Sardegna

Located 12 hours by ferry from the mainland in the middle of the Mediterranean, Sardegna is Italy's second biggest region. The island consists basically of a high undulating plateau, formed in the course of various geological periods. The climate, which is hot and dry in the summer and mild and windy in the winter, is surprisingly uniform over the whole of the island and offers distinct advantages for winegrowing. Soils are varied; Cagliari in the south is extremely fertile, Arborea in the centre-west has sandy terrain and Gallura, Barbagia and Ogliastra all have basically calcareous soils.

Like Sicily, Sardegna has revolutionised its viticulture and winemaking in the last twenty years. The most representative of the new generation of wines from the island are Vermentino, in particular Vermentino di Gallura, Cannonau (the French Grenache) and Moscato di Bosa. All of these have made a major contribution to the establishment of Sardinian wines on the international market. Total production amounts to around 1 million hectolitres, of which approximately 15% has DOC status.