Italian wine

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OET-2002 Introduction Italy with France are the two giant wine producers from the old world, both in terms of their quantity and quality. Wine and viniculture is an integral part of Italian way of life. Italy produces in excess of 60 million hector litres annually and has close to 1.4 million hectares under vine. An Italian ‘s relationship to wine is not necessarily a hedonistic one as contrary to his French or German counter part. Which in turn leads to the paradox: a country with immense tradition of wine, a country where only wine is only in the nations life and customs is also a country where wine is, for the most part is taken for granted. ITALIAN WINES 1

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Transcript of Italian wine

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Introduction Italy with France are the two giant wine producers from the old world, both in terms of their quantity and quality. Wine and viniculture is an integral part of Italian way of life. Italy produces in excess of 60 million hector litres annually and has close to 1.4 million hectares under vine. An Italian ‘s relationship to wine is not necessarily a hedonistic one as contrary to his French or German counter part. Which in turn leads to the paradox: a country with immense tradition of wine, a country where only wine is only in the nations life and customs is also a country where wine is, for the most part is taken for granted.

History:

The history of wines in Italy dates back to 2000 B.C when the region now known as Apulia was engaged in growing grapes and in manufacture and trade of wines. Farmers and slaves in ancient Campania grew

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‘Greco’, ‘Moscato’ and ‘Malvasia’- all vinifera grapes that continued to be planted in modern Campania. Southern Italy was then called “Oenotria”- “the land of wine”, under the Greeks influence on embracing the wine culture. While the Greeks began an active wine trade in the south, the Etruscans focused their energies in central Italy. Both of these people developed their own methods of viticulture, which were later synthesized and improved upon by the Romans. The area around the ancient city Pompeii, became the center for wine trade and it was here that new production methods were originated, including primitive but successful attempt at aging the wine, making lighter versions and dry versions. The roman wine trade spread to every part of the empire and wine traders from ancient Piedmont region introduced wooden barrels for transport in the 1st century. With the fall of the Roman Empire Italy’s wine culture couldn’t surface again except for the ones which were needed for the sacred rites of the catholic church- until the end of the middle ages. With the coming of the renaissance, wine enjoyed resurgence as a subject of arts especially painting and poetry. However, the former ‘Oenotria’, was still far from the days when its beloved ‘Bacchus’ was the only God of food and drink. Beginning in the late 17th and early 18th century, Tuscany became the center of Italy’s wine culture where as the rest of the independent provinces, because of effects of poverty and war had a little or no part in developing a modern wine trade. Starting in mid19th century however the provinces of Italy began to enter the modern trade. The Italian’s then began to make their red wines drier in Tuscany’s Chianti region and in Piedmont Borolo district, where its first commercial dry wine was made in 1850’s. Sparkling wines were made around Asti in Piedmont and the classic fortified wine Marsala was introduced to Italy by J. Wood house, who was an English men with interest in Porto trade. As Italy became a more unified and a prosperous country it came back on the quality map, as a true rebirth of its wines had began.Just before the turn of 20th century, the Italian wine industry was dealt a blow from both phylloxera and the powdery mildew iodium. The Italians found the solution in planting American rootstalk, which happened to be a painstaking and an expensive process. Slowly and gradually in due course of time, Italy began to develop a reputation, as the world’s largest supplier of inexpensive and indifferent wine, a reputation that lasted well into 1970’s.

WINE LAWS OF ITALY

In 1963 the Government passed a law controlling the names of origins of the wines to align Italy with the new EC regulations. First regulation in 1963 is popularly known as the '930'.The 930 covered: appellations ( "denominazione contrallata" )/production zones/vine varieties/levels of alcohol, acidity, extract/ceilings on yields, viticulture, vinification.

DOCGIn Italy, the term DOCG stands for Denominazione di Origine controllata e Garantita, and is used to identify the best growing areas of Italy. These wines are subject to all of the regulations applied to the DOC wines and additionally are subjected to a strict chemical analysis and must be approved by a panel of experts.

