Umbria Wine Region, Italy
Discovering the Wines from Tuscany’s Secret Cousin
If you travel to the centre of Italy, you would see a region which is full of lush hills, hilltop villages, and some historic towns.
This is the Umbria wine region. Being the only Italian region with no coastlines or international borders, Umbria is contributing almost 26 million gallons thereby taking the fourth place as the smallest wine producing region by volume.
Umbria Wines, Italy
Discovering the Wines from Tuscany’s Secret Cousin
If you travel to the centre of Italy, you would see a region which is full of lush hills, hilltop villages, and some historic towns.
This is the Umbria wine region. Being the only Italian region with no coastlines or international borders, Umbria is contributing almost 26 million gallons thereby taking the fourth place as the smallest wine producing region by volume.
Though it is one of the smallest wine regions in the country, the wines produced here are gaining popularity due to its uniqueness and quality.
Let’s discover the wines from Umbria
Wines from Umbria, Italy
Se also
Umbria – Tuscany’s Cousin!
The reason for calling Umbria as Tuscany’s cousin is many. First reason is because Umbria is bordered by Tuscany in its northern parts.
Next is the climate, which is same as that of Tuscany’s.
Like Tuscany, the whole Umbria is experiencing rainy winters and drier summers except the regions to the west of Perugia. It is due to this reason; the wine grapes that we get from the regions of Umbria will have characters similar to the wine grapes that are produced in the Tuscany wine region.
In the regions to the west of Perugia, the temperatures are found to be moderated by the waters of ‘Lake Trasimeno’.
In the whole Umbria, we can find the majority of vineyards along the terraces that cut into the hills.
DOC and DOCG Wines of Umbria
Until mid-2010, only about 17% of the Umbrian wines had DOC status.
During this time, the quality, as well as the prominence of these wines was only in developmental stages.
Due to the engagement of consulting oenologists, there are 11 DOC wines, two DOCG wines, and 6 IGT wines in this region at present.
We can find that this region has markedly invested for improving the wines made using a particular grape variety called ‘Sangiovese’.
This is found to be the principal red grape variety of this region.
Other major red grape varieties that can be found in Umbrian red wines are:
- Cabernet Sauvignon
- Merlot
- Pinot Noir
Both the DOCG wines of Umbria are for its red wines although this region’s whites are more popular.
The principal grape variety that can be found in Umbrian white wines is Chardonnay.
Apart from all these varieties, there is a native grape called ‘Sagrantino’.
This variety has become much popular in the recent times and is more prominent in the regions of ‘Montefalco’.
The wines that are made using this grape variety are found to have more depth and strength and this is the major reason for its DOCG status.
The DOCG was given to these wines during the year 1992.
Another DOCG wine of Umbria is ‘Torgiano Rosso Riserva’ that is based on Sangiovese grape variety mentioned earlier.
For these wines to have the DOCG label, they must be subjected to aging for three years as a result of which we get elegant dry wines.
These DOCG wines might also contain other varietals like:
- Canaiolo
- Trebbiano Toscano
- Ciliegiolo
- Montepulciano
Umbrian Style Wine
In addition to the above-mentioned DOC, DOCG, and IGT wines from Umbria, the region is also famous for its Umbrian style wines.
These wines are found to be made from Chardonnay grapes having blended with Grechetto and are allowed to ferment in the barrels.
These wines are found to have a unique taste and are available at lower costs when compared to Tuscan wines.
Due to this reason, these wines are attracting wine lovers from not only Italy but also from across the whole globe!
Michael Bredahl
Wine Writer
Michael is an online enthusiast, with a lot of knowledge about online marketing. Traveling around the world to hunt for the perfect wine. Latest on Sicily, where Etna has a huge impact on the taste, which is strong with a bitter aftertaste for the youngest wines, but older wines are fantastic. Drinking wine, and writing about them, are one the passions. Remember to drink responsibly 🙂
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