The region with the capital Ancona is located in the centre of Italy on the Adriatic coast. Starting from the north, it is bordered by the regions of Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany, Umbria, Lazio and Abruzzo. The ancestors of the three famous wine-growing families Catena Zapata (Argentina), Gallo and Mondavi (California), who emigrated to the American continent and founded wine-growing empires in their new homeland, come from Marche.

History

The Celts and later the Etruscans already cultivated vines here. The Romans conquered the area in the 3rd century BC. The Roman wine writer Pliny the Elder (23-79) mentioned the ancient wine Praetutium from Ancona. The Visigoth king Alaric (370-410) is said to have fortified his troops with the white wine Verdicchio when marching against Rome. The famous local doctor and naturalist Andrea Bacci (1524-1600) reported that the general Hannibal (247-183 BC) from Carthage revitalised the tired horses of his army with large quantities of Conero wine (forerunner of DOC Rosso Conero) during the march against Rome.

Climate & soil

The sea and the Apennines to the west create a cool, temperate climate with warm, dry summers. The cool air currents from the mountains ensure strong temperature differences between day and night, which promotes acidity and flavour development. The vineyards are almost exclusively on slopes with often clayey soil; limestone, clay, sand and marl are also found.

Grape varieties

The vineyards cover around 16,000 hectares of vines, half of which produce red wines and half white wines. The most important white wine varieties are Albanella (Trebbiano Toscano), Bianchello (Biancame), Chardonnay, Grechetto (Grechetto di Orvieto), Incrocio Bruni 54, Malvasia Bianca Lunga, Pecorino, Pinot Bianco (Pinot Blanc), Pinot Grigio (Pinot Gris), Pinot Nero (Pinot Noir), Ribona (Maceratino), Riesling Italico (Welschriesling), Sauvignon (Sauvignon Blanc) and Verdicchio (Verdicchio Bianco). The most important red wine varieties are Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Ciliegiolo, Lacrima (Lacrima di Morro d'Alba), Merlot, Montepulciano, Sangiovese, Vernaccia di Pergola (Aleatico) and Vernaccia Nera or Vernaccia di Serrapetrona (Garnacha Tinta).

DOCG, DOC and IGT areas

The IGT (regional wines), DOC and DOCG areas (quality wines) in the Marche region are:

• Bianchello del Metauro (DOC)
• Colli Maceratesi (DOC)
• Castelli di Jesi Verdicchio Riserva (DOCG)
• Colli Pesaresi (DOC)
• Conero (DOCG)
• Esino (DOC)
• Falerio dei Colli Ascolani or Falerio (DOC)
• I Terreni di Sanseverino (DOC)
• Lacrima di Morro d'Alba or Lacrima di Morro (DOC)
• Marche (IGT)
• Offida (DOCG)
• Pergola (DOC)
• Rosso Conero (DOC)
• Rosso Piceno or Piceno (DOC)
• San Ginesio (DOC)
• Serrapetrona (DOC)
• Terre di Offida (DOC)
• Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi (DOC)
• Verdicchio di Matelica - since 2020 only Matelica (DOC)
• Verdicchio di Matelica Riserva (DOCG) - since 2020 only Matelica (DOC)
• Vernaccia di Serrapetrona (DOCG)

Picture: © Raffaela Usai