Italy is divided into twenty political regions, which also serve as wine regions. Each of these regions have unique characteristics, including varietals, weather, soil, elevations, and growing and winemaking technique. So although, a few regions produce the large majority of the best wines, each offer good to great wines and unforgettable and pleasurable experiences.

One of the confusing things about Italian wine is that a "wine name" may, in addition to the producer, include (or not) the grape varietal, area/sub-area name, Region name, or a "brand". For example two common wine names are Chianti and Barbera. Chianti refers to a wine area and Barbera is a grape variety. So, once you know something about the regions and its grape varietals, understanding wine names gets a lot simpler.

Italian Wine Classification System:

A wine-producing area (or sub-area) with any of the following designations can be in any Italian wine region, although not all regions have yet produced wines that get the DOCG designation.

Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG): Certification of Controlled and Guaranteed Origin

Denominazione di Origine (DOC): Certification of Controlled Origin

Indicazione Geografica Tipica (IGT): Typical Geographic Indication

Vino da Tavola (VDT): Table Wine

意大利葡萄酒產區
位于地中海區的意大利半島，整體氣侯干燥炎熱，天然條件非常適合葡萄生長，是全世界最大的葡萄酒出產國，其產量將近全球的五分之一。從北邊山區到南端西西里島，共差10度緯度，全國的土地，又不離調節天氣高手的山與海，使得每省有其獨特的氣候。由于地形變化較大， 各地氣候不同、 加之葡萄品種繁多，使意大利擁有許多風味不同、 性格獨特的葡萄酒。 全國可分20區，葡萄酒的分級系統從1963年開始成立，共分為四個等級。

意大利葡萄酒級別：
Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG): 表示法定產區的優質葡萄酒，是最高級

Denominazione di Origine (DOC): 表示法定產區酒，約等同于法國的AOC等級

Indicazione Geografica Tipica (IGT): 是優良餐酒

Vino da Tavola (VDT): 是最普通等級的葡萄酒，是意大利葡萄酒的主力，但其中也有不俗的產品