Umbria

This hilly region in central Italy is somewhat overshadowed by neighboring Tuscany. The landscape, soil, and climate are almost the same, but until recently, mainly cheaper, not particularly high-quality wines were produced here, primarily from international varieties Merlot, Chardonnay, and Cabernet Sauvignon. The main producers were primarily wine cooperatives that supplied local supermarkets. In recent years, however, Umbria has been making a name for itself, and the quality of wines has risen sharply. The credit goes to local independent winemakers who abandoned the philosophy of large and low-quality no-name production and began successfully experimenting with local rediscovered varieties Grechetto, Trebbiano Spoletino and Sagrantino. It is from Sagrantino that great wines are created, celebrating success even on the international stage, thanks to winemakers like Arnaldo Caprai, who managed to handle the extremely tannic nature typical of Sagrantino and instead highlighted its fascinating balsamic tones. Montefalco Sagrantino DOCG is now the most famous Umbrian appellation. Besides this, Umbria can boast 13 other DOC appellations. The main wine-growing areas, besides Montefalco, are also Orvieto, Todi and Torgiano, where the Sangiovese variety thrives.