Central Italy


TUSCANY Located in the heart of Italy, bordering the Mediter- ranean Sea, Tuscany is the fifth largest of Italy’s 20 wine regions. While Florence is the administrative center of Tuscany, it is the famously rolling country- side that produces the great wines. Sixty-eight percent of the region is officially classified as hilly (only eight percent of the land is flat). Hillside vineyards with altitudes of 150 to 500 meters supply the vast major- ity of the better-quality wines. Te Sangiovese vine, which is the backbone of the regional production, re- quires the concentration of sunlight that slopes can provide to ripen well in these latitudes. Growers value the significant temperature fluctuation between day


Abboccato Amabile Amaro


Amarone Annata Asciutto


Azienda/Tenuta/Podere Bianco Botte


Bottiglia Cantina


Cantina socialet Cascina


Chiaretto Classico Dolce


Etichetta Fattoria Frizzante


Gradazione Alcoolica Grappa


Imbottigliato all’origine Imbottigliato da


Imbottigliato dal Viticoltore Liquoroso


Metodo Classico


(or Metodo Tradizionale) Nero


26 | Slightly sweet


Medium-sweet (slightly sweeter than Abboccato) Bitter


Dry red wine made from dried grapes (a type of passito) Year of vintage Completely dry Wine estate White


Cask or barrel Bottle


Winery or wine cellar A growers’ cooperative winery


Northern Italian for farmhouse or estate Light red or dark rosé


Denotes the traditional, implying superior, vineyard area within a DOC/G zone Fully sweet (typically a dessert wine) Label


Tuscan term for farm or wine estate Slightly sparkling or fizzy


Percentage of alcohol by volume


Clear brandy, made after leftover solids from making wine is pressed Estate-bottled (bottled at the source)


Bottled by (followed by the wine producer’s name) Bottled by the grower


Strong wine, but not necessarily considered fortified Sparkling wine made by the classic Champagne method


Very dark, or black, red (refers to both grape and wine) | Winter 2016 | www.perillotraveler.com


and night as an important factor in developing its aromatic qualities. Te Arno River marks the northern border for cul-


tivation of Sangiovese in Tuscany. Te zone of Car- mignano, which virtually touches the river’s bank, is predominantly planted with Sangiovese, but has earned its status as a DOCG zone, based on the Cab- ernet Sauvignon that has been grown here since the 1700s. Southward through the Chianti Classico ap- pellation are the zones of Vino Nobile di Montepul- ciano and Brunello di Montalcino. Wines from this region become richer, fuller, more intense and higher in alcohol. Montalcino is the only viticultural area of Tuscany where Sangiovese has always been fermented


ITALIAN WINE TERMS


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