There are more than 500 native wine varieties, of which at least 175 make up Italy’s everyday wines. Thus, Italy is one of the hardest countries to master! Despite the complexity, if you taste the primary wines from the larger regions of Northwest, Northeast, Central, and Southern Italy, you will gain an understanding of what to expect, and more importantly, what wine regions you’d like to explore more!
Wine Regions
Northwest: The regions of Lombardy, Piedmont, Liguria and Aosta Valley have mostly intermediate to cool climates, meaning, the season is slightly shorter and thus, red wines tend to be more elegant, aromatic, and earthy in style. Whites sparkle with ample acidity.
Northeast: The regions of Veneto, Emilia-Romagna, Trentino-Alto Adige, and Friuli-Venezia Giulia have cooler climates and the warmer areas are influenced by the Adriatic Sea. Reds offer more fruit (although still elegant) and the best white wines are found in the hills, such as the Soave grape, Garganega. Central: The Mediterranean climate in Tuscany, Umbria, Marche, Lazio, and Abruzzo is why red varieties shine here, including Sangiovese and Montepulciano.
Southern and Islands: Italy’s warmest regions Molise, Campania, Basilicata, Puglia, Calabria, and the islands of Sicily and Sardinia. Reds lean towards more ripe fruit flavors and white wines tend to have a fuller body.
Reading a Label
Italian wine labels are the most challenging to understand because there is no single rule that defines how they're labeled. Additionally, the Italian wine classification system hasn't kept up with the innovations and new quality styles coming out of Italy today. Fortunately, there is a way!
DOCG
Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita. 73 regions are ranked as Italy's top quality tier. DOCG wines meet both basic DOC standards along with more rigorous growing, aging, and quality specifications defined by each region.
DOC
Denominazione di Origine Controllata. 329 officially designated wine regions. Wines must use official grape varieties and have minimum quality standards. Most DOC wines are decent everday drinkers.
IGP / IGT
Indicazione di Geografica Tipica. Most IGP are table wines from larger geographical areas but you'll also find regional wines made with non-Italian grapes including French-origin Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Syrah. These declassified grape wines can be of exceptional quality and often use a made-up name. The "Super Tuscans" from the Bolgheri region of Tuscany are a good example. IGP can offer great value.
VdT
Vino da Tavola. Basic table wines with no regional designation.
