Italian wine plays a big part in Italian life and in their history. Perhaps that’s why it tastes so great!
The first wines
The story of wine starts around 300BC in Mesopotamia. The Greeks then brought wine to Southern Italy. And then it was the Romans who refined the process of wine making.
The Romans
Italian wine history tells us that wine became a part of life under the Romans. So, as the population increased, so did the yield they got from the presses. Demand for wine continued to grow. All ‘levels of society’ consumed wine. Italy became a ferocious producer of wine. There were around 20 wine producing regions in Italy at this point and they also did much to experiment with the flavour, with the efficiency of the grapes.
More wine than food
Italy was producing so much wine that in AD92, Emperor Domitian had to destroy a number of vineyards to make space for food production.
Roman law and wine
Roman law dictated that wine could only be produced in Italy. Instead, wine was exported to other parts of the empire, outside of Italy. Laws were eventually relaxed and this allowed other nations to produce wine. This included France and Spain.
With age comes…With age comes better wine, it seems. The history of Italian wine shows that the biggest discovery the Romans made about wine was that some wines tasted better with age. So, they developed barrels to store the wines.
Regulation
During the 1800s, the quality of wine in Italy began to deteriorate. Realising this, the government of the time brought in some rules and regulations to protect Italian wines. Wines had to carry labels that communicated the standards upon which the wine had been produced. They acted like an official guarantee about the quality and taste of the wine, as well as the process that had been used to produce it.
Italian wine today
Wine is an important element of the Italian economy. There is still a strong connection between the Italians and wine. Based on the harvest in 2015, the International Organisation of Vine and Wine estimated Italy to be the biggest wine producer in the world, producing 49.5 million hectolitres compared to France’s 47.5 million hectolitres.
Experiencing Italian wine for yourself
Today, Italian wine is considered the best in the world. And wine tasting holidays in Italy have become a really popular Italian holiday choice. Wine tours in Italy are a great way to experience the culture of the country; the beautiful vineyards set in the glorious Italian countryside and of course the popular and varied Italian wines. At Avventure Bellissime, we offer a fantastic selection of wine tours in Italy.
With us, the Italian tour experts, you can spend as little as 4 hours to a full day exploring the vineyards on your wine tasting tour in Italy:
- There’s our Tuscan day trip that will take you through Tuscany’s wine country and hilltop towns – experiencing the produce as you go.
- There’s our prosecco region tour, taking in medieval hill towns and a Palladian Villa.
- We also offer wine tours from Venice to the Valpolicella wine region.
- Or there’s the Chianti wine tasting trip that departs from Florence.
If this has inspired you to come and experience the country and its wines for yourself, then be sure to visit our website attours-italy.com
We, Avventure Bellissime – are Italian holidays experts and we’re definitely best placed to help you make the most of your Italian holiday. We offer a selection of Italian vacation packages as well as tours of Italy’s wine regions and other famous sights and attractions that are suited to your time and budget.
For more information on holidays to Italy, from information on the best destinations, guides on the country’s main attractions, or interesting facts about the Vatican - be sure to check out our travel blog at Avventure Bellissime. It’s a great read about all things, Italian!
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