Piedmont

Piedmont is located in the very North-West corner of Italy. Best known wines from the region include Barola and Barbaresco, which are made from the Nebbiolo grape variety. These wines are ideal for keeping, and tend to mature very well. Other popular varieties include Barbera and Dolcetto. Located in the foothills of the Alps, it forms its border with France and Switzerland. Due to the mountaineous nature of the region, it is very suseptable to fog. This however helps the Nebbiolo grapes to ripen. Nebbiolo in fact gets its name from the Piedmontese word nebbia meaning 'fog'. The Piedmont region has a continental climate with warm summers and cold winters. Due to rain shadow effects from the Alps, the region boasts very little rainfall. Vineyards are usually planted on hillsides with altitudes of between 150-400m. The warmer south facing slopes are mainly planted with Nebbiolo or Barbera while the cooler sites are planted with Dolcetto or Moscato.