It's Not Italy Without Wine

About the only meal at which Italians don't drink wine is breakfast or prima colazione. Wine is nearly synonymous with Italy. Very young children are often given wine diluted with water as soon as they are weaned from the breast or the bottle. Italians have as much of a passion for wine as they do for life. From the home-made variety to some of the best red wines in the world, you can't vacation in Italy without an introduction to its wines.  

Italy has some of the oldest vineyards in the world. Evidence of wine consumption in Italy dates back almost 4000 years.  About 20% of all wines are produced in Italy, and they are the most widely exported wines in the world. The ideal conditions for growing the wine grape has made this possible. In addition, the abundance of diverse terrains from coasts to mountains produces a unique variety that is difficult to find in any other country. With more than 2400 types of wine, Italy produces the largest and most diverse types of wines in the world. 

Italy has 20 distinct wine regions. In the northeast, Veneto, Trentino-Alto Adige and Friuli-Venezia Giulia are known for their wine technology. Here you will find two of the country’s leading wine schools – San Michele all’ Adige in Trentino and Conegliano in Veneto  which offers a comprehensive tour of its winery and knowledgeable insight into the winemaking process. Although this region produces some outstanding red wines, it is primarily known for its white wines – pinot grigio, soave, valpolicella and prosecco, an Italian bubbly.

There are five wine regions in the north and northwest. Lombardia, Emilia-Romagna, Piemonte, Liguria and Valle d’Aosta produce some of the world’s most outstanding red wines, and in particular the barolo and barbaresco, renowned reds that can fetch hundreds of dollars a bottle.

Central Italy produces some of the most popular wines including the ubiquitous chianti, referred to many years ago as “dago red.” Today the wines of Tuscany, Lazio, Umbria, Abruzzo and Molise offer some of the best reds in Italy including chianti classico, montepulciano and brunello as well as some decent whites that include verdicchio and orvieto classico.  

The regions of southern Italy – Campania, Basilicata, Apulia, Calabria, Sicily and Sardegna – are late to arrive on the wine scene. Although this region has been producing wine for over 4000 years, the quality wasn’t up to par with their northern neighbors.  All that is changing and Naples, the major city in Calabria, has become the center of southern Italy’s wine renaissance. Reds, whites and roses arre produced throughout the region with equal quality. In fact, the area produces nearly 40% of all the wine made in Italy. 

For the most part, wine in Italy is both good and well priced meaning that you don’t have to pay an arm and a leg for a tasty bottle of wine. One of the best things about Italian wine is that you don’t have to go to Italy to enjoy it since the United States is one of the largest importers of nearly every variety. You can begin your education on Italian wine right in your own back yard. If, however, you are a wine lover and would like to get right to the source, you might find a wine tour of Italy the perfect vacation treat.