A guide to Italian wine regions, from Tuscany to Piedmont

Open an Italian wine list and it reads like a map: Chianti, Barolo, Prosecco. That is no accident. In Italy, a wine is usually named after the place it comes from, not the grape it is made from.

So the best way to understand the Italian wine regions is to get to know a few of them: their hills, their weather, what grows there and what is cooked there. Let’s take a short trip. We start in the sunny hills of Tuscany, travel north to the foggy slopes of Piedmont, then head east to the Veneto.

Tuscany: sun, hills and Sangiovese

The place. Picture rolling hills between Florence and Siena, dotted with stone villages and cypress trees. In Chianti, forests still cover more than half the land.

The weather. Summers here are long and sunny, with around 2,500 hours of sunshine a year, and the nights up in the hills stay cool.

How the land shapes the wine. The sun ripens Tuscany’s favourite grape, Sangiovese (san-joh-VAY-zeh), until it tastes of ripe cherries. The cool nights keep it fresh and lively. Vineyards higher up give lighter, more fragrant wines; lower down, they are fuller and richer.

That balance of ripe and fresh is the taste of Tuscany.

What it gives us. Tuscany gives us Chianti Classico, the classic, which carries a black rooster on the bottle. Brunello di Montalcino is made from the same grape, only deeper and grander. And Vin Santo, the “holy wine”, is made from grapes left to dry for months.

At our table. At Amami, that means our Bistecca alla Fiorentina, carved to share, with Fagioli al Pomodoro, beans in our house tomato sauce, on the side. The food and the wine grew up together.

Piedmont: fog, Alps and Nebbiolo

The place. Piedmont sits in Italy’s northwest corner, where the Alps rise above the plains. The heart of it is the Langhe: steep hills covered in vines and hazelnut trees.

The weather. It is cooler here than in Tuscany. In autumn, a thick fog rolls through the valleys. The region’s great grape is named after it: Nebbiolo (neb-ee-OH-loh) comes from nebbia, the Italian word for fog.

How the land shapes the wine. Nebbiolo is one of the last grapes to be picked, often in late October, just as the fog settles in. The long, slow season gives a wine that looks pale in the glass but tastes powerful, with notes of rose and cherry and plenty of tannin. It is a wine that rewards patience.

What it gives us. Piedmont gives us Barolo, which is Nebbiolo at its grandest, and Barbera, a juicy, easygoing red. For dessert, there is Moscato d’Asti, lightly fizzy and sweet.

At our table. A cooler, misty place calls for rich, warming dishes. Try the Tomahawk, the Scaloppine al Marsala or the ricotta and spinach Ravioli, with Truffle Fries on the side.

The Veneto: bubbles, lakes and drying grapes

The place. The Veneto is Italy’s northeast, stretching from the Alps down to Lake Garda and the lagoon of Venice. It holds two very different landscapes.

At our table. Pour Prosecco with the Frittura di Mare Mista, and the crisp white Soave with our saffron risotto. Save the Amarone for something rich, like the grilled lamb chops.

Three things to remember

1. The name is the place. Chianti, Barolo and Prosecco are all places.
2. The land shapes the glass. Sun, fog and hills all end up in the wine.
3. Match the region to the dish. Tuscan steak with Tuscan red; lagoon seafood with Veneto bubbles.

Asked at the table

Read next: How to pair wine with Bistecca alla Fiorentina · What aperitivo really means

Sources: Wine Enthusiast · Wine Folly: Chianti Classico terroir · Wikipedia: Nebbiolo · UNESCO: Prosecco Hills · Grape Guru: Appassimento · WSET · Wikipedia: Vin Santo