Wine 101: Famous Italian wine regions

June 24, 1:53 PMFood & Drink 101 ExaminerTaylor Olson

Previous Next

2 comments Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the Food & Drink 101 Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

Photo: Copyright PhotoXpress.com

Home of the Slow Food Movement, Italian wines are made to be savored over a conversation and a delicious meal. Italians are also very strict about the classification of their wine and have implemented the Denominazione di origine controlla to ensure their wines are of the highest quality. Three of Italy's 20 wine regions are explored below. Salute!

• Abruzzo: Bordering the Adriatic Sea, this region produces one wine labelled DOCG and three DOC wines. On the west side of the region lie some of Italy's tallest mountains. The region recently made the switch from mass-producing wineries to more a boutique-like manner of wine production. It has been gaining notoriety ever since this shift took place. Abruzzo's DOCG wine, Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Colline Teramane, is a red wine made from Montepulciano grapes and aged in oak. Its DOC wines are Controguerra, Trebbiano d'Abruzzo and Montepulciano d'Abruzzo.
• Tuscany: First inhabited by the Etruscans, this region of rolling hills produces some of the most well known wines in the world. With more than 157,000 acres of vineyards, the wonderfully balanced climate provides one of the most ideal settings for growing wine grapes. One of Italy's most famous wines, Chianti, is produced in Tuscany. In fact, only wines produced in Tuscany can be called Chianti. In 1932, seven zones for Chianti production were established. Chianti Classico is the most well known Chianti region. The region bosts more than 30 DOC wines and eight DOCG wines. Two of the DOCG wines are Chianti and Chianti Classico. Vernaccia di San Gimignano was the first Italian wine given a DOC label. Today it is the only Italian white wine given a DOCG label.
• Sicily: This island's soil is great for growing grapes but not much else; it is almost useless when it comes to the cultivation of other crops. With its warm and sunny spring and fall and rare winter frosts, Sicily provides an ideal climate for the production of wine. It is home to more vineyards than any other Italian wine growing region. Winemakers have recently turned their attention to the cultivation of some of the grapes native to the island like Frappato and Mantellato (reds) and Carricante and Catarratto (whites). Sicily is home to one of Italy's most famous wines: Marsala. This dessert wine can last more than 50 years and today is mostly used for cooking. Sicily has 19 DOC areas and 90 percent of DOC wines are dessert wines like Marsala. The island also has a DOCG wine, Cerasuolo di Vittoria.

For more information on the wine regions of Italy, click here.