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ITALIAN DRINKS
T
he label of an Italian wine tells you everything you need
to know about its pedigree. You’ll find the name of its
winery (where the grapes were processed) or sometimes
its vineyard (where the grapes were grown). If you are
looking at the label of an estate wine, that term means a single
organization owns the winery and all the vineyards contributing
to the wine, and that the whole process, from seed to bottle, takes
place on-site in a controlled geographic area. You’ll also see on the
label the wine’s region, grape, vintage and level of quality control.
SoWhich Is the Good Stuff?
OldWorld producers takewine very seriously,and strict laws are in place
to keep just anyone from calling their sparkling wine “Champagne” or
marketing swill as a
vino da meditazione
(a “wine to meditate over”).
There are four levels of quality assurance in an Italian wine.They are:
• Vino da Tavola,
or “table wine,” is the simplest designation.
This wine comes from any grape or region, and the journey
from grape to bottle has few restrictions or guidelines. There is
nothing wrong with table wine! This is your go-to bottle, and a
fine way to keep wine in your life even when you can’t afford the
stuff in the locked case.
• IndicazioneGeograficaTipica,
or IGT,denotes awine that comes
from a very specific area, though it doesn’t necessarily follow the
set and inflexible legal guidelines for grape variety and production
method. If you see something like Toscana IGT on the label, for
example, you’ve found a Tuscan wine.This category exists because
some growers began producing top-notch bottles using creative
new methods, and describing these standouts as mere table wines
would have been an injustice. IGT was the compromise worked
out between growers and the Italian government.
• Denominazione di Origine Controllata
(DOC) or
Denominazione di Origine Protetta
(DOP) means that a wine
is made from specific types of grapes from specific, well-defined
regions. As you might have noticed, each of these designations
increases the precision of the wine. The goal is to reach the
platonic ideal of what a wine from its region should be.
• Denominazione di Origine Controllata
e Garantita
(DOCG)
is the apex of the Italian wine pyramid. Region, grape, production
methods—even bottle size—are regulated to preserve traditional
winemaking practices. Wines labeled DOCG are analyzed and
tasted by government-licensed personnel before being bottled,
and the tops of said bottles are sealed with official, numbered tape.
(If you’ve ever seen an official-looking, computer-printed label
affixed across or near the cork of an Italian wine, you were likely
looking at a DOCG).There are only 74 such wines in all of Italy.
Where ItalianWines Are Born
Italy produces more wine by volume than any other country in the
world.The country’s 20 wine regions grow over 370 unique varieties
of grapes. Regions matter, because when you are drinking wine, you
are drinking the Earth itself. Every year, weather, temperature and
soil chemistry vary and produce what are sometimes dramatically
different wines from precisely the same place. Because these
wine regions have been cultivating their fields for centuries, and
sometimes millennia, they each bring distinct characteristics to the
barrel, and later, the bottle. Here are the wine regions of Italy, and
what manners of magic you can expect to find there.
Piedmont
Nestled in the Po Valley and at the foot of the snow-
capped Alps is the Northern Italian region of Piedmont. It is
known for the city of Turin and for two of the great red wines
of Italy: Barbaresco and Barolo. Both DOCG wines have a
characteristic gentle ruby color,a reflection of the area’sNebbiolo
grapes that are used in the winemaking. Barbaresco wines
are usually lighter tasting and less tannic than Barolo.
Of the
Barbarescos, our Sommelier suggests Fontanafredda and Chiarlo; of
the Barolos, go for Prunotto and Gaja.
Piedmont has more DOCG designated wines than any other
region in Italy, and is known also for the sparkling sweet wines
Asti Spumante and Moscato D’Asti, both of which are made
from sweet Moscato grapes.
For a memorable Asti Spumante,
our Sommelier suggests Gancia and Cinzano; for a good Moscato
D’Asti, try Stella Rosa, Chiarlo, Risata, Luccio, Ruffino or Cavit.
(Or try all six!)
Emilia-Romagna
It’s hard to believe one region could produce so much good food
and drink, but Emilia-Romagna has found a way. It is where
Parmigiano-Reggiano, Prosciutto di Parma and Modena Balsamic
Vinegar are produced.The region’s best-known wine is Lambrusco,
a semi-sparkling (“
frizzante
”) red. Lambrusco accounts for five
percent of the total wine produced in Italy.
Our Sommelier suggests
Riunite, Cella and Bellagio Lambrusco.
Liguria
The coastline of Liguria is perhaps better known as the Italian
Riviera, famous for its beaches and colorful villages. It is also home
to over 100 varieties of grapes and eight DOC wines. In 1972,
Rossese di Dolceacqua was the first wine to be classified as such,
and it is considered the region’s best grape.
Northern Regions