iedmont is the land of great red wines. Its vineyards have existed since antiquity: Pliny the Elder gives a detailed description of them in his books, while Julius Caesar spares no words of praise on the wines of Alba. Every southward facing slope in the hills of the Langhe, Asti and Monferrato is covered with vineyards. Most of the vineyards are concentrated in the southeastern part of Piedmont and close to the Apennines, in the provinces of Asti, Alessandria and Cuneo. In the north, the best vineyards are in the northern half of the provinces of Novara and Vercelli. Most of these vineyards are planted with age-old, local vine varieties, to which some new varieties were added recently.
After years of study and research, the Piemonte D.O.C. appellation was established in 1994 to contain all those regional productions, like the "spumante" sparkling wines and the Barbera, which had started being produced outside their original areas.
For this reason, Piemonte D.O.C. does not cover the whole of the region, but is restricted to the provinces of Asti, Cuneo and Alessandria. In addition to this, the subcategories of Moscato and Brachetto can be produced in two, even more restricted areas.
Consorzio Tutela Vini d'Asti e Monferrato
Via Morelli ,15
14100 Asti (AT)
ITALY
phone: (+39) 0141/598998
fax: (+39) 0141/598984
email: consorziobarbera@libero.it
This page was written by Stefano Milioni. Background image and most photos in this section courtesy of Giuliano Bugialli, all right reserved (see Copyright and Credits).
iedmont is the land of great red wines. Its vineyards have existed since antiquity: Pliny the Elder gives a detailed description of them in his books, while Julius Caesar spares no words of praise on the wines of Alba. Every southward facing slope in the hills of the Langhe, Asti and Monferrato is covered with vineyards. Most of the vineyards are concentrated in the southeastern part of Piedmont and close to the Apennines, in the provinces of Asti, Alessandria and Cuneo. In the north, the best vineyards are in the northern half of the provinces of Novara and Vercelli. Most of these vineyards are planted with age-old, local vine varieties, to which some new varieties were added recently.