The Veneto Wine Region of Italy

The Veneto wine region is located in the north-eastern part of Italy between Milan and Venice. Its geography includes the foothills of the Alps to the north, Lake Garda to the immediate west and the Adriatic Sea to the east. While it is smaller than the wine-producing regions of Piedmont, Tuscany, Lombardy, Puglia and Sicily, it produces more wine than any of them.

The region of Veneto is known for Pinot Grigio and Prosecco. But other wines from the region include Valpolicella, Amarone, Soave and Bardolino. Geographically, Veneto is split into three primary areas — Bardolino, Valpolicella and Soave.

Bardolino is a cooler climate that is influenced by the Alps. It produces fresh, crisp white wines under the Bianco di Custoza and Garda titles. Bardolino is best known for its light red wines that are a blend of Corvina, Rondinella and up to 20 percent Molinara.

Just east of Lake Garda and north of Verona is Valpolicella. It is second only to Chianti in its wine production. There are four key styles of wine produced here - Valpolicella, Valpolicella Ripasso, Amarone della Valpolicella and Recioto della Valpolicella. All are made with Corvina, Corvinone, Rondinella and Molinara grapes with each using its own unique wine-making technique.

To the east of Valpolicella is Soave, home to the dry white ‘Soave’ wines that are among Italy's most famous.

Next time we’ll dive a bit deeper into the various styles of Valpolicella. Until then, Salute!

The Wines of Sicily

Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea and has been making wine since 4000 BC. Its dry, warm climate, regular sunshine and moderate rainfall is well suited for winemaking.

Marsala is Sicily’s most famous wine - a fortified wine. But, Sicily also produces both red and white varietal wines.

There are three key red grapes in Sicily - Nero d’Avola, Frappato and Nerello Mascalese.

Nero d'Avola (also known as Calabrese) is the most widely planted red wine grape variety in Sicily. Its name comes from the town of Avola on Sicily’s southeast coast along with the fact that “nero” means "black" referring to the grape's dark color. Nero d'Avola has traditionally been used to add color and body to wines but has also become a popular varietal wine.

Cherry-colored, aromatic and low in tannins, Frappato wines are light bodied and somewhat like France’s Beaujolais wines. While winemakers do make single variety Frappato wines, it is most commonly blended with Nero d’Avola to soften and lighten it.

Nerello Mascalese grows mostly on the volcanic slopes of Mount Etna in Sicily. Its wines are fresh and fruity with herbaceous flavors, good minerality and earthy tones. This grape is also used in a variety of blends including Nero d'Avola.

The key white wine grapes of Sicily are Catarratto, Grillo and Inzolia.

Catarratto is the most widely planted grape in Sicily. Catarratto produces soft, dry wines and is a component of in the production of Marsala. Grillo and Inzolia are also used in the base blend for Marsala.

It should also be noted that Sicily’s winemakers are also making wines with Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Piedmont: Another Top Wine Region in Italy

We’ve recently been exploring Italian wines (Borolo, Barbaresco, Barbera, Montepulciano, Soave and Super Tuscans), grapes (Sangiovese and Nebbiolo) and regions (Tuscany and Chianti).

So, now let’s take a closer look at another of Italy’s great wine regions - Piedmont (or Piemonte, pronounced pee-ay-MON-tay).

Piedmont is located in the western-most part of northern Italy. With the Swiss Alps to the north and the Mediterranean Sea to the south, it is yet another perfect region for wine. It is the home of more DOCG wines than any other Italian region.

In Piedmont, Nebbiolo is not the region's most widely planted grape, but it is the grape that is most notable. Nebbiolo grapes are prominent in four of Piedmont's DOCGs: Barolo, Barbaresco, Gattinara and Roero.

It is Barbera that is Piedmont's primary grape and the most widely planted. Piedmont's best Barbera wines are from Barbera del Monferrato, Barbera d'Asti and Barbera d'Alba. Barbera is thought to have originated in the hills of central Piemonte, where it has been known since the 13th century.

