Italy

Regions

Although vines had been cultivated from the wild Vitis vinifera grape for millennia, it wasn’t until the Greek colonization that wine-making flourished. Viticulture was introduced into Sicily and southern Italy by the Mycenaean Greeks, and was well established when the extensive Greek colonization transpired around 800 BC.

It was during the Roman defeat of the Carthaginians (acknowledged masters of wine-making) in the 2nd century BC that Italian wine production began to further flourish. Large-scale, slave-run plantations sprang up in many coastal areas and spread to such an extent that, in AD 92, emperor Domitian was forced to destroy a great number of vineyards in order to free up fertile land for food production.

During this time, viticulture outside of Italy was prohibited under Roman law. Exports to the provinces were reciprocated in exchange for more slaves, especially from Gaul where trade was intense, according to Pliny, due to the inhabitants being besotted with Italian wine, drinking it unmixed and without restraint. It was customary to mix wine with a good proportion of water which may otherwise have been unpalatable, making wine drinking a fundamental part of early Italian life.

As the laws on provincial viticulture were relaxed, vast vineyards began to flourish in the rest of Europe, especially Gaul (present day France) and Hispania. This coincided with the cultivation of new vines, like Biturica (ancestor of Cabernet). These vineyards became hugely successful, to the point that Italy ultimately became an import centre for provincial wines.

Depending on the vintage, modern Italy is the world’s largest or second largest wine producer. In 2005, production was about 20% of the global total, second only to France, which produced 26%. In the same year, Italy’s share in dollar value of table wine imports into the U.S. was 32%, Australia’s was 24%, and France’s was 20%. Along with Australia, Italy’s market share has rapidly increased in recent years.

Abruzzo

Abruzzo (Abruzzi) is an Italian wine region located in the mountainous central Italian region of Abruzzo along the Adriatic Sea. It is bordered by the…

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Campania

Campania, the “shin” of Italy’s boot, is the wine growing area around Naples where, since Roman times, vines have thrived in the volcanic soils. This…

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Lazio

Lazio is a ‘Central’ wine region bordering Tuscany, Umbria and Marche to the north, Abruzzo to the east and Campania to the south. The region is mainly flat and…

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Piedmonte

The North West region of Piedmonte is Italy’s pre-eminent area, making top wines such as Barolo and Gavi and showcasing grape varietals such as Cortese,…

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Puglia

Puglia is a long, thin wine region in the far South-East; the ‘heel’ of Italy‘s boot. The region is responsible for almost half of Italy’s…

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Sicily

Much of Sicily lies at a more southerly latitude than Tunisia, and it is the hottest, driest region of Italy. Sicily is Italy’s up and…

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Tuscany

Tuscany is a major region around Florence and Sienna. It is best known for Chianti, Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano which are primarily…

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Veneto

Veneto in the North East is the home of some of Italy’s most famous names – Soave, Valpolicella, Bardolino – but also the region growing…

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Products from this country

  • Tenuta Cappellina Rosato

    Italy

    A fresh drinkable rosé, more similar to a French one than a traditional Tuscan…

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  • Casa de Capo Tenuta Cappellina

    Italy

    Casa del Capo is an everyday, 100% Sangiovese, “Super Tuscan” Tenuta Cappellina's experience in…

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  • Chianti Classico Tenuta Cappellina

    Italy

    Chianti Classico is a wine very expressive of its region and roots, the result…

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  • Gatto Brio Pet-Nat

    Italy

    A lightly sparkling Verdicchio sourced from 30ha of exposed vines at around 300m altitude.…

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  • Gatto Arancio – Orange Wine

    Italy

    A 100% Verdicchio 'Orange wine' from Marche, central Italy. Female winemaker Mery Ferrara, alongside…

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  • Neroperso Appassimento

    Italy

    Neroperso pays homage to a century old winemaking method of “appassimento” that was widely…

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  • Bellino Prosecco DOC Extra Dry – 20cl

    Italy

    Bellino Prosecco Extra Dry DOC is a superb value, extremely versatile, sparkling wine for…

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  • Bellino Prosecco DOC Extra Dry

    Italy

    Bellino Prosecco Extra Dry DOC is a superb value, extremely versatile, sparkling wine for…

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  • Lignum Vitis

    Italy

    A surprising blend of the distinctive Frappato, a traditional grape from Sicily, and Shiraz…

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  • Amodo Pecorino

    Italy

    A white wine from the cental Abruzzo region IGT of Terre di Chieti. The…

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  • Fiano Dal Vulcano

    Italy

    Fiano is a native grape grown in Campania, a region with areas of tuff…

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  • Ca del Lago Inzolia

    Italy

    Inzolia is a varietal ideally suited to Sicily’s climate of bright sunshine and moderate…

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  • Seramaris Lucido Pinot Grigio

    Italy

    A riper version of its northern Italian rival. Made with a blend of Pinot…

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  • Seramaris Pinot Grigio Rosato

    Italy

    Made from 100% Pinot Grigio grapes - pale pink with intense fruity notes and…

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  • Folonari Garganega Pinot Grigio

    Italy

    From the more exclusive DO of Garda within the more usual Veneto region, Folonari’s…

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  • Bombino Bianco, Marese

    Italy

    One of the most important white grape varieties in southern Italy, Bombino Bianco is…

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  • Nero di Troia, Violante

    Italy

    Violante is the result of Rivera’s wish to marry Nero di Troia’s classic complexity…

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  • Negroamaro Rivera

    Italy

    Negroamaro is the most typical grape variety of Salento, Puglia. Rivera’s vineyards are in…

