The Republic of Italy in southern Europe with its capital Rome covers 301,338 km². Most of the national territory is located on the Apennine Peninsula, which is surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea, and the adjacent northern Italian lowlands. It also includes the large islands of Sicily and Sardinia, as well as several smaller and larger island groups such as the Lipari Islands to the north of Sicily and the Cyclops Islands to the east in the Ionian Sea, the Egadi Islands in the Tyrrhenian Sea, the Pelagic Islands between Tunisia, Malta and Sicily and Pantelleria to the south-west of Sicily.
The majority of the Italian islands belong to the Veneto region and are mainly located off the mainland of Venice. There are land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia as well as the two small states of Vatican City and San Marino, which are completely enclosed by Italian territory as enclaves. Viticulture is practised from north to south in all regions of the mainland, but also on most of the islands mentioned.
Italy is one of the oldest wine-growing countries, with beginnings dating back to at least 1,000 BC. At this time, the Etruscans appeared in central Italy and colonised areas of the four present-day regions of Abruzzo, Lazio, Tuscany and Umbria. The origins of Italian wine culture lie primarily in Greek colonisation, which brought Greek viticultural culture to the peninsula in the 10th century BC, starting on the island of Sicily, Campania and Calabria. The Greeks brought many of their grape varieties with them and named the land ideal for viticulture Oinotria (land of vines grown on stakes). The Phoenicians (Punic), who later became a major enemy and established bases in Sicily and the Mediterranean, also exerted an influence at this time. From the 6th century BC, lively trade began with the Celts in Gaul (France), who imported considerable quantities of wine from northern and central Italy.
The Romans willingly learnt from all these peoples and brought viticulture and winemaking to a high level of art and prosperity. In the 3rd century BC, the vine was widespread throughout the peninsula and in the 1st century BC, wine culture reached its peak. The city of Pompeii was the wine trading centre and main supplier for Rome until its destruction by the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 BC. The most famous ancient wines at this time included Caecuber, Falerner, Raeticum and Surrentiner. The Romans planted vineyards in the newly acquired provinces in what are now France, Spain, Portugal, Germany, Austria and England. Wine became an import and export item and the Romans were already making wooden barrels for it, having learnt this from the Celts (Gauls).
Many Roman authors wrote very extensive works about viticulture and wine culture in the Teril, thus providing a very accurate picture. The spectrum ranges from purely scientific (didactic) writings to poetic descriptions and descriptions of the eating and drinking culture. The Satyricon, a portrait of the manners of the Roman upper class, deserves special mention. The most important authors in chronological order are Cato the Elder (234-149 BC), Virgil (70-19 BC), Horace (65-8 BC), Ovid (43 BC to 8 AD), Columella (1st half of the 1st century), Petronius (14-66), Pliny the Elder (23-79) and Palladius (4th century). Wine became a cultural medium of the first rank, and in continuation of the Greek cult of Dionysus, the god of wine Bacchus enjoyed great veneration. The Romans were very creative when it came to winemaking techniques. One speciality was flavouring to make the wine tastier and more durable.
Sparkling wine was already being produced by storing amphorae in cold spring water (interrupting fermentation). In the first century AD, people were intensively involved in breeding grape varieties and tried to find the most suitable vine for the respective soil. Pliny recognised that it was primarily the area and the soil, i.e. the origin and the terroir according to today's nomenclature, that determine the quality of the wine and that, for example, Uva Rhetica (variety for the Raeticum) does not produce good wine outside its growing area, but only produces quantity.
Single-varietal cultivation and ageing was recommended in order to better assess the varieties. Many of today's autochthonous vines are descended from the ancient grape varieties cultivated at that time. Due to the collapse of the Roman Empire in the 5th century and the turmoil of the migration of peoples, wine culture fell into oblivion and was only cultivated by monasteries of the Roman Catholic Church through the production of mass wine.
There was a great upswing at the beginning of the Renaissance in the 14th century. In order to revitalise viticulture, Pope Paul III (1468-1549) banned French wine and had surveys of Italian wine drawn up. As early as 1716, under Grand Duke Cosimo III (1642-1723) of the Medici dynasty, the zone for Chianti was established in Tuscany, making Italy one of the first countries with a designation of origin. However, it was not until the 19th century, when wine types such as Barolo, Brunello di Montalcino and Chianti were created with French help, that a new beginning was made.