DOCIn Italy, the term DOC stands for Denominazione di Origine Contrallata. It is the equivalent of the French AOC. Only wines which have met certain requirements of place of origin, variety and vinification process are entitled to use this on their labels.

IGTIGT stands for Indicazione Geographica Tipica which is the third category of denomiate wines in Italy. The IGT category was created in January,1992, as part of a major reform of the laws governing Italian wine. The IGT denomianation is given to wines of "large areas where natural conditions favor uniformity of style."

Vino da Tavola-table wine for local consumption.

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REGIONS

NORTH WEST 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 calcerous marl, inter layered with sand and clay

• GRAPES Nebbiolo, Trebbiano, moscato

Valle d’Aosta or Aosta ValleyIn the very northwest of Italy is the small district of the Aosta valley. The regions best known wines are Donnaz- Full-bodied red made from Nebbiolo grapes andEnfer d’Arvier-made from Petit rouge grapes.

PiedmontImmediately to the south of the Aosta valley is the piedmont region, whose capital is Turin. Italy’s best and most varied wines are produced in this region. The two best known are the robust reds: Barolo -a DOCG wine and one of the great red wines of Italy made from Nebbiolo Grapes and Barbaresco -also a DOCG wine and made from Nebbiolo grapes.( If a barolo is labeled riserva, it must be atleast four years old, and if labeled riserva speciale, five years old.) Gattinara.-A third well-known wine made from the Nebbiolo grapes. The barbera grapes are much more common in Piedmont than are the Nebbiolo grapes. Many wines made from Barbera grapers are labeled with both the grape and the village, such as Barbera d’Alba and Barbera d’Asti.Asti Spumante -From the Moscato (Muscat) grapes comes the famous delicate and somewhat sweet sparkling white wine Asti Spumante.Other red grape varities are Grignolino, Dolcetto, and Friesa. The labels of wines made from these grapes also usually give the place name, such as Grignolino d’Asti, Dolcetto D’Alba and Freisa di Chieri.

LiguriaLiguria is a narrow coastal strip along the Italian Riviera where Genoa is located. Cinqueterre-a dry white wine Dolceacqua- a dry red wine sometimes known as Rossese di Dolceacqua.

LombardyLombardy is a major wine-growing district in the center of the very north of Italy; its capital is Milan.Red wines- Valtellina, a hardy red wine, made from Nebbiolo grapesWhite wine- Franciacorta Pinot, made from Pinot and Riesling.

NORTHEAST ITALY:

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

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

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• 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

Trentino-Alto Adige or the Adige ValleyIn the northeast Italy, immediately south of the Tyrol region of Austria, is the district known as the Adige Valley. Grapes grown are Riesling, Gewurztramniner,sylvaner, muscat, Pinot Grigio.

VenetoSituated between Lake Gardo and the Po and Piave rivers in northeastern Italy is the region of Veneto, with Venice its main city, located on the Adriatic coast. The veneto region is best known for its two great red wines, Valpolicella and Bardolino which are fresh and lightbodiedSoave produced in Italy is perhaps Italy’s most famous white wine.

CENTRAL EAST 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

Emilia RomagnaIn North Central Italy is the large district of Emilia Romagna, with Bologna its major city. Albana di Romagno – a DOCG white wine.Lambrusco – a semi sparkling, somewhat sweet red.Sangiovese – a red wine made from Sangiovese grapes.

MarchesMarches is a Adriatic coastal region with Ancona its main city. The best known wine is : Verdicchio del Castelli di jesi, which is a white wine made from Verdicchio grapes.

Abruzzo and Molise East of Latium are the two regions of Abruzzo and Molise, on the Adriatic coast. Some pleasant wines produced here are the Montepulciano d’Abruzzo (red), Trebbiano d’Abruzzo (white), Biferno (white & red) and Pentro (red & white).

