Study / Region guides
Puglia
4 DOCGs and 28 DOCs. Examined in Unit 2: Central and Southern Italy.
- Borders
- Molise, Campania, Basilicata
- Wine provinces
- Brindisi, Lecce, Taranto, Barletta-Andria-Trani, Foggia, Bari
The land
Puglia is the heel of the boot: long, mostly flat and hot. Red soil over limestone is typical.
Think of it in three parts. The north has the Murge plateau and Castel del Monte. The centre has the Valle d'Itria and Gioia del Colle. The south is the Salento peninsula, with sea on both sides.
The grapes
Nero di Troia and Bombino lead in the north. Primitivo grows at Gioia del Colle and Manduria. Negroamaro rules the Salento, often blended with Malvasia Nera.
Verdeca and Bianco d'Alessano make the whites of the Valle d'Itria.
Which grape leads which appellation
- Negroamaro 10
- Alezio, Brindisi, Copertino, Galatina, Lizzano, Matino, Nardò, Negroamaro di Terra d'Otranto, Salice Salentino, Squinzano
- Nero di Troia 5
- Castel del Monte Nero di Troia Riserva, Castel del Monte Rosso Riserva, Barletta, Rosso di Cerignola, Tavoliere delle Puglie (Tavoliere)
- Primitivo 2
- Primitivo di Manduria Dolce Naturale, Primitivo di Manduria
- Verdeca 2
- Locorotondo, Martina (Martina Franca)
- Aleatico 1
- Aleatico di Puglia
- Bombino Nero 1
- Castel del Monte Bombino Nero
- Moscato Bianco 1
- Moscato di Trani
- Sangiovese 1
- Orta Nova
Local names
- Cinsault
- Ottavianello, in Ostuni
- Moscato Reale
- Moscato Bianco, in Moscato di Trani
- Pampanuto
- Bombino Bianco, in Castel del Monte
In the vineyard and cellar
Old bush vines survive across the Salento and around Manduria. Puglia has a long rosato tradition, mostly from Negroamaro.
History and trade
For most of the 20th century Puglia sent strong red wine north to add colour and alcohol to other regions' blends. Bottling under its own name is a recent change.
The DOCGs
Oldest first. The year is when each one became a DOCG.
| Appellation | DOCG since | Grapes | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Castel del Monte Bombino Nero | 2011 | Bombino Nero (min 90%) | Barletta-Andria-Trani |
| Castel del Monte Nero di Troia Riserva | 2011 | Nero di Troia (min 90%) | Barletta-Andria-Trani |
| Castel del Monte Rosso Riserva | 2011 | Nero di Troia (min 65%), Aglianico, Montepulciano | Barletta-Andria-Trani |
| Primitivo di Manduria Dolce Naturale | 2011 | Primitivo (100%) | Taranto, Brindisi |
The DOCs
| Appellation | DOC since | Grapes | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aleatico di Puglia | 1973 | Aleatico (min 85%), Negroamaro, Malvasia Nera, Primitivo | Whole region of Puglia |
| Alezio | 1983 | Negroamaro (min 80%), Malvasia Nera, Sangiovese, Montepulciano | Lecce |
| Barletta | 1977 | Nero di Troia (min 70%), Montepulciano, Sangiovese, Malbec; Malvasia Bianca for whites | Barletta-Andria-Trani, Foggia |
| Brindisi | 1979 | Negroamaro (min 70%), Malvasia Nera, Susumaniello, Montepulciano, Sangiovese | Brindisi |
| Cacc'e Mmitte di Lucera | 1975 | Nero di Troia (35 to 60%), Montepulciano, Sangiovese, Malvasia Nera, plus 15 to 30% white grapes (Trebbiano, Bombino Bianco, Malvasia) | Foggia |
| Castel del Monte | 1971 | Nero di Troia, Aglianico, Montepulciano, Bombino Nero, Bombino Bianco, Chardonnay, Pampanuto | Barletta-Andria-Trani |
| Colline Joniche Tarantine | 2008 | Primitivo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Verdeca, Fiano | Taranto |
| Copertino | 1976 | Negroamaro (min 70%), Malvasia Nera, Montepulciano, Sangiovese | Lecce |
| Galatina | 1997 | Negroamaro (min 65%), Chardonnay (bianco) | Lecce |