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  • Barolo Ca’ Bianca

    Italy

    Barolo is “the king of wines and the wine of kings”. A full-bodied, dry taste that’s…

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  • Feudo Monaci Primitivo

    Italy

    Feudo Monaci’s environmentally oriented winemaking project provides a range of wines that combine the…

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  • Feudo Monaci Fiano

    Italy

    Feudo Monaci’s range grew out of a sustainability oriented winemaking project, whose objective is…

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  • Archivio Pecorino

    Italy

    The little-known Pecorino grape (not the cheese!) is indigenous to the central wine regions…

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  • Campo del Passo Vino Frizzante

    Italy

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  • Arcale Terre Siciliane Rosso

    Italy

    A blend of the native Sicilian grape Nero d'Avola (40%) and international varietals Syrah…

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  • Bellino Prosecco Rose DOC Extra Dry

    Italy

    Bellino Extra Dry Rose is a vintage Prosecco DOC. It is made from 87%…

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  • Campo del Passo Prosecco DOC Extra Dry

    Italy

    Campo del Passo Extra Dry DOC is a superb value, extremely versatile, sparkling wine…

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  • #Bio Organic Grillo

    Italy

    Grillo, a regional varietal, is sourced from organically-farmed vineyards in Sicily with clay and…

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  • #Bio Organic Primitivo

    Italy

    #Bio grapes are from Organically-farmed vineyards in Salento, Sicily. The north-south facing vineyards are…

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  • #Bio Organic Chianti

    Italy

    #Bio is made from organic grapes grown in the hills of Chianti. The vineyards…

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  • Serarossa Pinot Grigio Blush

    Italy

    A Pinot Grigio Blush/Rose wine from Northern Veneto. The Pinot Grigio grapes are carefully…

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  • Serarossa Pinot Grigio

    Italy

    The Pinot Grigio grapes are carefully picked up by hand in mid-September. Each vineyard…

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  • Campo del Passo Prosecco DOC Extra Dry – 20cl

    Italy

    Campo del Passo Extra Dry DOC is a superb value, extremely versatile, sparkling wine…

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  • Campo del Passo Prosecco DOCG Valdobbiadene Extra Dry

    Italy

    The most celebrated of Proseccos come from the hillside vineyards of Conegliano Valdobbiadene, the…

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  • #Bio Organic Prosecco DOC Extra Brut

    Italy

    #Bio is made from organic grapes grown in the Prosecco Doc area. The vineyards…

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  • Falanghina ‘Taburno’, Cantine Iorio

    Italy

    Falanghina is a characterful grape, one of the native varietals of the region that…

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  • Aglianico del Sannio, Cantine Iorio

    Italy

    Aglianico is a specialty grape of Campania, where it prefers the volcanic soils, and…

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  • Gavi, Poderi della Collinetta

    Italy

    Gavi is, perhaps, Italy's most fashionable white and certainly the most famous example of…

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  • Barbera Cornale

    Italy

    A fine example of the famous grape Barbera from its homeland of Piedmont where…

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  • Dolcetto del Alba, Poderi della Collinetta

    Italy

    Dolcetto ‘little sweet one’ is a major grape of Piedmonte - the everyday wine of the…

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  • Barolo Poderi della Colinetta

    Italy

    Barolo is “the king of wines and the wine of kings”. A full-bodied, dry taste that’s…

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  • Chianti Volpetto

    Italy

    Volpetto is a well structured and full bodied, lively and intense Chianti - the…

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  • Chianti Riserva Volpetto

    Italy

    Volpetto Chianti Riserva has 12 months in oak, a highly concentrated bouquet, is well…

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  • Montepulciano Ca ‘Brigiano

    Italy

    Montepulciano d’Abruzzo which is made from the Montepulciano grape in the Abruzzo region is…

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  • Nero d’Avola Torre Saracena

    Italy

    One of the most traditional Sicilian grape varieties, with a deep colour and powerful…

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  • Rocca Bastia Chardonnay

    Italy

    The well traveled Chardonnay grape produced full and fresh wines when grown in the…

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  • I Gadi – Pinot Grigio

    Italy

    I Gadi is a lovely full and rich style premium Pinot Grigio with a…

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  • Corte Pitora Pinot Grigio

    Italy

    Corte Pitora is a premium Pinot Grigio for those looking for a more traditional…

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  • Soave Libet ‘Soraighe’, DOC

    Italy

    Casa Vinicola Bennati is an old established house, founded in 1920 by Annibale Bennati,…

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  • Bardolino La Quercia – Chiaretto

    Italy

    Chiaretto is a dry and crisp rosé wine made from red wine grapes using…

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  • Rocca Bastia Merlot

    Italy

    Merlot is the 5th most widely planted grape variety in Italy and the north…

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  • Bardolino Classico ‘Corte Pitora’

    Italy

    Bardolino is closely associated with the beautiful landscape around Lake Garda, with the region…

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  • Valpolicella Superiore I Gadi, DOC

    Italy

    Now upgraded from Classico to Superiore, since the 2019 vintage, meaning the wine has…

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  • Valpolicella Superiore Ripasso ‘Soraighe’, DOC

    Italy

    Ripasso is the younger and fresher expression of the famous, highly-concentrated and dense Amarone…

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  • Amarone della Valpolicella Elite, DOCG

    Italy

    Casa Vinicola Bennati has from its outset been devoted to producing the local wine…

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  • Amarone della Valpolicella Cerasum, DOCG

    Italy

    Casa Vinicola Bennati has from its outset been devoted to producing the local wine…

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