“A NEW CLASSIFICATION OF DOC/DOCG FOLLOWING THE BURGUNDY MODEL… IT COULD RESOLVE THE CURRENT MONTALCINO CRISIS”: THE PROPOSAL BY PROFESSOR MARIO FREGONI, PRESIDENT OF THE INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATION OF VINE AND WINE

“A new classification of terroir denomination of origin for Italian wines based on the Burgundy model is hoped for; it would be a revolution of the classification system of our wines that is possible immediately, the current legislation would allow it”. This was the position stated recently by Mario Fregoni, the author of the fundamental text, “Viticulture of Quality”, which has changed the approach to grape cultivation in Italy, and who is also currently the honorary president of the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV).

The proposal by the professor of viticulture at the Catholic University of Piacenza was launched during the “International Scientific Symposium on Sangiovese”, organized in Florence by the Tuscany region and ARSIA.

For Fregoni, however, “applying the classification based on the Cru model in Italy still would not have avoided the problems regarding Montalcino in the past few months because the redefinition of the denomination of origin regards only the terrain and not the vineyards. This solution could resolve the current crisis in Montalcino because it would give greater prestige to some production that currently seems to be forced into a single quality. This model is valid for all Italian denominations, in particular, those of great prestige and monovarietals, not just for the territory of Montalcino”.
In Burgundy, the terroir are classified in four distinct categories (Grand Cru, Premier Cru, Municipality, and Region of Burgundy), but could it be replicated in Italy?

“Exactly” – assured Professor Fregoni – “it is a hierarchical type of classification in function with history, quality and geology; it means giving a pyramidal development to Italian denominations and the winemaking production that exists”.
As for the dilemma between vineyards and terroir, Fregoni concluded, “In Italy too many grapes are used for the same wine while the territory should be given more value. It is important, instead, that things are made clear for consumers, or rather, that the label must respect the contents of the bottle”.

And data from The International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV) confirms the words of Professor Fregoni: in Italy, out of the 390 DOC and DOCG denominations, only 45 refer to the terroir (geographic area, qualitative aspects, natural and human factors), and the rest refer exclusively to the grape varietals that are used.