ITALY

ITALY

INTRODUCTION

• Contributes 21% to the entire world production of wines.

• Contributes 33% to the entire European production of wines.

• Average annual production of wines is 60 million hector liters.

• 40% of the total area cultivated by vines is contributed by the mountains.

• More than 2000 varieties of grapes used for making wines.

• Today there exists 14 DOCG wines & close to 270 DOC wines.

History of Wine Laws• Italians over the centuries have pioneered laws to control

the origins and protect the names of wines.

• Ancient Romans defined production areas for dozens of wines.

• In 1716, the grand Duchy of Tuscany delimited the zones for important wines.

• Formation of DOCG/DOC in 1963,the government passed a law controlling the names of origins of the wines to align Italy with the EU regulations.The first regulation in 1963 is popularly known as ‘930’.

• In 1992, then Italian prime minister Giovanni goria brought sweeping changes in the DOC laws. This has come to be known as the Goria law.

The legal categories of Italian Wines • DOCG- stands for ‘Denominazione di Origine controllata e

Guarantita’ meaning ‘controlled and guaranteed denomination’.• DOC- stands for ‘Dinominazione di Origine controllata’, meaning

‘controlled denomination’.• IGT- stands for Indicazione Geographica Tipica which is the third

category of denominate wines in Italy.The IGT category was created in January,1992, as a part of a major reform of the laws governing Italian wine. The IGT denomination is given to wines of "large areas where natural conditions favor uniformity of style."

• Vino da Tavola- an ordinary table wine which lies in the lowest category of Italian wines and used for local consumption.

CENTRAL EAST

SOUTHERN

NORTHEAST

NORTHWEST

CENTRALWEST

NORTHWEST ITALY• REGIONS

Piedmont, Liguria, Lombardy, Valle D’aosta.

• LOCATION Alps to the north and west and the Ligurian Sea to the south.

• CLIMATE Severe winters with fog, hot summers with hail-damage; long autumns

• ASPECT Mountains and foothills, Po river-hillside cultivation of vines.

• SOIL

Predominantly calcareous marl interlayer with sand and clay.

• GRAPES Nebbiolo,Trebbiano, Moscato

NORTHEAST ITALY

• REGIONS Trenito-Alto Adige,Friuli-Venezia giulia, Veneto

• LOCATION Dolomites to the north, Adriatic Sea to the South

• CLIMATE Similar to the northwest, less fog more hail,unpredictable

• ASPECT Hills to plains-best vines on hill slopes

• SOIL sandy clay,rich in calcium.Stony towards South

• GRAPES Cabernet franc, Chardonnay, Cabernet sauvignon, Cortese

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CENTRALWEST ITALY

• REGIONS Umbria,Tuscany,Molise,Latium,

• LOCATION Apennines to to the north &Tyrrhenian Sea to the west

• CLIMATE Summers long & dry ,winters not severe,lack of rain

• ASPECT Hillsides,use of altitude to offset heat

• SOIL Gravel,limestone&clay .

• GRAPES Sangiovese, Trebbiano

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•- Latium

CENTRALEAST ITALY

• REGIONS The Marches, Emilia Romagna, Abruzzi

• LOCATION Along the Adriatic Coast

• CLIMATE Mediterranean, hot summers cool winters

• ASPECT Foothills and plains

• SOIL Alluvial with outcrops of granite & limestone

• GRAPES Albana , Barbarossa, Barbera

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SOUTHERN ITALY & ISLANDS

• REGIONS Calabria, Apulia, Basilicata, Campania , Sicily & Sardinia

• LOCATION Mediterranean coast

• CLIMATE Summers are bakingly hot , winters are cool

• SOIL Volcanic soil

• GRAPES Agliano , Piedirosso

READING A WINE LABEL

Wine name

vintage

Estate bottled

Producer or bottler

Alcoholic strengthvolume

Country of origin

Quality designation

Italian wines served in Oberoi hotels

Sparkling

Proescco di Valdobbiadene DOC, Spumante

Asti Spumante

White

Gavi Fontanafredda 1997 Orvieto Classico DOC 1999, Antinori Villa Antinori, Toscana Soave Classico DOC 1999, Pegaso Gavi DOCG 1999, Anforio Frascati DOC Superior 1997, Culli de

Catune

Dessert Wine

Muscat de Beaumes de Venice 1998, Paul Jaboulet

Red

Barberesco 1996, Coste rubin Valpolicella classico 1999, DOC Barolo DOCG 1994, Podey Luigi

Einaudi Brunelo di Montalcino, Rennina,DOC Bardolino DOC 1998 Chianti Classico DOCG 1995 Brunello DOCG 1996

PIEDMONT/ PIEMONTE

DOCG WinesREDBarolo & Barbaresco: robust red wines made from Nebbiolo grapes.

Gattinara

Ghemme

Brachetto d’AcquiWHITE

Asti/ Moscato d,Asti- sweet sparkling white wine made from Moscato grapes.

Gavi/ Gavi di Gavi/ Cortese di Gavi- all dry, light to medium-bodied still white wines made from Cortese grapes.

LOMBARDY

DOCG Wines

RED

Valtellina Superiore

Sassella

Grumello

Inferno

Valgella

WHITE

Franciacorta (spumante version only)

VENETO situated in northeastern Italy, with Venice its main city.Famous Wines : Valpolicella - heavy bodied red wine Bardolino - light bodied red wine

Recioto di Soave - Italy’s most famous DOCG white wine

TUSCANYRED DOCGChianti Classico: made from Sangiovese grape Chianti Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Brunello di Motalcino CarmignanoWHITE DOCGVernaccia di San Gimignano

LATIUMEst! Est!! Est!!! Di Montefiascone:white wine

UMBRIA

Torgiano Rosso Riserva- RED DOCG

Sagrantino di Montefalco-RED DOCG

EMILIA ROMAGNA

a culinary center, with Bologna its major city. The most famous wine is :

Albana di Romagna : DOCG white wine made from Albana grape.

CAMPANIA

in southwest Italy, with Naples its chief city.

Lacryma Christi : literally meaning “tears of Christ”; grown as a red, white & rose on the slopes of the volcano ‘vesuvius’. The whites (both still & sparkling) are the best known.

Taurasi- RED DOCG

SICILY

a huge island off the toe of Italy, famous for its dessert wines.

Marsala : a fortified dessert wine.

SARDINIA

Vermentino di Gallura- White DOCG