The soils are characterised by great diversity, but the climate has common influencing factors despite local differences. The Alps shield against cold northerly winds, while the Apennines form a 1,500 kilometre-long weather divide from Piedmont in the north to Sicily in the south. The Mediterranean Sea to the east and the Tyrrhenian Sea to the west of the boot as well as the numerous rivers and lakes have a decisive influence. The best regions have temperatures between 12 and 16 °C, sufficient snow and rainfall in winter and warm to hot summers with sunshine until late autumn. The vineyards are planted at altitudes of up to 1,000 metres above sea level. The 20 wine-growing regions coincide with the political regional borders:
Region (German) |
Region (Italian) |
Capital city |
hectares |
Abruzzo | Abruzzo | L'Aquila | 33.000 |
Valle d'Aosta | Valle d'Aosta | Aosta | 500 |
Apulia | Puglia | Bari | 88.000 |
Basilicata | Basilicata or Lucania | Potenza | 2.000 |
Emilia-Romagna | Emilia-Romagna | Bologna | 53.500 |
Friuli-Venezia Giulia | Friuli-Venezia Giulia | Trieste | 27.000 |
Calabria | Calabria | Catanzaro | 8.900 |
Campania | Campania | Napoli | 25.600 |
Lazio | Latio | Roma | 20.500 |
Liguria | Liguria | Genoa | 1.650 |
Lombardy | Lombardy | Milan | 24.700 |
Marche | Marche | Ancona | 16.000 |
Molise | Molise | Campobasso | 5.400 |
Piedmont | Piemonte | Torino | 44.000 |
Sardinia | Sardegna formerly Tinakria | Cagliari | 26.700 |
Sicily | Sicily | Palermo | 119.000 |
Tuscany | Tuscany | Firenze | 60.500 |
Trentino-Alto Adige | Trentino-Alto Adige | Trento | 15.500 |
Umbria | Umbria | Perugia | 12.500 |
Veneto | Veneto | Venezia | 96.400 |
Wine is grown from the north of the country (Trentino-Alto Adige) to the far south (Sicily) and on the islands in the Mediterranean. However, the more than 400 DOC and DOCG zones only account for around a fifth of wine production. There are around two million grape producers, 340,000 cellars and 45,000 wine bottlers. At the beginning of the 1990s, the area under vines was still over one million hectares, which was reduced by around 200,000 hectares due to EU grubbing-up programmes.
In 2022, the vineyards covered 718,198 hectares and the wine production volume was 49.8 million hectolitres. This puts Italy among the absolute leaders worldwide. With over 2,000 grape varieties, Italy has the most in the world, many of which are of ancient (Greek) origin. However, "only" 400 of these are officially authorised. The grape variety index (Kym Anderson statistics):
Grape variety |
Colour |
Synonyms / Italian name |
Hectare |
Sangiovese | red | Brunello, Prugnolo Gentile, Nielluccio | 68.428 |
Trebbiano Toscano | white | Trebbiano di Cesena, Tália, Ugni Blanc | 35.441 |
Montepulciano | red | Cordisco, Morellone | 32.724 |
Catarratto Bianco | white | C. B. Comune, C. B. Lucido | 28.563 |
Merlot | red | - | 24.057 |
Chardonnay | white | - | 19.769 |
Glera | white | until 2009 Prosecco, Teran Bijeli | 19.730 |
Trebbiano Romagnolo | white | T. della Fiamma, T. di Romagna | 19.059 |
Pinot Gris | white | Pinot Grigio | 18.821 |
Barbera | red | B. Amaro, B. d'Asti, B. Dolce | 15.006 |
Pinot Gris | white | Pinot Grigio | 17.281 |
Cabernet Sauvignon | red | Cabernet | 14.240 |
Nero d'Avola | red | Calabrese, Niureddu Calavrisi | 14.129 |
Tribidrag / Zinfandel | red | Primitivo | 13.896 |
Muscat Blanc | white | Moscato Bianco, Moscato Reale | 13.334 |
Negroamaro | red | Abbruzzese, Purcinara | 11.431 |
Aglianico | red | Aglianico del Vulture | 9.627 |
Malvasia Bianca di Candia | white | M. Bianca, M. di Candia, M. Rossa | 9.028 |
Garganega | white | Grecanico Dorato | 8.522 |
Syrah | red | - | 7.693 |
Nebbiolo | red | Chiavennasca, N. del Piemonte, Picotèner | 7.551 |
Grillo | white | Ariddu, Riddu, Rossese Bianco | 7.382 |
Vermentino | white | Favorita, Pigato | 6.703 |
Lambrusco Salamino | red | Lambrusco Galassi, Lambrusco di Santa Croce | 6.228 |
