Appellation · Italy
Vermentino di Gallura
Sardinia’s only DOCG, for Vermentino grown on granite in the island’s north.
Dry, medium-bodied white with citrus, green almond, herbs and a saline finish. Good weight for a white this fresh.
About Vermentino di Gallura
Gallura is the granite country in Sardinia’s north-east, and its Vermentino is the island’s most highly regarded white wine.
The variety is the same as Rolle in Provence and is called Pigato in Liguria — one grape under three names, which is a useful thing to know when a wine that tastes familiar has an unfamiliar label.
Gallura Vermentino is fuller and more textured than the Ligurian version, with citrus, herbs and a distinctly saline, faintly bitter finish.
Sardinia’s red is Cannonau, which DNA work has confirmed as Grenache — though the island maintains a long-standing counter-claim that the movement went the other way.
What the name means
- Legal name
- Vermentino di Gallura DOCG
- Type
- Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG)
- Set by
- MASAF
- Recognised
- 1996
- Regulates
- Origin, plus grape varieties, maximum yields, minimum ageing.
Everything a DOC controls, plus a compulsory analytical and tasting examination before bottling and a numbered state seal on the neck. The tier above DOC in regulatory strictness, which is not the same as guaranteed quality.
A minimum of 95% Vermentino. Sardinia’s only DOCG.
Grapes
Wines from here
Rules worth knowing
Confirmed in the EU register
Vermentino di Gallura is registered as a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), file number PDO-IT-A0903, protected at EU level since 1976.
Article 107 of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013
Only the rules that change what to expect in the glass or on the label. WineHQ does not reproduce production specifications, and each entry carries the date it was last checked because appellation rules change.
The designation is confirmed above. WineHQ has not read this appellation’s production specification, so it publishes no yields, ageing minima or permitted-variety lists for it — those come from the document linked above, not from a summary of it.
What to eat, and how to serve it
Derived from this region’s signature styles. Each is listed separately, because a region does not have one serving temperature.
Where to go next
Places worth trying if you like this one — neighbours, rivals, and the obvious step across.
- Sardinia — An island with strong Spanish influence in its grapes, notably Cannonau (Grenache) and Vermentino.
Sources
Sources consulted
- Italian DOP and IGP wine register — Ministero dell’agricoltura, della sovranità alimentare e delle foreste (MASAF)