FM designates the lower portion of the contrada, known as the sottana, where relatively deep volcanic ash and basalt soils at around 600 meters elevation yield wines of unusual elegance and roundness despite the lower position in the valley. Vines average 40 or more years old and are trained in the traditional alberello (bush-vine) system without grafting.

Grapes are hand-harvested, destemmed, and lightly crushed, then fermented with indigenous yeasts through a pied-de-cuve starter. Skin contact runs approximately 50 days. The wine is aged in neutral epoxy tanks ranging from 1,500 to 2,500 liters for around 18 months, then spends a further 18 months in bottle before release. Minimal sulfur is added depending on vintage conditions; the wine is unfiltered and unfined. Annual production is approximately 2,500 bottles, making this 1.5-liter magnum format particularly rare.

The 2018 vintage on Etna produced wines of delicate structure and soft tannin. Tasting notes for this wine point to translucent ruby color, sour cherry, red berry compote, wild herbs, a mineral saline quality, and a velvety, acid-driven palate. Cornelissen himself has described the FM site as producing wines of Burgundian elegance and roundness, a character borne out by its well-ventilated situation and deep soils. Acidity is lively and the finish is long and savory.

The estate does not label its wines under the Etna DOC, instead using the Terre Siciliane IGP designation. This bottle, labeled as Munjebel FM, is 100 percent Nerello Mascalese from Contrada Feudo di Mezzo farmed organically and biodynamically.

The high acidity and savory mineral profile make this a natural match for herb-roasted lamb, spit-roasted pork, or pasta all'Amatriciana. Aged pecorino or a hard sheep's milk cheese works well alongside. The wine has enough structure to hold up to braised meats and game birds.

Wine details

Dry/Sweet:, Dry
Wine Type:, Red Wine
Wine Style:, Medium Body
Grapes:, Nerello Mascalese
Farming:, Organic and Biodynamic
Vintage:, 2018
Alcohol:, 14%
Country:, Italy
Region:, Sicily
Appellation:, Terre Siciliane IGP
Bottle Size:, 1500ml
Sugar Level:, Zero Added Sugar

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.


Important Compliance Requirements

FedEx and other carriers we might occasionally use can only deliver wine to customers who are 21 years or older. Someone must be at the address to receive the package, carriers don't just drop a package and leave. They must ensure the person receiving the wine is 21 or older.


Re-shipping a Package

If a package is returned to us after three failed delivery attempts, we can only re-ship the wine upon payment of a re-shipping fee, to be determined based on the shipping address and number of bottles. Shipping wine is extremely expensive. We are sorry about this, but we have no other choice. Please make sure there's always someone at the address you enter as your shipping address.

If you'd like to receive a refund for a package that was returned to us after FedEx made three delivery attempts, we can do that but we must keep a $20 refund fee; FedEx charges us a lot of money for returns, unfortunately, I can't stress this enough.


Re-routing a Package

If you'd like to reroute a package after it's been shipped, we can do so for a $20 re-routing fee. We cannot re-route a package across state borders. For any change of address, please contact us as soon as possible, ideally within 1-2 days from placing the order or we cannot guarantee we'll be able to reroute or change your order's shipping address.


Canceling an Order

If you'd like to cancel an order after it's been shipped, we can do so upon payment of a small cancellation fee – the amount depends on the size of the order. Carriers charge us a lot of money to recall a package en-route.


Heat/Frost damage

We are not responsible for heat- or frost-related issues. We offer ice-packs upon request. Please let us know if you think that there could be heat-related issues. If we don't hear anything from you regarding weather issues before an order is shipped, or if you don't request a hold due to the weather, we are not responsible for heat/frost damage.


Placed an order. What next?

1. You will receive an order confirmation email with your order summary.*

2. As soon as your order ships from the warehouse, usually within 2-3 business days, this applies to all shipping rates, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with your tracking information. 2DAY shipping refers to shipping time; we still need 2-3 business days to prepare an order. We need to pick and pack, QA, add printed collateral, and palletize the orders.

3. Please track your package using the tracking service.

4. The carrier will attempt delivery a maximum of 3 times. After 3 delivery attempts, your package will be sent back to our warehouse.**

*Please ensure your email address is correct; otherwise, you will not receive the order and shipping confirmation emails.

**If delivery is attempted 3 times without success, or if you fail to retrieve your package from the carrier depot by the stated deadline, the shipping fee will not be refunded to the customer.

Returns Policy

If you are not satisfied with your purchase, please contact us at (424) 414-2040 or via e-mail at hello@primalwine.com between 9 am and 5 pm Pacific Standard Time, Monday through Sunday, we would like to understand and try to solve your concerns. We can offer refunds only as store credit.

