Weekly wine update: Italy

Today we had a guest speaker from the wine producer Banfi, and he was great. He didn't promote his company's wines too much, and he was funny and interesting. Italy has twenty different wine regions that produce some of the most enjoyable wines in the world. And most are dry!

Italy's has four levels of wine region. The simplest is vino da tavola. The next category, indicazione geografica tipica (IGT), offers some great values and is the category where "super-Tuscans," or wines made from non-traditional grapes and grape blends, are made. Then we have denominazione di origine controllota (DOC) and denominazione di origine conotrollota e garantita (DOCG). The DOCG classification is not available in all Italian wine regions, but when a wine carries this status, it has actually been tasted and approved by the Italian board that regulates wines. In Italy, the term "riserva" is controlled and carries the requirement of an extra year or two (depending on the type) of aging. Riserva wines can only be made from a vineyard's best wines. "Classico" is another good term to learn. It refers to the original part of a region, where the wine of that region became well-known. And it's generally the best area for that wine.

Nebbiolo and Sangiovese are Italy's best grape varieties.

So anyhow, we liked all the wines we tried today, and the prices are reasonable. Australia, I hate to say it, but I think you've been replaced!

Here's what we had:

• Pinot Grigio, San Angelo, Banfi Vintners, Montalcino, Italy, 2003 ($13)
• Il Mimo Rosato, Colline Noveresi, Nebbiolo, Antichi Vigneti di Cantalupo, Italy, 2003 ($13)
• Col di Sasso Toscana, Banfi Vintners, Tuscany, Italy, 2003 ($9)
• Chianti Classico Riserva, Castello Banfi, Tuscany, Italy, 2001 ($15)
• Barbaresco, Batasiolo, Piedmont, Italy, 2000 ($32)
• Nero d'Avola, Arancio, Sicily, Italy, 2002 ($12)