Wines from Italy
The OIV report for 2017 places Italy as the country with the greatest diversity of grape varieties. This should give us an idea about the number of wine styles that may exist in the country.
According to the same report, Italy is the largest producer of wine in the world with 50.9 million hectoliters despite being ranked 4th in surface vineyards with 690 thousand hectares of vineyards, so in addition to variety, there is also quantity.
The most planted grape in Italy is the Sangiovese and only represents 8% of the total Italian surface, it is also well spread in the regions of Tuscany, Umbria, and Puglia. It is followed by Montepulciano grape, very popular in the central and southern areas of Italy, the most planted white grape is the Glera, responsible for the famous Prosecco, followed by Pinot Grigio, which gained popularity in the American market with fresh wine, light and easy to drink.
Italian wine legislation proposes 4 levels of quality: 1. DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita) only 74 denominations hold this category. 2. DOC (Denominazione di Origine Controllata) 330 have this distinction. 3. IGT (Indicazione Geografica Tipica) which is a refuge for many producers trying to make wine differently and, on occasions, less controlled. This does not mean that it is less strict than the DOC or DOCG, the most illustrative example are the Super Tuscans wines. 4. Vino da Tavola or Wines from Italy, simple table wines without any indication of origin other than that of the country.
Another aspect in favor of Italian wines is the diversity of climates and soils. The wines are so different in the 20 regions of Italy, from the north by the proximity to the Alps to the south with a more Mediterranean climate as well as the east and west separated only from the Apennine mountains. Thus, each region has its own characteristics, its native grape varieties and a distinctive personality in each style of wine they produce. It would be pretentious to say that someone knows all Italian wines since it would take more than a life to exploit them in full.
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