Montepulciano
One word, two wines, endless confusion — the grape behind Montepulciano d'Abruzzo has nothing to do with the Tuscan town. Here's how to tell them apart, what the wine tastes like, and where to drink it at the source.
Two wines share this name, and only one of them is made from the grape. Sort that out and everything else about Montepulciano falls into place.
The grape lives in Abruzzo, on the Adriatic side of the peninsula, and it makes a deep, dark, soft-tannined red that overdelivers at almost every price. The town lives in Tuscany, two hundred kilometres west, and its famous wine — Vino Nobile — is Sangiovese wearing a borrowed name. Same word, two different worlds. It's the single most useful thing to know in Italian wine, so we'll settle it first and then get to the good part: a grape that's the second-most-planted red in the country and one of the best values on any list. For the wider picture, start at the Italy wine hub or the broader Italy hub.
The name problem, solved
Read the label for two little words: d'Abruzzo. That preposition tells you you're drinking the grape.
Here's the split. The town of Montepulciano sits in southern Tuscany, and its red, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, is built on Sangiovese — locally called Prugnolo Gentile. The grape called Montepulciano grows across the Apennines, chiefly in Abruzzo and the Marche. Unrelated. A bottle marked Montepulciano d'Abruzzo is the grape; a bottle marked Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is the place. Why the shared name at all? Nobody's sure — some old collision of a grape and a place-name that drifted apart over centuries. The upshot is the only thing worth carrying: never assume the town and the grape pour the same wine.
Montepulciano the grape lives in Abruzzo. Montepulciano the town lives in Tuscany. One word, two worlds.
What's in the glass
Inky purple-red, and softer than it looks. That's the grape's whole trick.
It buds and ripens late, wants warmth, and rewards a long Adriatic growing season — which is exactly why it thrives on the sunny slopes between the Gran Sasso and the sea and sulks in cooler, higher country. In the glass you get black cherry, plum and blackberry, a savoury undertow of dried herbs, black pepper and sometimes leather, and — the part that matters — tannins that are round and mouth-filling rather than gripping. Deep colour, gentle structure. Generous young, and in the right hands built to hold and deepen for years.
Where it speaks best
Abruzzo owns this grape, but it talks in more than one accent — and it's worth knowing which is which before you buy.
| Wine | Where | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| Montepulciano d'Abruzzo | Across Abruzzo (DOC) | The broad category: juicy, dark, soft — reliable everyday reds, plus serious single-estate bottlings |
| Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Colline Teramane | Teramo hills, below the Gran Sasso (DOCG) | The quality apex — more structure, depth and ageing potential |
| Cerasuolo d'Abruzzo | Across Abruzzo (DOC) | A deep, cherry-red rosé from the same grape — full-bodied, not a pale aperitif |
| Conero / Rosso Conero | Ancona, the Marche (DOCG) | Montepulciano-dominant reds off Monte Conero's limestone — firmer, more mineral |
| Rosso Piceno | Southern Marche | A Montepulciano–Sangiovese blend — the grape's supple fruit with Sangiovese lift |
Two poles anchor the rest. Colline Teramane is the structured summit, in the hills below Italy's highest Apennine peak. Conero, up in the Marche, is the same grape read through sea-facing limestone — firmer, more savoury. Between them sits an ocean of honest, affordable Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, and a handful of cult estates that have shown just how profound the grape can go.
The growers to know
A small group of Abruzzese growers dragged this grape from bulk wine to fine wine, and it's their names you want on the label. Emidio Pepe and Valentini are the legends — natural-minded, long-lived, collector-chased bottles that age like top Barolo. Chase them for the cellar, not the visit: Valentini doesn't receive anyone. Masciarelli built Abruzzo's modern reputation at scale, and its Castello di Semivicoli even gives you a place to sleep inside the story. For the precise, terroir-driven new wave, look to Valle Reale, Tiberio and Torre dei Beati. Over in the Marche, the Conero names to know are Umani Ronchi, Garofoli, Moroder and Le Terrazze. Treat that as a starting list, not a closed one — and confirm current releases and visit policies before you build a day around any of them.
Drinking it at the source
Go to Abruzzo before everyone else does. It's one of Italy's most underrated wine-travel regions precisely because it hasn't been overrun.