Corvina Veronese | red | C. Comune, C. Gentile, C. Nostrana, Cruina | 6.222 |
Bonarda Piemontese | red | Balsamina, Bonarda | 5.926 |
Lambrusco Maestri | red | Grappello Maestri, Lambrusco di Spagn | 5.610 |
Cabernet Franc | red | Cabernet Frank | 5.590 |
Garnacha Tinta | red | Cannonau, Tai Rosso, Vernaccia Nera | 5.421 |
Pinot Noir | red | Pinot Nero | 5.057 |
Inzolia | white | Ansonica, Insolia | 4.740 |
Verdicchio Bianco | white | Trebbiano di Lugana, Trebbiano di Soave | 4.674 |
Gaglioppo | red | G. di Cirò, Galloppo, Lacrima Nera | 4.626 |
Dolcetto | red | Dolcetto Nero, Nibièu, Nibiò, Ormeasco | 4.381 |
Sauvignon Blanc | white | Pellegrina, Sauvignon Bianco | 3.935 |
Falanghina Flegrea | white | F. Beneventana, F. Flegrea | 3.634 |
Rondinella | red | Nessuno Conosciuto | 2.683 |
Croatina | red | Bonarda, Nebbiolo di Gattinara, Neretto | 2.678 |
Trebbiano d'Abruzzo | white | T. Abruzzese, T. Campolese, T. di Teramo | 2.630 |
Nero di Troia | red | Somarello, Uva di Troia | 2.512 |
Sauvignonasse | white | Friulano, Tai, Tuchì (formerly Tocai Friulano) | 2.503 |
Cortese | white | Corteis, Cortese Bianca | 2.405 |
Pinot Blanc | white | Pinot Bianco | 2.337 |
Trebbiano Giallo | white | Greco di Velletri, T. dei Castelli, T. di Spagna | 2.275 |
Fiano | white | Apiano, Fiano di Avellino | 2.087 |
Greco Bianco | white | Greco Bianco di Cosenza, Pecorello Bianco | 2.050 |
Viognier | white | Viognier Blanc | 1.827 |
Grechetto di Orvieto | white | Grechetto Bianco, Grechetto Spoletino | 1.824 |
Nerello Mascalese | red | Mascalese Nera, Nerello Calabrese | 1.805 |
Ancellotta | red | A. di Massenzatico, Ancellotti, Lancellotta | 1.700 |
Until after the Second World War, the focus was on quantity. From the 1960s onwards, a profound change took place. The first area to experience the "Italian wine miracle" was Chianti-Classico in Tuscany, where a radical break with the past was made. The Antinori, Frescobaldi and Ricasoli wineries in this region and later Ca' del Bosco in Lombardy made a decisive contribution to this. In the last third of the 20th century, Italian wine underwent extremely positive changes. In 1963, a new wine law introduced the new quality designation "Denominazione di Origine Controllata" (DOC), which made a decisive contribution to improving quality. Vernaccia di San Gimignano was the first DOC wine to be recognised in 1966. The highest level "Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita" (DOCG) did not follow until 1980. Further changes were made in 1992 with the "Goria Law", named after the Minister of Agriculture Giovanni Goria (1943-1994), which introduced the IGT level.
In August 2009, the EU wine market regulation came into force for all member states with fundamental changes to wine designations and quality levels. The following new designations and quality levels have been introduced (see also details under Quality System):
In April 2010, the new national wine law came into force, replacing Decree No. 164 from 1992. Not content with merely adapting to the new EU law, a few substantial changes were made. The old and new designations may be used alternatively or together. This option exists in order to avoid a "flattening" of DOCG to DOC, as both would be standardised if DOP were used exclusively and DOCG would continue to be placed above DOC in terms of quality. To summarise, there are now stricter and more clearly formulated regulations.
Regional wines must undergo an analytical test (a sensory test is only carried out for DOC/DOCG wines). The wine must have typical, geographically determined characteristics. The requirements are below the DOC/DOCG or DOP level. The areas are usually much larger and in some cases encompass entire regions. From the 1980s onwards, the high quality of some IGT wines from Tuscany led to the term Super Tuscan. There are a total of 118 IGT/IGP wines, accounting for around 30% of production. An area can cover an entire region such as Tuscany.
