FAST FACTS TOTAL AREA: GRAPE VARIETIES: Chardonnay, Garganega, Glera, Pinot Grigio, Carmenere, Corvina, Merlot, Rondinella TOTAL WINE PRODUCTION: 8,473 hl APPELLATIONS: Colli Berici DOC, Prosecco DOC & DOCG, Soave DOC, Valpolicella DOC, Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG, Valpolicella Ripasso DOC, Veneto IGT PRODUCERS ADAMI, INAMA, RIFF, SCAIA, TENUTA SANT'ANTONIO, DISTILLERIA DELL'ALPE, ALMARE SPRITZ, VERITÀ, KAPRIOL GIN

OVERVIEW

Veneto has a strong claim on being Italy’s most important region for wine production. It has one of the most highly regarded red wines of Italy in Amarone della Valpolicella, which gives it points in the prestige category, but it is also home to four of the top 10 denominations in terms of volume. In all, Veneto produces one of every five bottles of Italian wine—and given that it is the biggest source of Prosecco and Pinot Grigio, a very high percentage of that production gets exported.

Though a few grape varieties come to mind when thinking about Veneto, the easy winner is Glera. Thanks to the so-far bottomless global appetite for Prosecco, more than a quarter of Veneto’s vineyards are planted with Glera. Garganega and Pinot Grigio are two other prominent white grape varieties. Among the reds, Merlot is the somewhat surprising leader, followed by the dominant grape variety of Valpolicella, Corvina.