The grape's heartland runs from the Costa dei Trabocchi — the Adriatic coast studded with old timber fishing platforms — up into the foothills of the Gran Sasso and Majella national parks, some of the wildest country in peninsular Italy. The Strada del Vino Montepulciano d'Abruzzo threads the cellars into a drivable route, and most estates take visitors by appointment. Book ahead, and expect a warmer, rougher-edged welcome than Tuscany's grand houses lay on — that's the charm, not a flaw. The timing trick: aim for the late-May Cantine Aperte weekend or the autumn vendemmia, when the cellars throw their doors open and you don't have to beg for a slot.
Want the Marche side of the grape? Base yourself near Ancona on the Conero Riviera, where the Rosso Conero estates cling to Monte Conero's slopes within sight of the sea. Either way, taste it where it grows — mountains on one side, Adriatic on the other — and the wine suddenly explains itself. Estate policies and seasons shift, so check each cellar's own page before you go.
At the table
Open it with almost anything. Montepulciano was made to be poured alongside food, not studied in silence, and its soft tannins forgive more than most Italian reds will.
The home run is grilled lamb and the region's own arrosticini — skewers of mutton over coals. After that, tomato-rich pasta like maccheroni alla chitarra with ragù, pizza, cured meats, hard sheep's-milk pecorino. In high summer, switch to Cerasuolo, the rosé version, which is the local move for grilled fish along the Trabocchi coast. And save the structured Colline Teramane for something slow-cooked and serious — it can carry a real dinner.
For the grape's neighbours and rivals across the peninsula — Sangiovese, Nebbiolo, Aglianico and the rest of Italy's native reds — carry on at the Italy wine hub.
Common questions
Both — and that's the whole trap. The grape grows mostly in Abruzzo, on Italy's Adriatic side. The town is a hilltop in southern Tuscany, two hundred kilometres away. And the town's famous wine, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, is made from Sangiovese, not from the Montepulciano grape at all. So a bottle of Montepulciano d'Abruzzo and a bottle of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano are different grapes, different regions, different wines that happen to share a name. Read the label for the 'd'Abruzzo' and you're drinking the grape.
Inky purple in the glass, soft in the mouth — that's the signature. Expect black cherry, plum and blackberry with a savoury edge underneath: dried herbs, black pepper, a little leather. The key is the tannin, which is round and mouth-filling rather than gripping, so the wine goes down easy even young. Made as Cerasuolo, the same grape turns out a deep, full-bodied cherry-red rosé — not a pale poolside pink. And the top Colline Teramane bottlings add real structure and hold for a decade or more.
Abruzzo, no argument. The broad appellation is Montepulciano d'Abruzzo; the summit is Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Colline Teramane, the region's DOCG, up in the Teramo hills below the Gran Sasso. The other place to look is the Marche, where the grape dominates Conero DOCG — the Rosso Conero off the limestone around Ancona — and blends with Sangiovese in Rosso Piceno. Firmer, more mineral up there; softer and juicier down in Abruzzo.
Almost anything off a table. It was built for food, and its soft tannins forgive a lot. Reach for grilled lamb and the local arrosticini — skewers of mutton over coals — or tomato-rich pasta like maccheroni alla chitarra with ragù, pizza, cured meats, hard pecorino. It's one of the easiest Italian reds to open on a weeknight and one of the best values doing it. Save the structured Colline Teramane for the slow-cooked Sunday roast.
Glossary
- Montepulciano d'Abruzzo
- The main appellation for the Montepulciano grape, covering most of Abruzzo. A DOC — reliable, food-friendly, dark-fruited red. Not to be confused with the Tuscan town of the same name.
- Colline Teramane
- Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Colline Teramane, the region's DOCG, in the hills of Teramo province below the Gran Sasso. The quality apex for the grape — more structured and age-worthy than the broader DOC.
- Cerasuolo d'Abruzzo
- A deep, full-bodied rosé made from Montepulciano; the name comes from cerasa, dialect for cherry. Its own DOC since 2010 — a serious pink wine, not a pale aperitif.
- Vino Nobile di Montepulciano
- The red wine of the Tuscan town of Montepulciano — made mainly from Sangiovese (locally 'Prugnolo Gentile'), NOT from the Montepulciano grape. A frequent source of confusion.