These quality wines with controlled designation of origin must be processed and matured from specified grape varieties according to specified quantities and methods (see below). Some DOC zones only produce one wine, others several in different colours, grape varieties or types. The German equivalent for South Tyrolean wines is the designation QbA (Qualitätswein bestimmter Anbaugebiete). The 332 DOC wines account for around 25%.
These quality wines with controlled and guaranteed designation of origin represent the highest Italian "class of honour", which guarantees the authenticity of particularly highly valued wines. The 74 DOCG wines make up only around 5% of production. See below for a complete list.
Three terms are used to characterise the special quality of quality wines. The term Classico designates traditional areas of origin or core zones within a DOC/DOCG or DOP area that are of better quality or favoured by the soil and climate. For example, there is a DOCG Chianti area and a DOCG Chianti-Classico area. The terms Superiore and/or Riserva are permitted for wines with a higher alcohol content, lower yield limits and/or a longer ageing period.
The regulations vary greatly depending on the DOC/DOCG area.
For DOC/DOCG or DOP wines (quality wines), only the authorised grape varieties may be used. For IGT/IGP wines (country wines), varieties under experimental cultivation are also permitted. They must be named in the regulations, whereby this can also be done as a percentage with a 1% tolerance (previously only the composition in the vineyards was prescribed). Table grapes may also be vinified; the previous ban has been lifted.
In addition to grape varieties, these include bottle shape, minimum maturation periods in barrels and bottles, minimum values for alcohol content, acidity and total extract (dry extract), as well as colour and aroma. A sensory and analytical test is carried out before marketing.
It is also possible to indicate the subzone (sottozona), municipality (comune), district (frazione), microclimate zone (microzona), winery (fattoria, cascina or podere) and vineyard parcel (vigna) for wines of exceptional quality. This emphasises the importance of origin even more.
DOCG wines generally represent the absolute pinnacle of Italian wines. If wines have maintained their quality for at least five years, they are awarded DOC status and DOCG status after a further five years at the earliest. Theoretically, a single, outstanding branded wine can also achieve DOCG status if it "honours Italy", but this has not yet happened. The very first wine to be classified as DOCG was Vino Nobile di Montepulciano from Tuscany in 1980, followed in the same year by Barbaresco, Barolo and Brunello di Montalcino. It was a relatively long time before the first white wine, Albana di Rom agna from Emilia-Romagna, was crowned in 1987. The first sparkling or sparkling wines were Asti Spumante and Moscato d'Asti from Piedmont in 1994. The list of 76 DOCG:
DOCG area (alternative name) |
Colour |
Main grape variety |
Region |
Aglianico del Taburno | red | Aglianico | Campania |
Aglianico del Vulture Superiore | red | Aglianico | Basilicata |
Albana di Romagna | white | Albana | Emilia-Romagna |
Alta Langa | white, rosé | Chardonnay, PN | Piedmont |
Amarone della Valpolicella | red | Corvina, Corvinone | Veneto |
Asti (Asti Spumante) | white | Moscato Bianco | Piedmont |
Bagnoli Friularo (Friularo di Bagnoli) | red | Raboso Piave | Veneto |
Barbaresco | red | Nebbiolo | Piedmont |
Barbera d'Asti | red | Barbera | Piedmont |
Barbera del Monferrato Superiore | red | Barbera | Piedmont |
Bardolino Superiore | red | Corvina | Veneto |
Barolo | red | Nebbiolo | Piedmont |
Brachetto d'Acqui (Acqui) | red | Brachetto | Piedmont |
Brunello di Montalcino | red | Brunello | Tuscany |
Canelli | white | Moscato di Canelli | Tuscany |
Cannelino di Frascati | white | Malvasia varieties | Lazio |
Carmignano | red | Sangiovese | Tuscany |
Castel del Monte Bombino Nero | red | Bombino Nero | Puglia |
Castel del Monte Nero di Troia Riserva | red | Nero di Troia | Puglia |
Castel del Monte Rosso Riserva | red | Nero di Troia | Puglia |
