Tuscany (Toscana) – wine region with the most stable popular of all Italian.

Partly thanks to the romantic aura of its hilly landscapes, cypress avenues and art villages. But without them it would be enough local wine to prevail on the map of Italy, as Tuscany is the birthplace of such stars as:

• Chianti
• Brunello di Montalcino
• Vino Nobile di Montepulciano
• Sassicaia
• Masseto

Tuscany is the Central region, which is surrounded by Liguria and Emilia-Romagna to the North, Umbria and Marche to the East and Lazio to the South. It forms the Western border of the Tyrrhenian sea.

As with almost all 20 Italian wine regions, Tuscany boasts an ancient wine history, can be traced back to the 5th century BC.

Today Tuscany is one of the most famous and prolific wine regions in Europe. It produces wines in a wide range of styles, including samples that have received international recognition. And this is not only known to all red, but dry white, such as Vernaccia di San Gimignano(Vernaccia di San Gimignano) and the sweet white VIN Santo (Vin Santo) and red Elba Aleatico Passito(Elba Aleatico Passito).

Top quality Tuscan wines is controlled by the set rules prescribed in the requirements of the DOC and DOCG classifications (see the Italian wine classification).

A key factor in the success of the Tuscan is its climate. Moderate warm coastal region, contrasting with the hilly areas in the depths of the Peninsula, which is particularly famous for this region. There is a wide variation in daily temperatures allows the grapes to maintain a balance of acidity, sugar content and aromatic.

Especially good on those hilly vineyards shows itself the flagship variety is Tuscan Sangiovese. Perhaps the most important Italian wine varieties, Sangiovese is the backbone of almost all the main local red wines.

Its ubiquity and rich history naturally led to the fact that he gained many different names.

In Montalcino, he is known as Brunello – hence the wine Brunello di Montalcino. He is known in Montepulciano as Prugnolo Gentile. Under the name Morellino, it is used for the production of wine Morellino di Scansano (Morellino di Scansano).

Sangiovese is the basis and the famous Tuscan wines – Chianti, where it is supplemented with small amounts of Colorino and Canaiolo, and a more noticeable amount of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.

With the rise of the “Super Tuscan”, much of which comes from Bolgheri, Cabernet Sauvignon has become much more meaningful variety in Tuscany. But despite the invasion of international hits of French origin, in the region are still running the show local varieties.

Based on Wine-Searcher