The Italian region (Italian: Abruzzi) with the capital L'Aquila lies to the east of Rome with around 130 kilometres of coastline on the Adriatic Sea. It is divided into the provinces of Chieti, L'Aquila, Teramo and Pescara. Viticulture was introduced here by the Etruscans as early as the 7th century BC. The Greek historian Polybios (210-120 BC) mentions in his history of the Roman Empire in the section on the Carthaginian general Hannibal (247-183 BC) that the wines from here were particularly suitable for strengthening the soldiers. The Roman authors Pliny the Elder (23-79) and Andrea Bacci (1524-1600) also praise the wines.

Soil & climate

The region is dominated by the Apennines, which reach their highest peaks here with the Corno Grande (2,912 m) and Monte Amaro (2,795 m). Around two thirds of the region is mountainous and one third hilly. Some vineyards are also cultivated at high altitudes of up to 600 metres above sea level at the foot of the mountain massif. The Mediterranean climate is characterised by warm and dry summers with large temperature differences between day and night as well as cool and damp winters. The vineyards cover around 33,000 hectares on limestone, clay, sand and gravel soils.

Grape varieties

The most important red wine varieties are Barbera, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Ciliegiolo, Merlot, Montepulciano, Pinot Nero (Pinot Noir) and Sangiovese. The most important white wine varieties are Bombino Bianco, Chardonnay, Cococciola, Falanghina, Malvasia Bianca di Candia, Montonico Bianco, Moscato (Muscat Blanc), Passerina, Pecorino, Riesling, Sauvignon (Sauvignon Blanc), Traminer, Trebbiano d'Abruzzo, Trebbiano Toscano and Verdicchio Bianco.

DOCG, DOC and IGT areas

The DOCG/DOC zones account for around half of the wine production in the Abruzzo region:

• Abruzzo (DOC)
• Cerasuolo d'Abruzzo (DOC)
• Controguerra (DOC)
• Colli Aprutini (IGT)
• Colli del Sangro (IGT)
• Colline Frentane (IGT)
• Colline Pescaresi (IGT)
• Colline Teatine (IGT)
• del Vastese or Histonium (IGT)
• Montepulciano d'Abruzzo (DOC)
• Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Colline Teramane (DOCG)
• Ortona (DOC)
• Terre Aquilane or Terre de l'Aquila (IGT)
• Terre di Chieti (IGT)
• Terre Tollesi or Tullum (DOCG)
• Trebbiano d'Abruzzo (DOC)
• Villamagna (DOC)

Map: From Idéfix~commonswiki, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link
Grape: By Ra Boe - self photographed, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link