Sardegna

Sardegna (Sardinia) is an island region located west of the Italian peninsula across the Tyrrhenian Sea from Lazio and just south of the French island of Corsica. Its capital and largest city is Cagliari in the south. Tourists know Sardegna best for the trendy beaches of the Costa Smeralda on the northeast tip. In the wine world, Sardegna is best known for red wines made from Cannonau and white wines made from Vermentino. It has 1 DOCG, 17 DOCs (see map), and 15 IGPs. The 2017 harvest was a disaster due to bad weather, and Sardegna’s production was off by more than 40% from 2016 at a mere 466,000 hl (5.2 million cases) of wine. More than two thirds of the region’s wine is at the DOP level, and it makes more red than white. The region’s primary grape varieties are Cannonau (35%) and Vermentino (28%).