Introduction to the Advanced Study of the Wines of Italy

In the Intensive Sommelier Training at the International Culinary Study Center we covered all of Italy in 4 days, about 12 hours. After graduating the 17 week 200 hour course, and passing the Certified Sommelier exams two weeks later, I knew the first wine region in the world I wanted to return to and study more in depth was Italy.

So, I have created a study guide for the furtherance of my personal understanding of the wines of Italy. My preferred means of studying is reading about wine, writing about wine, talking about wine, listening about wine, watching videos about wine and of course tasting wine. The primary focus of this study guide will be on the climate, soils, DOCGs / DOCs, primary white and red grapes, wine blends, and dessert wines of the 20 major wine regions of Italy.

The primary texts books used in creating this study guide are:

Ian D'Agata, Native Grapes of Italy (University of California Press, 2014)

Joe Bastianich and David Lynch, Vino Italiano (Crown Publishing 2005)

Karen MacNeil, The Wine Bible (Workman Publishing, 2001)

Jancis Robinson, The Oxford Companion to Wine (3^rd Edition, Oxford University Press, 2006)

Hugh Johnson, Jancis Robinson, The World Atlas of Wine (7^th Edition, Octopus Publishing, 2013)

Tom Stevenson, The Sotheby Wine Encyclopedia (5^th Edition, Sands Publishing, 2011)

I have also formed a study group, which will cover all of Italy in about 20 meetings. Anyone wishing to study along may do so via this blog, and purchase the wines reviewed and taste them on their own. The following are the objectives and itinerary for the group study:

Study Objectives

1.     Memorize all the wine regions of Italy.

2.     Memorize all DOCGs and top DOCs of each region.

3.     Memorize all the climates and soils for each region.

4.     Memorize all the primary grape varietals, blends and regional wines.

5.     Memorize at least 3 top producers.

Tentative Study Itinerary

1.     At the beginning of each study, quiz and review previous lesson.

2.     Have a lecture/presentation/discussion/video of a region.

3.     Taste regional wines.

4.     Food and wine pairing.

Tentative Study Schedule
Unit	Map #	Region	Unit	Map #	Region
1	6	Friuli-Venzia Gulia	11	11	Le Marche
2	4	Trentino-Alto Adige	12	12	Lazio
3	5	Veneto	13	13	Abruzzo
4	3	Lombardia	14	14	Campania
5	2	Piemonte	15	15	Molise
6	1	Valle d’Aosta	16	16	Puglia
7	7	Liguria	17	17	Basilicata
8	8	Emilia-Romagna	18	18	Calabria
9	9	Tuscany	19	19	Sicilia
10	10	Umbria	20	20	Sardegna

The Map# in the schedule corresponds to the maps below: