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First and most important, Italian and
French wines are not made from the same grapes.
France mainly uses varieties such as Cabernet
Sauvignon, Merlot, Chardonnay, Genache, Syrah and
Pinot Noir, while Italians use Sangiovese, Pinot
Grigio, Nebbiolo and Barbera (these are just some of
the Italian grape varietals since Italy has over 350
grape varietals). You can find Italian wines made
from mixing Italian and French grapes. For instance,
some wines from the Super Tuscans group are made of
Sangiovese grape blended with Cabernet Sauvignon or
Merlot, resulting in a very tasty and rather
expensive imported Italian wine.
Major Italian Red Wines
-
Sangiovese
- Montepulciano
(the grape)
- Barbera
- Nero d’Avola
- Primitivo (aka
Zinfandel)
- Valpolicella
Blend
- Dolcetto
- Nebbiolo
Sangiovese
Drink By: Typically best after 4-7
years, although fine examples last longer.
173,000 Acres – All of Italy – Italy’s
champion red variety, Sangiovese, goes by many
names. You’ve probably heard of a few of them:
-
Chianti
- Brunello di
Montalcino
- Vino Nobile de
Montepulciano (nothing
to do with Montepulciano, the grape)
- Montefalco Rosso
- Morellino di
Scansano
This grape grows all over Italy and because of this,
you’ll notice that Sangiovese wines vary widely from
one region to the next. In Tuscany, you can find
very earthy Sangiovese wines with black cherry notes
and bold tannins, and in Southern Italy, around
Campania, you can find lighter Sangiovese wines
tasting of strawberries and roses with medium
tannins.
Montepulciano
Drink By: Typically best after 4-7
years of vintage, although fine examples last
longer.
75,000 Acres – Central Italy – Even
though Montepulciano is Italy’s second most planted
grape, many have never heard of it. Montepulciano
grows in Central Italy and can be found under a few
common names as well:
-
Montepulciano
d’Abruzzo
- Rosso Conero
- Rosso Piceno
Montepulciano is deeply colored, similar to Syrah,
and with very bold tannins, although some producers
will blend it with other grapes to round out the
flavor. Supposedly, there are less than 100 acres of
this grape growing outside of Italy.
Barbera
Drink By: Typically best within the
first 3 years.
70,000 Acres – Piedmont – Barbera is
the most produced Italian red wine of Piedmont. Over
60% of the world’s Barbera vineyards exist in the
region. Barbera almost always has a unique note of
licorice in the taste, which is what makes it so
unique. While American Barbera can be quite
fruit-forward, Italian Barbera is often herbaceous
with juicy acidity and tart black cherry flavors.
Nero d’Avola
Drink By: Typically in 5-7 years,
although fine examples last longer.
47,000 Acres – Sicily – A bold but
fruit-forward variety hailing almost exclusively
from Sicily. Nero
d’Avola can, at times, be surprisingly similar
in style to Shiraz or Cabernet Sauvignon.
Primitivo & Negroamaro
Drink By: Typically best within the
first 3 years.
60,000 Acres – Puglia – Primitivo is
Italy’s name for Zinfandel (which is actually a
Croatian grape called Tribidrag!) and Negroamaro
grows alongside it in Southern Italy. These sweet
tasting fruity and lighter bodied Italian wines
often exhibit strawberry, raspberry, blackberry, and
leather notes. Primitivo provides the fruity punch
and Negroamaro has more dark fruit flavors and
structure. It’s common to find them blended
together.
Valpolicella Blend
Drink By: Varies by style of
Valpolicella.
22,000 Acres – Veneto – Varies on
Style. A blend of Corvina, Molinara, and Rondinella.
This signature blend of grapes makes everything from
Veneto’s tart and simple Valpolicella
Classico to the highly prized Amarone wines –a
wine made by partially dehydrating Valpolicella
grapes to increase the intensity of the resulting
wine. Check out this article on Valpolicella wines
with a hierarchy of the styles.
Dolcetto
Drink By: Typically within the first 3
years.
18,000 Acres – Piedmont – A deeply
colored red wine with high tannins but lower
acidity. Dolcetto is one of the easiest wines to
drink immediately instead of after several years of
cellaring. This wine is made mostly in Piedmont,
although it grows in Lombardy too. It can commonly
be found by these names:
-
Dogliani
- Dolcetto d’Alba
- Dolcetto d’Ovada
- Dolcetto di Diano
d’Alba
Nebbiolo
Drink By: Typically best after 7-10
years.
12,000 Acres – Piedmont – Piedmont’s most well
respected red wine is actually quite tiny in terms
of how much exists in the world. Just so you have a
relative comparison, there are nearly 50 times more
Cabernet Sauvignon grapes planted in the world than
Nebbiolo. Nebbiolo has many regional names and
styles:
-
Barbaresco
- Barolo
- Valtellina
- Roero
- Ghemme
- Gattinara
- Sforzato (a
rare Nebbiolo made with the same method as
Amarone)
Nebbiolo from the hotter growing areas can be very
bold, tannic, and long-lived, as is the case with
Barolo. In the north, as with Ghemme and Gattinara,
Nebbiolo can be quite delicate and tart in taste,
smelling of roses and bing cherries.
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