Salt and pepper. Simon and Garfunkel. Italy and wine. Some things are just meant to go together.
Wine culture has been part of Italy since 4,000 BC – and possibly even earlier. In fact, the people of Ancient Rome were so obsessed with wine that an Emperor had to destroy hundreds of vineyards because there wasn’t enough land for food.
The Italian wine world is one of the most revered across all of Europe. But does that make their wines worthy investments? Or are they best enjoyed with a light risotto instead? Let’s find out.
The Italian wine region
Italy is so synonymous with wine that every single region in the country produces a form of Vino (wine). The result? Italy is the world’s largest producer of wine, accounting for about one-fifth of global production.
But the region is known for more than its consistently high-quality vintages (although that certainly doesn’t hurt!). Famous wine regions, like Tuscany, Sicily, Piedmont and Veneto don’t just produce fantastic vintages – they have the landscape to match it.
Caption: Sourced from Italia.it
And the most remarkable thing about the Italian region is how vastly different the climates of North and South Italy are – and yet both are suitable for producing incredible bottles of wine.
Take Piedmont for example. The ever-popular region is surrounded by the Alps. You’d be forgiven for thinking the vineyards were set in Mordor, not Italy!
Caption: Sourced from PeakVisor
To the south of the region is a set of rolling hills that are the polar opposite and actually retain warmth. So you have an ongoing battle between the icy temperatures of the Alps and the heat of the Mediterranean.
The result of this is fog. Misty conditions are perfect for cultivating late-ripening grapes, which leads to the extremely flavourful yet balanced reds of the Piedmont region. It’s how Barolo – unique to the Piedmont region – became the king of Italian reds.
But travel down to the southernmost point of Italy and you will find Sicily – the largest wine-producing region in the nation.
The island is the most Mediterranean-esque point of Italy. It enjoys constant sunshine, minimal rainfall and a cool breeze that keeps pests and diseases at bay. The rich, volcanic soil sitting at the foot of the monstrous Mount Etna provides an aromatic and distinct flavour to wines produced in the region. When you’re drinking a Sicilian wine, you know.
Caption: Mount Etna is Europe’s largest active volcano. Source: The Guardian
Investing in Italian vintages: the state of the market
The prestige of Italian vino has translated to the investment market, too.
Regions known for their strong reds (like the Barolos from Piedmont) have excellent investment potential due to their lengthy drink windows. In fact, many sommeliers recommend that a Barolo age for at least a decade before consumption, making it an excellent long-term asset.
Caption: Certain vineyards in the Barolo wine country have become heritage-listed sites Source: Adventures of Carry On
For a little while, wine indices kept Italy bottled in the “Rest of the World” category. But the sheer weight of investment numbers coming into the market forced these index curators to reconsider. And looking at the five-year performance of each major wine region, Italy’s top 100 are knocking it out of the park.
According to Liv-ex, only one other index has outperformed Italy over the past five years – Champagne.
Italy is up 33.7% since 2018, demonstrating solid annualised growth of about 6%.
Caption: Sourced from Liv-ex
And while the overall fine wine market has stumbled a little in 2023, the Italian market has been the least affected.
For context, Bordeaux wines are down 10.4%, while the Rest of the World index has fallen 12.6%. Italy’s top 100 wines have only backtracked about 6.4% in 2023 and are in a great position to continue their long-term growth once market conditions improve.
What is DOCG classification?
A key driver of the Italian investment market is classification. Each wine from the region receives a label that directly correlates to the bottle’s quality. There are four classifications available:
- VdT. This basically means “table wine” and is the kind of bottle you’d expect to pick up from your local grocery store for $10.
- IGT. There are no strict standards for IGT bottles other than they come from a specific region as stated on the label. These wines are usually a little better than “table wines”.
- DOC. Designation of controlled origin have rather stringent rules about how the wine is produced, the vineyard it is bottled in and how it is distributed.
- DOCG. This basically means the same thing as DOC, but with a guarantee attached to it by the Italian government. Simply, Italian wines with the DOCG label are the creme de la creme of what the country has to offer. There are approximately 77 wines that have received this classification, including Barolos from Piedmont and Chianti from Tuscany.
Caption: Sourced from Flavours Holidays
The best Italian vintages money can buy
The Italian climate isn’t always the most consistent. A northern Italian wine region might enjoy a spectacular growing season, while a southern region produces a pretty mediocre crop. But the past decade has overall been quite strong for Italian Vino, with a few standouts.