Castelli di Jesi Verdicchio Riserva | white | Verdicchio | Marche |
Cerasuolo di Vittoria | red | Nero d'Avola | Sicily |
Cesanese del Piglio | red | Cesanese | Lazio |
Chianti | red | Sangiovese | Tuscany |
Chianti-Classico | red | Sangiovese | Tuscany |
Colli Bolognesi Pignoletto | white | Pignoletto | Emilia-Romagna |
Colli di Conegliano | white, red | various | Veneto |
Colli Euganei Fior d'Arancio | white | Moscato | Veneto |
Colli Orientali del Friuli Picolit | white | Picolit | Friuli |
Conegliano-Valdobbiadene Prosecco | white | Glera | Veneto |
Conero (Rosso Conero Riserva) | red | Montepulciano | Marche |
Dogliani | red | Dolcetto | Piedmont |
Dolcetto di Diano d'Alba | red | Dolcetto | Piedmont |
Dolcetto di Ovada Superiore (Ovada) | red | Dolcetto | Piedmont |
Elba Aleatico Passito (Aleatico P. dell'Elba) | red | Aleatico | Tuscany |
Erbaluce di Caluso | white | Erbaluce | Friuli, Veneto |
Fiano di Avellino | white | Fiano | Campania |
Franciacorta | white, rosé | Chardonnay, PN | Lombardy |
Frascati Superiore | white | Malvasia varieties | Lazio |
Gattinara | red | Nebbiolo | Piedmont |
Gavi (Cortese di Gavi, Gavi di Gavi) | white | Cortese | Piedmont |
Ghemme | red | Nebbiolo | Piedmont |
Greco di Tufo | white | Greco Bianco | Campania |
Lison | white | Tai/Friulano | Friuli, Veneto |
Montecucco Sangiovese | red | Sangiovese | Tuscany |
Montefalco Sagrantino | red | Sagrantino | Umbria |
Montello Rosso | red | Merlot, Cab. Franc | Veneto |
Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Colline Teramane | red | Montepulciano | Abbruzzo |
Morellino di Scansano | red | Morellino | Tuscany |
Moscato d'Asti | white | Moscato Bianco | Piedmont |
Moscato di Scanzo | red | Moscato di Scanzo | Lombardy |
Nice | red | Barbera | Piemonte |
Offida | white, red | various | brands |
Oltrepò Pavese Metodo Classico | white, rosé | Pinot Noir | Lombardy |
Piave Malanotte (Malanotte del Piave) | red | Raboso Piave | Veneto |
Primitivo di Manduria Dolce Naturale | red | Primitivo | Puglia |
Ramandolo | white | Verduzzo | Friuli |
Recioto della Valpolicella | red | Corvina, Rondinella | Veneto |
Recioto di Gambellara | white | Garganega | Veneto |
Recioto di Soave | white | Garganega | Veneto |
Roero | white, red | Arneis, Nebbio | Piedmont |
Rosazzo | white | Friulano | Friuli |
Ruchè di Castagnole Monferrato | red | Ruchè | Piedmont |
Sforzato di Valtellina (Sfursat) | red | Chiavennasca | Lombardy |
Soave Superiore | white | Garganega | Veneto |
Suvereto | red | various | Tuscany |
Taurasi | red | Aglianico | Campania |
Terre Alfieri | white, red | Arneis, Nebbiolo | Piedmont |
Terre Tollesi (Tullum) | white, red | Montepulciano and others | Abruzzo |
Torgiano Rosso Riserva | red | Sangiovese | Umbria |
Val di Cornia Rosso (Rosso della Val di Cornia) | red | Sangiovese, CS | Tuscany |
Valtellina Superiore | red | Nebbiolo | Lombardy |
Verdicchio di Matelica Riserva | white | Verdicchio | Marche |
Vermentino di Gallura | white | Vermentino | Sardinia |
Vernaccia di San Gimignano | white | Vernaccia | Tuscany |
Vernaccia di Serrapetrona | Red Vernaccia | Vernaccia Nera | Marche |
Vino Nobile di Montepulciano | red | Sangiovese | Tuscany |
Influential Italian wine writers and wine critics include Burton Anderson, Daniele Cernilli, Giancarlo Gariglio, Fabio Giavedoni, Luigi Veronelli and Franco Ziliani. They work or publish in many wine magazines and wine guides such as Gambero Rosso, Slow Wine and Veronelli-Guide. The most important international wine fair is Vinitaly.
Pompeii: By MapMaster - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link
Amphorae Apulia: By AlMare - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link
Map: By TUBS - Own work, edited elements of Bergamo, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link
For my many years of work as an editor with a wine and culinary focus, I always like to inform myself about special questions at Wine lexicon. Spontaneous reading and following links often leads to exciting discoveries in the wide world of wine.
Dr. Christa Hanten
Fachjournalistin, Lektorin und Verkosterin, Wien