I.G.T. is A-OK

As you stand in front of the Italian section of your local wine shop, you may notice a few things about the labels. First, you may notice the wines can be listed by the region, the grape varietal, the style of the wine, some fancy name made up by the winery, or even the age. Ok, that is a little confusing, but you are persistent so you keep looking. Second, you notice that all of these things on the label are in Italian, and the Spanish that you took in high school is absolutely useless. Hmmm. You may really enjoy Italian wines, but grabbing a bottle of Shiraz certainly doesn’t bring this kind of headache. What to do?

Don’t give up! Italian wines are separated by a distinct classification system. Knowing the differences can be as easy as knowing the laws behind them. This is the pyramid behind the Italian wine classification system. There are four different classifications starting with the most basic and ordinary wine, the Vino da Tavola, and progressing upward to the Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG), which is the highest level of quality and traditional individual expression of the wines.

Until the 1960s almost all Italian wine was either consumed locally or shipped off to the rest of Europe to be blended with lighter wines grown in the more northerly climates. Very little was even bottled. In 1963 the Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC) was created to bring a semblance of order to the chaos of the Italian wine scene, thus making them more accessible in the global marketplace. What the DOC did was create a set of regulations for each region regarding many factors including the types of wines, the color, maturation and the grape varieties allowed. While this spurred a transformation of the Italian wine industry and an incredible leap forward in quality, these regulations were based on many traditional and antiquated wine growing practices. There was very little room for creativity or innovation. All other wines were listed as Vino da Tavola, literally translated as “table wine.”

In 1980 the Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG) was created. Sounds about the same, doesn’t it? The difference here is the “Garantita” or guarantee. The standards for the DOCG were much higher than the DOC, including much smaller yields, chemical composition testing and even a mandatory taste evaluation by a select panel. If your wine wasn’t up to snuff then they would make recommendations and you would have to go back to the drawing board. It is important to note that the “Garantita” here doesn’t ensure a top quality wine, just that the commission has done everything they can to guarantee that the wine is from where it says it is and is made in the manner allowed there.

About 20% of the Italian wine produced falls under these two categories. DOC wines are from very traditional wine producing areas such as Chianti, or made in a historical manner with indigenous grapes such as Valpolicella. Today there are more than 300 DOCs. DOCG is a step up in quality and is made using only the best grapes and production methods, and only in the best regions such as two of the very first DOCGs: Barolo and Brunello di Montalcino. There are now 24 regions that have achieved the lofty DOCG status.

Wines from both of these categories will have the words Denominazione di Origine Controllata on the label, with DOCG adding the Garantita. This is an easy way to ensure that you are buying a quality Italian wine. Also, look for a pink strip of label on the capsule of DOCG wines. It stands out in a crowd.

But a funny thing happened on the way to wine greatness in Italy. Several growers bristled at the narrow guidelines with which they were given to make their wine. Yields were high, and only the approved grapes were allowed in only the small approved regions. A few daring producers decided that the only way to make the wines that they wanted to make was to declassify them and sell them as the lowly Vino di Tavola. But from this sprang forth creations of immortality. The Sassicaia was the first and probably the most famous in 1968. From a stony hilltop on the Antinori estate in Bolgheri, near the Mediterranean coast, came a Cabernet Sauvignon with such power and grace that by the mid 1970s it was world-famous. But how could this giant of a wine that would go on to sell for hundreds of dollars (even back then) share the same classification as the most ordinary of Italian wines?

Thus the need for a new classification system arose, and in 1992 the IGT was born. Indicazione Geografica Tipica (IGT) wines are listed by the specific region in which they were grown and the grape varietal used, in that order. On the label will be the IGT indication, as well as the region the wine is from and the grape or grapes that make up 80% of that particualr wine. This new category allowed wine makers to branch out and try new ideas in new regions. They were given the freedom to create and experiment, which has spawned a whole new style of wines. Many international grape varietals are used, and often vinified in the “New World” style of bold, fruit-forward wines.

In no region was this more quick to catch on than Tuscany, the home of Chianti and the heart of both Italy and Italian wine. Chianti was the first to have any sort of wine law in Italy, dating back to the Ducal decree of 1716, and many of the DOC regulations were either too constricting or just plain out of date. Producers took the opportunity to use the IGT to create a new set of wines from both the traditional Sangiovese but also more International varietals such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and even Syrah. These wines came to be collectively known as “Supertuscans,” and became an overnight phenomenon. The prices skyrocketed driven by a few cult classics such as the Merlot-based Masseto from Antinori and the Bordeaux blend of Lupicaia from Tenuta del Terriccio.

From this success the IGT has spread to other parts of Italy. There are now more than 200 official IGTs with many more on the way. This has spurred growth in the American market as consumers have found new and exciting wines from both international and local grape varietals. There seems to be no end in sight as the requirements for a region to be approved for IGT status is only to prove that high-quality wines can be produced in a historically significant area. As Italy has been producing wine for thousands of years and is heaven on earth for grape growing there will be plenty more IGTs to come.

This is not to say that the IGT system is not without its faults. Wine of every level of quality from swill to sublime can be labeled as IGT. Also, further fragmentation of an already confusing wine market could drive many consumers to the relative ease of the “New World” way of labeling wine by grape and region in big, bold letters.

But overall this is a very logical and necessary step in the evolution of Italian wine. For a country so blessed with weather, location and grape knowhow the gauntlets should be cast aside so that the genius may flow as freely as the abundant wine. The IGT system has brought new life to regions such as southern Italy and Sicily that for so long had produced wines that never made it across the Atlantic. The Italians have been given new hope and a new vehicle for their viticultural prowess. All that’s left is for the rest of us to drink the delicious rewards.

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