- 2010 was a fantastic growing season all round. Barolos produced this year particularly thrived thanks to the long growing season, leading to vibrant flavour profiles. Wine Scholar Guild (WSG) rated this vintage a 5/5 for Northern Italy, and 4.5/5 for Southern Italy – so vineyards across the nation got to enjoy excellent conditions. Top performers include Vietti Barolo Rocche di Castiglione and Ornellaia Bolgerhi Superiore
- 2013 mirrored the performance of 2010, receiving a five-star rating for Northern Italy and 4.5/5 for Southern regions from WSG. It was another long growing season for vineyards across Italy, with a relatively moderate spring and a late harvest. Wine Spectator scored the year’s vintage 96/100. Standouts include Aldo Conterno Barolo Granbussia Riservaand Isole e Olena Chianti Classico
- 2016 may very well have been the best vintage Italy has served up over the past 15 years – especially for Barolos. Wine Spectator gave this year an almost perfect score (98/100), and for good reason. The season started off slow, with decent rainfall and cooler temperatures lending itself to a lengthy growing season. This helped Northern Italian reds develop a rich flavour profile held in bottles with extremely long drink windows. The cream of the crop here is the Vietti Barolo Ravera and Massolino Barolo Vigna Rionda Riserva
Case study: 2010 Vietti Barolo Rocche di Castiglione DOCG & 2016 Vietti Barolo Ravera
2010 Vietti Barolo Rocche di Castiglione DOCG
Leading wine critic Antonio Galloni’s review described this wine as “insanely beautiful”. Those two simple words speak to the quality of the Barolo produced by esteemed winemaker Vietti.
Caption: The 2010 Vietti Barolo Rocche di Castiglione being authenticated before listing on TradingGrapes
The 2010 Vietti Barolo received an impressive 97/100 from Robert Parker and boasts a drink window of now to around 2055. So, there’s plenty of time for investors to kick up their shoes, let scarcity kick in and watch as the price of a bottle sky-rockets.
For now, the average bottle of Barolo is already retailing for over $700, according to Wine-searcher.
Now consider this – the vintage was issued in 2014 at an RRP of approximately $220. So the 2010 Vietti Barolo has already tripled its value in under a decade.
Repeating this feat will be a tough ask in the short term, as supply for this bottle is still readily available (especially in the United Kingdom). Outside of Europe though, scarcity is starting to kick in and it won’t be long until we start seeing four-figure asking prices for this magnificent vintage.
Caption: Sourced from Wine-searcher
2016 Vietti Barolo Ravera
Top-quality wines from 2010 are already starting to run up serious price tags given the prestige of the growing season.
But so incredible was the 2016 vintage that bottles from this year are already matching their 2010 counterparts – despite being in far greater supply.
If an investor was to get their hands on only one bottle of Italian wine, a Barolo from 2016 is an obvious choice. And who better than Vietti, a 40-year veteran of the Piedmont wine region.
The 2016 Vietti Barolo Ravera is one of the best bottles to come out of a year brimming with critical acclaim. It secured a sparkling review from Robert Parker, who scored it a 98/100, while Antonio Galloni gave it a rare perfect 100/100.
Most sommeliers believe that the 2016 Barolos need until at least 2025 before they start blooming, and that the drinking window won’t close until the other side of 2050 – at the earliest.
All the boxes for a fine wine investment have been ticked:
- Critical acclaim
- Terrific growing season (2016 was one of the best ever for Piedmont)
- Lengthy drinking window
- High demand
According to Wine-searcher, the average price of a 750mL bottle of Vietti’s Barolo Ravera is about $600, up from $550 at the start of 2023.
But what’s even more impressive is that the bottle was originally released in 2020 for just $260. So it has more than doubled in price in just three years, even amid a slowdown in the fine wine market.
Only 642 cases (7,704 bottles) of the Barolo Ravera were made, so the supply is likely to dry up pretty quickly – although scarcity hasn’t quite set in yet.
All up, it’s hard to make a case against the 2016 Vietti Barolo Ravera as a blue-chip investment wine.
Summary
Italian wines have a long history of quality and prestige. The nation is the world’s biggest producer of wine, edging out France and the United States.
From the rugged slopes of Piedmont to the sun-kissed shores of Sicily, each region boasts its own unique melody. Whether you want the smooth baritone of a Barolo, or the light soprano of a Vermentino, Italy has a variety for all.
The investment market hasn’t been taken super seriously until recently – and Italian wines have rewarded the world for its patience. Its stellar performance is outshone by only Champagne, and even amid a market slowdown, the best vintages Italy has to offer are still steaming ahead.
Like we said at the start - some things just go together. Cin cin (cheers!)