Producer profile

Frank Cornelissen

Frank Cornelissen is Belgian by birth and spent his early career as a wine broker and importer, working with high-end Bordeaux and Burgundy. He arrived on Mount Etna in 2000 and released his first vintage in 2001 from a small parcel of ungrafted, high-elevation vines. At the time, Etna had no significant fine wine reputation, and the old-vine parcels he sourced were largely used for bulk production. He established his estate with no formal winemaking training, working instead from a philosophy of minimal intervention and terroir expression.

The estate now covers approximately 24 hectares on Etna's northern slopes, ranging from 600 to 1,000 meters elevation. Around 13 hectares are planted with old-vine alberello (bush-vine) trained vines on their own roots, ungrafted, many pre-phylloxera. Farming is certified organic and biodynamic. Cornelissen has interplanted fruit trees and maintains beehives to reduce monoculture and support a complex ecosystem. Yields for the top parcels are kept to 300 to 600 grams per vine through short pruning.

Cornelissen's winemaking is built on spontaneous fermentation using indigenous yeasts with a pied-de-cuve, extended skin maceration of approximately 50 days for the FM, and aging in neutral epoxy tanks. The wine is unfiltered and unfined, and sulfur additions, if any, are minimal and vintage-dependent. His approach has evolved from the early highly oxidative style toward greater fruit clarity while maintaining the mineral depth that defines his wines. The MunJebel line represents his single-contrada crus, each named by abbreviation for the contrada of origin.

Wine region

Sicily, Italy

Mount Etna sits in the northeast corner of Sicily, an active stratovolcano rising to 3,300 meters. The northern valley, centered on the towns of Linguaglossa, Castiglione di Sicilia, and Randazzo, is considered the top zone for single-vineyard red wines from the volcano. Vineyards here range from 600 to over 1,000 meters above sea level, giving the growing season a cooler, longer character than the rest of Sicily. The altitude preserves natural acidity in the grapes even in warm years. Soils vary dramatically from contrada to contrada, shaped by successive lava flows of different ages, volcanic ash deposits, and basalt, with low organic matter and neutral to slightly acidic pH.

The Etna DOC, established in 1968 and updated in 2011 to include individual contrada designations, covers 133 recognized contrade on the volcano's slopes. Nerello Mascalese is the dominant red grape, prized for its pale color, high acidity, fine tannin, and capacity to express site character. Nerello Cappuccio is used as a blending grape in small percentages by some producers. Carricante is the key white variety. Frank Cornelissen's estate labels its wines under the broader Terre Siciliane IGP rather than Etna DOC. Contrada Feudo di Mezzo, located in the municipality of Castiglione di Sicilia, is one of the largest contrade in the DOC, with deep mixed volcanic ash and basalt soils at 600 to 750 meters on the north face.

Frequently asked question

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.

Signature on delivery is mandatory for wine deliveries. Please make sure someone is at the shipping address to sign for the package.

If applicable, please consider delivering the package to a business address to ensure someone is available to sign for the package.

We also have the option of delivering the package to a Carrier's store for pickup. Please reach out to us to coordinate.

Carrier will try to delivery a package up to three times before returning the package to us.

See here our shipping policy.

If you miss a delivery and a package gets returned to us we have two options:

1) Reship the package right away: due to the very high cost of shipping and returns, we must charge a re-shipping fee to be determined based on package size and shipping destination.

2) Consolidate the returned package with your next order: this option is free of charge and it's the most popular option.

See here our shipping policy.

This collection features our best selling natural wine from all around the world. It's the best place to start you natural wine journey! Browse one of the largest selections of natural wine available online in the United States.

Primal Wine Natural Wine Club is the best way to discover natural wine. Let us do the heavy-lifting, sit back, and relax. We will send you an ever-changing selection of natural wine made by top producers from around the world.

Our customers love Primal

I'm just copying and pasting from the hundreds messages we received, no pseudo reviews!
Erin C.

We love our membership so far and can't wait until our next shipment.

Jennifer B.

A note to say that we are loving the tasting notes sheet you’re sending!

James S.

I'm really happy to find Primal – your selections are terrific. 

Samuel M.

Love your company, always a great wine selection. 

Chelsea V.

I love what you guys do!

What Is | Primal Wine

What is natural wine?

Natural wine is a type of wine made in small batches from organic or biodynamic grapes with minimal intervention.
What Is Biodynamic Wine Info Cards | Primal Wine

What is Biodynamics?

Biodynamic wine is wine made from grapes farmed biodynamically. Biodynamic farming is a holistic approach.
What Is Organic Wine Info Cards | Primal Wine

What is organic wine?

Organic wine is made with grapes farmed organically. Organic farming is an alternative to conventional farming.
What Is Vegan Wine Info Cards | Primal Wine

What is vegan wine?

Vegan wine is wine made without using animal products during the fining phase of the clarification process.