Italian Wine

Barolo, Valpolicella and Chianti tell you where to start with our Italian wine, in Piedmont, the Veneto and Tuscany.

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Italian wine questions

What are the big three Italian wines?

Barolo from Piedmont, Brunello di Montalcino from Tuscany and Amarone della Valpolicella from the Veneto are often named as Italy's most prestigious reds. Barolo is made from nebbiolo, Brunello from sangiovese, and Amarone from dried corvina grapes. Some lists include Barbaresco or Chianti Classico instead.

What is Italy's most popular wine?

By volume, Prosecco is Italy's best-selling wine, with hundreds of millions of bottles produced each year in the Veneto and Friuli. Pinot grigio is also a huge export. Among reds, Chianti is the best known worldwide, and Montepulciano d'Abruzzo and Lambrusco are popular everyday wines.

How many grape varieties does Italy have?

Italy has more native grape varieties than any other country, with over 500 officially registered and possibly many more in use. Well-known ones include sangiovese, nebbiolo, barbera, montepulciano, aglianico, nero d'Avola, vermentino, garganega and glera. That diversity is why Italian wine is so varied from region to region.

What does IGT mean?

IGT stands for Indicazione Geografica Tipica, a category created in 1992 with looser rules than DOC and DOCG. It gives winemakers freedom to use non-traditional grapes or methods while still naming the region. Many famous Super Tuscans, like Tignanello and Sassicaia before it got its own DOC, were labeled IGT Toscana.