CENTRAL WEST ITALY

• REGIONS Umbria, Tuscany, Molise, latium,

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

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• 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

UmbriaBetween Florence and Rome is the region of Umbria, and produced is its white wine – Orvieto. If Orvieto is labeled Secco, it will be dry, and if labeled Abboccato , it will semisweet. Near Assisi is produced both red and white Torgiano wine and other wines made are Sagrantino and Montefalco.

TuscanyFurther south is Tuscany in central Italy, where Florence and Siena are located. Tuscany is best known for its Chianti Classico (DOCG), a wine which is best drunk young, as it does not age well and made primarily from Sangiovese grapes

Latium Latium is the region where Rome is located. Frascati is produced here, in both a secco (dry) and an abboccato (semisweet). Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone , a white wine similar to Frascati is made here. Its unusual name has a story: The steward of 12th century German Bishop was travelling to Rome ahead of his master to find inns where good wines could be found. On the doors of these inns, he was to chalk Est (meaning “this is it), but at Motefiascone he was so impressed with the wine that he chalked Est! Est!! Est!!!Some grape varieties used here are Trebbiano (white) and Merlot (red), which is called Merlot di Aprilia.

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

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CampaniaIn southwest Italy is Campania, with Naples its chief city. Among the wines for which the district is fa,ous are the reds and whites of Ischia (an island off the coast) and Lacryma Christi (tears of Christ), grown on the slopes of the volcano Vesuvius and the bottle labels distinguished by the words del vesuvio. Lacryma Christi is made as a red, white and a rose, with the white (both still & sparkling) the best known.

ApuliaApulia is a long, narrow district that runs along the Adriatic right down to the heel of Italy. A well-known wine from this district is Castel del Monte (white, red & rose). The rose is considered to be one of the best roses in the country.

SicilyIt is a huge island off the toe of Italy, most famous for its dessert wine Marsala, which is often used as a cooking ingredient. Sicily is also famous for Mt.Etna, after which Etna wine (red & white) is named. Some other wines are Faro, Corvo, and Alcamo.

SardiniaSardinia is an island off the West Coast of Italy across the Tyrrhenian Sea. Its unusual wine is Vernaccia di Oristano (a dry and bitter aperitif wine)

CalabriaCalabria is the toe of Italy, with its best known wine – Ciro (red, white and rose), made from Gaglioppo grapes. Other red wines are Donnici, Pollino and Savuto.

BasilicataBetween the heel and the toe of Italy is Basilicata, with its extinct volcano Vulture on whose slopes grows the unusual Aglianico grape that produces the dry red wine Aglianico del Vulture. The white wine of this region is Asprino.

Reading the wine label Wine name-place and grape Quality designation- DOCG/DOC/IGT If the wine is from vintage year-annata, vendemmia is specified on the bottle Estate bottled-"Imbottigliato Al'origine Da' / "Del Prodottore Al'Origine' / "Messo In Bottiglia

Nel'Origine" Producer or bottler- Casa Vinicola Alcoholic Strength-in percentage Produce of italy Volume- in 'ml' or 'cl'.

Wine glossary:Abboccato, amabile-semisweetAnnata- vintage yearAsciutto-dryBianco-whiteClassico-from a special inner district of a DOC zone.Consorzio- consortium or cooperativeDolce-sweetFattoria-estate

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Frizzante- Lightly sparklingImbottiagliato-bottledRosato-roseRosso-redSecco-drySpumante-sparklingSuperiore-superior in alcohol content.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

• Sotheby’s World Wine EncyclopediaSotheby’s World Wine Encyclopedia -Tom Stevenson.

• The Oxford Companion to WineThe Oxford Companion to Wine - Jansis Robinson.

• The World of WineThe World of Wine - Robert Mondavi.

• Wines of the WorldWines of the World - Andre Simon.

• Beverage ManagementBeverage Management - Michael M. Coltman.

• Exploring WineExploring Wine - Steven Kolpan, Brian H.Smith .

• Encyclopedia of WineEncyclopedia of Wine - Oz Clarke.

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