Santa Margherita

Italy (42.6 million hectoliters in 2007 – 50.1 million hectoliters on average in 2000-2005)
In 2006 the area under vine was 713,.819 hectares, of which 679,000 ha were actually in production.
All of the Regions of Italy have thousands of hectares of vineyards planted with typical local grape varieties.
In 2007, the Region with the highest production was the Veneto with 7.8 million hectoliters, followed by Emilia Romagna with over 6.2 million hl, and then by Puglia and Sicily, with 5.7 million and 4.6 million hectoliters respectively (these two Regions, however, had abnormally small harvests).

Italy and its wine Regions

Valle d'Aosta
Viticulture in the Valle d'Aosta is truly "heroic", yet in this Region producers succeed in making fine wines in spite of the difficulties (the climate, mountainous terrain and stony soils) that Nature puts in their way. The cold night temperatures at high altitude, though, favor the extraction of extraordinary perfumes, and the rugged indigenous varieties Fumin, Blanc de Morgex and Petite Arvine - cultivated using Guyot training in order to take advantage of every possible ray of sunshine - are grown alongside Chardonnay and Gamay to yield enological gems of extremely high quality.

Piedmont
The Alps and the plain, connected by mighty rivers: that, in brief, is a summary of the vine-growing situation in Piedmont, in which the contours of the Monferrato and Langhe hills, with their particular microclimates, represent the variables that gives distinctive characteristics to each wine. This is the land of Nebbiolo, the noble begetter of Barolo and Barbaresco, which produces wines of outstandingly high quality; but it is also that of Barbera and Dolcetto, grapes that have now been revalued by a new wave of young and innovative producers. Look out, too, for the emerging indigenous varieties, Favorita and Timorasso (a rare grape cultivated mainly in the area around Tortona) which, along with Cortese, Erbaluce and Arneis, lie behind this important wine Region’s whites.

Lombardy
This Region produces a broad range of wine styles, including as it does high mountains and wide valleys but also gentle hillsides that slope down towards the lakes. Each of these natural features has its own particular climate and soils, leading to a number of very diverse and distinctive terroirs. From the Valtellina to Franciacorta and from Lake Garda to the Oltrepò Pavese, Nebbiolo (here known as Chiavennasca), Chardonnay, Croatina and Groppello contribute towards creating wines that are sometimes inconsistent, but often unforgettable. The producers' decision to follow the quality path is clearly bearing its fruits.