Fratelli Sicilia launches a Christmas panettone line built on 72 hours of leavening

Fratelli Sicilia, a pastry company based in Belpasso near Mount Etna, said on Thursday, November 12, that it is launching a new Christmas panettone line built around a 72-hour leavening and maturation process.

The line, called Lievitatissimo, is the company’s new holiday offering for 2026 and centers on the idea that time is the product’s defining element. Fratelli Sicilia said the dough is left to mature and ferment naturally for three days, a process the company says is intended to produce a softer texture and improve digestibility.

The new range will be sold in a 1-kilogram format in two versions, Traditional and Chocolate, and in a 5-kilogram Magnum format. The company said the project was developed by owners Piero and Salvo Motta, who aimed to combine the Italian tradition of naturally leavened holiday cakes with selected raw materials and longer fermentation times.

According to the company, the panettone is made with Sicilian flour and a refreshed sourdough starter that is wrapped in cloth and tied with string during part of the process. Fratelli Sicilia said that method helps shape the dough’s fermentation and contributes to its ivory color, regular air pockets and slightly acidic taste.

In the Traditional version, the dough includes Etna wildflower honey made from orange blossom and chestnut, Madagascar Bourbon vanilla, raisins and candied Sicilian PGI red orange peel. The company said the orange peel comes from family citrus groves and is candied in-house. The Chocolate version uses a chocolate dough and includes pieces of dark chocolate with 72% cocoa.

One of the main changes in the new line is the use of high-quality lactose-free butter. Fratelli Sicilia said that choice is meant to make the product more accessible to people with lactose intolerance while preserving the flavor and texture expected from a premium panettone.

The launch also includes a social media campaign called What to Do in 72 Hours, which links the long production time to the product’s identity. In a statement, Piero and Salvo Motta said the campaign was built around the contrast between the many things people can do in three days and the company’s decision to dedicate that time to slowly leavening its Christmas panettone.

Fratelli Sicilia was founded about a decade ago and operates from Belpasso, in the province of Catania. With Lievitatissimo, the company is placing the extended fermentation process at the center of its holiday strategy, alongside ingredients that highlight its Sicilian base, including local flour, Etna honey and PGI red orange peel.

The release of the new line comes as Italian producers continue to compete in the premium Christmas baked goods market by emphasizing artisanal methods, ingredient sourcing and specialized formats. In Fratelli Sicilia’s case, the company is presenting long fermentation not just as a production step, but as the main selling point of the product.