The third major grape of Piedmont is Dolcetto (Dol-CHET-oh). The top sub-regions of Piedmont for Dolcetto are Dogliani, Dolcetto di Diano d’Alba and Dolcetto di Ovada Superiore. Meaning the "little sweet one," Dolcetto produces dry red wines that are generally made to be enjoyed young. Unfortunately, Nebbiolo and Barbara steal the show in Piedmont and seem to leave these wines a distant third. But, Dolcetto certainly should not be overlooked. 

So, that’s just a very quick overview of Piedmont and its three most notable red wine grapes. Next time we’ll take a look at some of the white wines of Piedmont. Cheers!

Tuscany: One of Italy's Most Famous Wine Regions

Tuscan is located in west-central Italy and includes the cities of Florence, Siena and Pisa. It is also the birthplace of the Italian renaissance. Wine production in Tuscan started before the rise of the Roman Empire and is believed to have begun in the 5th century BC.

Most of Tuscan’s top wine regions produce red wine, but that’s not to say that white wines aren’t produced. But more than 80% of Tuscan wines are red.

While Tuscany is comprised of more than 40 sub-regions, it’s best known for the regions of Chianti (Italy’s first official wine region created in 1716), Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. And, the grape of Tuscan is Sangiovese.

The best examples of Chianti come from the Chianti Classico zone, which was awarded a separate status in 1996. Many of the Chianti Classico wines are marked by the black cockerel (Gallo Nero) logo. However, bottles sold in the US are not always so marked.

Originally, the wines of Chianti were required to use both red and white wine grapes. But today, Chianti Classico wines must simply contain a minimum of 80 percent of the Sangiovese variety. The remainder can be made from native grapes such as Canaiolo or Colorino. There are three levels of Chianti Classico wines - Annata (the most basic wines), Riserva and Gran Selezione. Riserva wines must be aged for 24 months while Gran Selezione must be entirely made from a single estate and aged for 30 months.

Brunello di Montalcino is another of Italy's most famous and prestigious wines. All Brunello di Montalcino wines are made exclusively from 100% Sangiovese that is grown on the slopes around Montalcino which is located just south of Siena. Brunello must be aged for at least four years while the Riserva must be aged for five years. Two of these years must be spent in oak, and the wine must spend a minimum of four months in the bottle prior to being released.

Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is located southeast of Siena in southeastern Tuscany. Wines of this region must be at least 70 percent Sangiovese. Other local varieties can be used for the remaining 30 percent and up to 5% may be white varieties such as Malvasia. The aging period for Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is a minimum of 24 months while the Riserva wines must have a minimum of 36 months of aging with at least 12 months in oak barrels.

Ever Wonder What a Super Tuscan Wine is?

Much like France, Italy has a long tradition of wine. In the 1960s, Italy formalized their wine appellation system modeled after the French system. Under this system, each wine region in Italy was required to operate under strict rules for the types of grapes they were allowed to grow and how their wines were to be produced.

Under this system, native Italian grapes were required to be used in Italian wines. These native grapes included Sangiovese, Barbera, Nebbiolo, and Montepulciano. But these regulations were quickly criticized as being overly restrictive and led small groups to push-back against them. By the end of the ’60s, these groups were producing wine blends with non-native grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah.

But, these producers of wines using non-native Italian grapes were forced to bottle their wines using the generic title of Vino da Tavola (Table Wine) that is associated with Italy’s lowest-quality wines. Instead of settling for this, they chose to unofficially call their wines “Super Tuscans” so as to distinguish them from inexpensive table wines.

Finally, in 1992, the Italian government created a new wine classification called “Toscana IGT” for these Super Tuscan wine blends.

The Toscana IGT continues to be used to distinguish Super Tuscans. So, look for Toscana IGT on the label of these unique Italian wines. Cheers!