WINE-COUNTRIES ITALY

1 - Abruzzo - Molise
2 - Basilicata - Calabria - Campania
3 - Emilia Romagna
4 - Friuli Venezia Giulia
5 - Lazio
6 - Liguria
7 - Lombardia
8 - Marche
9 - Piemonte - Valle d'Aosta
10 - Puglia
11 - Sardegna
12 - Sicilia
13 - Toscana
14 - Trentino Alto Adige
15 - Umbria
16 - Veneto Wineries

Vineyard area: 1 million hectares

Total production: 68.686 million hectolitres

Annual consumption
total: 35.273 million hectolitres
per capita: 51.63 litres

Exports: 11.369 million hectolitres

Imports: 703 thousand hectolitres

Principal grape varieties: barbera, nebbiolo, sangiovese, lambrusco, montepulciano d'Abruzzo, cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc, merlot, aglianico, gaglioppo, pinot nero, trebbiano, moscato, pinot bianco, pinot grigio, riesling italico, tocai italico, verdicchio, vermentino, chardonnay, sauvignon bianco, gewürztraminer, malvasia.

This year's edition of the World Wine Review contains a noticeably increased number of Top Wines from Italy, despite the fact that none of vintages taken into consideration come anywhere near the quality of the great 1990. The reader may be tempted to think that we have become more accommodating towards the producers. In fact nothing could be further from the truth. What tastings demonstrate is that the general level of quality is very much on the up and up. With new technology in the winery and, even more important, new care and attention in the vineyard, producers have been able to compensate for the handicap of difficult vintages. This phenomenon is most evident in the top regions of Piemonte and Tuscany, but it can also be observed as a broad trend across the country.

In the last few years Italian winemaking has seen much innovation, research and investment. Amongst the themes that have characterised this period two stand out: the use of barriques and the proliferation of international grape varieties, two issues which continue to divide opinion amongst producers. The use of French oak barrels and the introduction of international cultivars have revolutionised the production of entire regions, and although the Midas touch has not worked for everybody, it has made the fortune of many wineries. However chaotic, the quality revolution has revitalized the Italian wine scene, opening new horizons and generating new interest at home and abroad. Experimentation has brought general improvements in the standard of production, a greater sense of pragmatism, and the development of new wines in the mainstream Italian tradition as well as in the so-called 'international' styles. The barrique is a tool in the winery, not a way of life. The selective use of non-native vines brings a touch of innovation which does no harm. On the contrary, it tends to confirm the importance of local growing conditions - what the French call terroir - which is one of the keys to quality winemaking in Italy.

Italy not only grows more vines and produces more wine than any other country in the world, it also has probably the most diverse production. The long peninsula composed mostly of hills and mountains which extends into the heart of the Mediterranean basin enjoys an enormous variety of micro-climates for viticulture. The South of Italy, for centuries an important crossroads in the movement of wine and viticulture, has recently become more aware of its own heritage and a number of innovatory producers have begun to develop wines of extraordinary interest. The widespread belief that regions such as Sicily, Calabria and Sardinia are only capable of producing fortified wines has been disproved in recent times by the austere red wines and full-bodied, rich whites which are the equal of the great wines of Piemonte, Tuscany and Friuli.

Reading the profiles of the four hundred or so producers included in this review is a journey into the culture, history, geography and heritage of the country. Perhaps there is no other nation in the world where wine and gastronomic tourism offers such variety. Every region and every province has its own wines and foods, a range of highly individual products that in certain respects makes it difficult to speak of 'Italian wine' as if it were a single entity. What in fact the attentive traveller through Italy will find is a myriad selection of Italian Wines.

The law has never brought much order to the complex geography of Italian wine production; on the contrary, it has been the cause of serious confusion. New laws of 1992 established the basis for rationalising things, but the actual application of the new rules is slow and difficult. In addition to the extreme diversity of regional production,the structure of the industry does not lend itself to concerted action. The numerous small and medium-sized producers are a powerful group but they lack leadership and are often involved in clashes of interest with the equally important large-scale wine houses. The co-operative movement is also fragmented and divided in terms of organisation and quality.

In many regions the younger generation is taking up the challenge of modern winery management. Many growers have begun to produce and bottle their own wines, changing the social fabric of wine communities in regions like Piemonte and Friuli and in parts of the Veneto, such as the upwardly mobile Valpolicella. In some respects it is these small and medium-sized producers who have been the new creators of Italian wine. They have also revolutionised markets and created new patterns of trade. In the Langhe district of Piemonte for instance, Barolo has been restored to its ancient glory and won international recognition thanks to this new generation of vignerons. Tuscany, another region at the cutting edge of the "Made in Italy" movement, was the first region to understand the potential of export markets for its new oenology. Today Chianti Classico, Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano are distinguished leaders in the promotion of areas of outstanding beauty. Friuli has long been recognised as the prime source of fruit-driven white wines with intense floral bouquets, but it will not escape notice that this review also selects some exceptional new reds from this region. The same observation in reverse can be applied to Piemonte and Tuscany, classic wine areas capable of producing both red and white wines full of regional character.

Divining the new frontiers of Italian wine is a complex task, but two clear trends do seem to be emerging. One is the ambition to produce better wines from Italian native varieties, the other the creation of a role for top quality wines in the national gastronomy - an objective unfortunately hindered by numerous Italian restaurateurs throughout the world who persist in demanding medium-to-low quality wines at rock bottom prices.
Another interesting phenomenon in the context of this Review is that while it is true that the export of Italian wine has always been big business, it is just as true that the Italian consumer has traditionally never shown much interest in wines from other countries. However, there are recent signs of a trend in the opposite direction with wines coming into Italy from other countries - and not just from neighbouring France, but also from the New World. For the moment this is a little blip in the market, but it opens up interesting new prospects. In twenty years the consumption of wine in Italy has changed radically. Per capita consumption has more than halved, but at the same time it has ceased to be locally-based. The opening-up of Italy to foreign wines is the latest stage in this de-provincialisation, and it is an important step towards the conception of wine as a drink that is taken for pleasure rather than solely for nutrition.