The Great Atlas of Italian Wines Is An Indispensable Guide For Wine Lovers

Confused by Ciliegiolo? Mixed up by Marzemino? You’re not alone. The world of Italian wine is complicated as well as beautiful.

The Great Atlas of Italian Wines, a 384-page coffee table book by Alessandro Avatanco and Vittorio Manganelli, bills itself as the definitive tool for understanding, choosing, and discussing Italian wine. The book is published by Rizzoli and is available through Amazon and other outlets.

Italy has 20 wine regions and about 350 official wine grapes. It tells the story of Italian wine region by region with a description of the most widespread international grape varieties and the most important native grapes. If you are a lover of Italian wine, this book is a treasure trove of information. At your fingertips, you can look up grapes like Albarola and Grechetto and get important insights into the region.

There is a listing of the 1,500 most important producers and 3,000 of the best Italian wines. The wineries are indicated on plentiful maps that aid in the understanding of the geography. Another great feature is the infographic for the wines from each region. The infographics graph each wine in 10 dimensions from a central point. At a glance, you can see that Vermentino di Gallura rates high in drinkability (5) while not so much in complexity and longevity (3).

The authors have impressive backgrounds. Alessandro Avataneo is a director, teacher, and publisher. He has worked in more than thirty European countries, the United States, and Japan. Vittorio Manganelli is a long-time collaborator of Vini d’Italia and has edited the volumes Atlante delle vigne di Langa and The Art of Italian Wine for Slow Food Editore.

The US price is $85. We find this book a pleasure to read and a vital resource for lovers of Italian wine.