It is not easy to predict which will be the next Italian wine growing areas to attract the international limelight, however we can make some educated guesses.
There is little doubt that Barolo, Barbaresco, Brunello, Bolgheri and Amarone, along with some Super Tuscans and Chianti Classico Gran Selezione, are by now considered among the top world wines. Nor does anyone question that Etna and Alto Adige wines are on the starting blocks to join them, while it is equally true that Friuli whites are making a comeback after losing some ground. The question now is: which Italian wines and winemaking zones will be the next to follow in the near future?
This is not an easy question to answer and one needs to take a number of elements into consideration. The first involves the critical mass of production. The second is whether a sufficient number of producers exist for a particular wine. This not only means winemakers but also the larger estates and cooperatives, as is the case in all the leading winemaking regions the world over, including Burgundy and Champagne. The third element regards the capacity to create a territorial “brand”, to promote a zone in a clear and efficient way.
As for the production areas that most meet these preconditions, the first that comes to mind for me is northern Piedmont. By this I mean not only the wines made using Nebbiolo, like Gattinara, Ghemme, Carema, Boca, Sizzano and Bramaterra. There are also the areas of Chieri, Caluso and Monteferrato Casalese, along with the northern part of the province of Asti, where wines are made using varietals like Freisa, Grignolino, and Erbaluce which, in my opinion, have an impressive potential.
The region of Romagna is also making a considerable effort, with 16 subzones dedicated to Sangiovese, which demonstrates how there truly exists distinct differences between the various areas. One need only compare a wine from Modigliana with one from Coriano to find two wines that seem to come from two different continents. For sure the task ahead will not be easy, but it is promising.
Last but least is Sardinia, which is witnessing the birth of many new and valid estates in different areas of the island. Then there is Campania, which already has dozens of estates that are producing some fantastic wines from Campi Flegrei to Vesuvius, from Sannio to Cilento as well as the areas around Caserta and in Irpinia. I have a feeling that some of the great wines of the near future may, in fact, come from these zones.
