Emilia-Romagna

Emilia-Romagna is a rich, fertile region of northern Italy, and one of the country’s most prolific wine regions – more than 136,000 acres (55,000ha) were under vine in 2010.

To learn more about Emilia-Romagne, please read on. If you’re interested to find more wines from this region, then scroll to the bottom of the page.

Emilia Romagna Wine Region

At 150 miles (240km) wide, it spans almost the entire width of the northern Italian peninsula, sandwiched between Tuscany to the south, Lombardy and Veneto to the north and the Adriatic Sea to the east. Nine miles of Liguria is all that separates Emilia-Romagna from the Ligurian Sea, and uniqueness as the only Italian region with both an east and a west coast.

The region’s geographical diversity is significant, and plays an important part in creating the various terroirs found here. In the west the rolling hills and Apennine peaks give way to the lower-lying plains east of Parma, Modena and Bologna, and beyond that the coastal plains of the Ferrara province, where a notable portion of the land lies just below sea level.

The river Po flows west to east across all these features, marking the region’s northern border and linking the Apennines to the Adriatic Sea.

Emilia-Romagna’s wine production is divided evenly between whites and reds, the dominant vine varieties being Malvasia and Lambrusco (both in their various forms), Trebbiano, Barbera, Bonarda and of course Sangiovese.

A large percentage of these grapes are used to produce sparkling wines, either frizzante or spumante, of which the most notable are from the five Lambrusco DOCs: Salamino di Santa Croce, di Sorbara, Grasparossa di Castelvetra, Modena and Reggiano.

Despite its wide portfolio of well-known Italian and international varieties (Chardonnay, Pinot Blanco and Cabernet Sauvignon are used both in varietal wines and blends), Emilia-Romagna’s uniqueness comes from its rare local DOC wines. Examples of this are red Cagnina di Romagna and white Pagadebit di Romagna.