| Gioia del Colle | 1987 | Primitivo, Montepulciano, Sangiovese, Negroamaro, Malvasia Nera, Trebbiano, Aleatico | Bari |
| Gravina | 1983 | Malvasia Bianca, Greco di Tufo, Bianco d'Alessano, Bombino Bianco, Trebbiano, Verdeca | Bari |
| Leverano | 1979 | Negroamaro, Malvasia Nera, Montepulciano, Malvasia Bianca, Bombino Bianco | Lecce |
| Lizzano | 1988 | Negroamaro (60 to 80%), Montepulciano, Sangiovese, Bombino Nero, Malvasia Nera, Trebbiano, Chardonnay | Taranto |
| Locorotondo | 1969 | Verdeca (50 to 65%), Bianco d'Alessano (35 to 50%), Fiano, Bombino Bianco, Malvasia | Bari, Brindisi |
| Martina (Martina Franca) | 1969 | Verdeca (50 to 65%), Bianco d'Alessano (35 to 50%), Fiano, Bombino Bianco, Malvasia Bianca | Taranto, Bari, Brindisi |
| Matino | 1971 | Negroamaro (min 70%), Malvasia Nera, Sangiovese | Lecce |
| Moscato di Trani | 1974 | Moscato Bianco (Moscato Reale, min 85%) | Barletta-Andria-Trani |
| Nardò | 1987 | Negroamaro (min 80%), Malvasia Nera, Montepulciano | Lecce |
| Negroamaro di Terra d'Otranto | 2011 | Negroamaro (min 90%) | Lecce, Brindisi, Taranto |
| Orta Nova | 1984 | Sangiovese (min 60%), Nero di Troia, Montepulciano, Lambrusco Maestri, Trebbiano | Foggia |
| Ostuni | 1972 | Impigno, Francavilla (bianco); Ottavianello (Cinsault) for the red | Brindisi |
| Primitivo di Manduria | 1974 | Primitivo (min 85%) | Taranto, Brindisi |
| Rosso di Cerignola | 1974 | Nero di Troia (min 55%), Negroamaro (15 to 30%), Sangiovese, Barbera, Montepulciano, Malbec, Trebbiano | Foggia |
| Salice Salentino | 1976 | Negroamaro (min 75% for rosso), Malvasia Nera, Fiano, Chardonnay, Aleatico | Lecce, Brindisi |
| San Severo | 1968 | Bombino Bianco, Trebbiano Toscano, Montepulciano, Nero di Troia, Sangiovese | Foggia |
| Squinzano | 1976 | Negroamaro (min 70%), Malvasia Nera, Sangiovese, Montepulciano | Lecce, Brindisi |
| Tavoliere delle Puglie (Tavoliere) | 2011 | Nero di Troia (min 65%, 90% for the varietal) | Foggia |
| Terra d'Otranto | 2011 | Negroamaro, Primitivo, Malvasia Nera, Aleatico, Malvasia Bianca, Verdeca, Fiano | Lecce, Brindisi, Taranto |
Facts that get tested
The kind of thing an exam asks about Puglia. Cover the answers and try them.
Primitivo is genetically the same as which grape?
Zinfandel. Both are the Croatian variety Tribidrag, also known as Crljenak Kaštelanski.
How many DOCGs carry the Castel del Monte name?
3. Castel del Monte Bombino Nero, Castel del Monte Nero di Troia Riserva and Castel del Monte Rosso Riserva.
Castel del Monte Bombino Nero DOCG is made only as
Rosato. It is Italy's only DOCG reserved for rosato.
Puglia's Primitivo DOCG is for which style?
A naturally sweet red. Primitivo di Manduria Dolce Naturale is sweet without fortification. Dry Primitivo di Manduria is a DOC.
Which grape is Negroamaro traditionally blended with in the Salento?
Malvasia Nera. Salice Salentino is the best known example.
The whites of Locorotondo and Martina Franca are based on which grapes?
Verdeca and Bianco d'Alessano. Both come from the Valle d'Itria, the land of the trulli.
Puglia's Leone de Castris made which Italian first in 1943?
The first rosato bottled and sold in Italy. Five Roses, a Negroamaro rosato, was made for the American forces then in Puglia.
How does Gioia del Colle differ from Manduria as a home for Primitivo?
It is higher, on the Murge plateau. The altitude, around 350 metres, gives fresher wines with less alcohol.
Think you've got it?
Twenty questions on Puglia, with every wrong answer drawn from the region and its neighbours.
Quiz me on Puglia