Who can tell me something about Italian wine?

The Italian Peninsula, located in the Mediterranean region, has an overall dry and hot climate and natural conditions that are very suitable for grape growth. It is the world's largest wine producer, with its output accounting for nearly one-fifth of the world's. Due to the large changes in terrain, different climates in various places, and the wide variety of grape varieties, Italy has many wines with different flavors and unique characters.

The Italian wine grading system was established in 1963, with the shadow of the French system. It is divided into four levels:

DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllatae Garantita), means High-quality wine from legal production areas is the highest level;

DOC (Denominazione di Origine Contro llata), which means wine from legal production areas, is approximately equivalent to the AOC level in France;

IGT( Indicazione Geografiche Tipici) is a fine table wine, equivalent to France's VDP grade;

VdT (Vino da Tavola) is the most common grade of wine, equivalent to France's VDT grade.

Italian wine

Italy is a boot-shaped country. From the mountains in the north to Sicily in the south, the maximum difference is 10 degrees in latitude. The mountains and sea give each province its own unique climate. If you go to Italy in April, you will be able to appreciate the huge difference in weather between the north and the south, which is beyond imagination. Due to the different feng shui in each province, the grapes grown are completely different, and the styles of the wines are also very different. Influenced by Roman culture, Italy is one of the earliest wine-making countries in the world. Ironically, in today's business society, history and culture have a negative impact on economic development.

First of all, the country’s grape varieties are very old, complex and numerous (it is said that there are more than a thousand varieties), making it difficult for consumers who are accustomed to the fast food culture to remember and grasp the characteristics. Ancient countries usually have experienced a long agricultural society and have many descendants of farmers. This will result in each household having very little cultivated land, resulting in slow technological advancement and uneven quality.

Although Italy is the largest wine-producing country in the world, its popularity and sales volume in the international market are far inferior to those of France. The long names of wineries and wines are its fatal flaw. It is difficult for people who speak Italian to understand Italian wine labels. Moreover, the general design of the name is that the font size of the winery name will be larger. However, the wine labels of this country are not like this in order to match the overall art design, making it difficult for the recognition agency to understand. More difficult than ever. The dignity of a nation in writing and culture cannot be compromised at all, but technology can be changed.

In the past two decades, the Italian wine industry has undergone many changes. A large number of new winemakers entered the industry. They were brave enough to introduce foreign grape varieties, significantly reduce production to improve quality and replace large old wooden vats with small French oak barrels. A series of reform measures have achieved tangible results in recent years, coupled with the annual large-scale "Vinitaly" exhibition and the government's strict requirements for wineries to comply with DOC licensing regulations. Italian wine already has the conditions to compete with French wine. What they need to strengthen now is just promotion and publicity.

The country can be divided into 20 regions, with 246 DOC (Denominizaione de Origine Controllata) and 13 DOCG (Denominizaione de Origine Controllatae Garantita). Although there may be overlap between DOC and DOCG, consumer products have enough information to select wine based on personal preference. Of course, franchise status does not guarantee the quality of the product, it only indicates the origin of the wine and the legal conditions of the region. Products that do not meet the requirements are classified as table wine (vina da tavola). Among table wines, there are also some products that are better and more expensive than DOC. "Super Tuscan" is an excellent example.

These table wines are usually IGT (Indicazione Geografica Tipica), which means the source is indicated on the wine label. Basic principles of DOC and DOCG: Only designated vineyard sites must be used, and there must be an upper limit on production in the designated area and meet the minimum alcohol concentration and wine acidity.