San Gimignano DOC

DOC area for red wines and rosé wines in the Italian region of Tuscany. The zone includes the eponymous municipality of San Gimignano in the province of Siena, northwest of the town of the same name. The luxurious palaces and towers of the multi-towered town of San Gimignano date back to the 12th century for the most part. In the Middle Ages the city had an important strategic position between Florence, Siena and Pisa and was situated on important connecting roads. Of these, the Via Francigena was the most important, not only leading pilgrims to Rome, but also serving as a transport route for merchants for their goods such as wine. If the grapes come from classified vineyards, Vigna can be indicated followed by the name of the vineyard.

The wine types Rosso (also as Novello and Riserva) and Rosato are made from Sangiovese (to the. 50%), arbitrary use of the varieties Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah and Pinot Nero = Pinot Noir (max. 40%), as well as other approved varieties (max. 15%). The pure variety wines must contain at least 85% of the respective variety, i.e. the five red wines Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Nero, Sangiovese and Syrah (all also as Riserva)

The Vin Santo (in secco and amabile) with 16.5% vol. alcohol and aged for three years (of which four months in the bottle) is made from Malvasia Bianca Lunga (max. 50%), Trebbiano Toscano (zum. 30%) and Vernaccia di San Gimignano (max. 20%), as well as other authorised varieties (max. 10%). The rosé, sweet Vin Santo Occhio di Pernice is produced from Sangiovese (max. 50%) and other authorised red varieties (max. 50%)

The white wine from Vernaccia was awarded the very first DOC class in 1966. In 1993 it was awarded the title of Vernaccia di San Gimignano to the DOCG.