Wine in Milan

The area around Lake Garda produces a number of notable wines, most famously the Bardolino DOC light red. Its composition is mainly from three grapes; Corvina, Molinara and Rondinella - the same ones used to produced Valpolicella. The increasingly popular Lugana full-bodied white is also grown in this region. Lesser known is the white Custoza wine made from Trebbiano and Garganega grapes.

The Po Valley is the largest wine region in Lombardy, producing Oltrepo Pavese wines, many of which are nominated Denomination of Origin Controlled (DOC). It produces over 20 varieties of still and sparkling wines. Typical grapes used to produce white wines are Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling Italico and Pinot Nero. Red wines are produced from Pinot Nero and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. The region's sparkling wines vary in their levels of 'sparkle'; frizzante wines are typically made from either the Croatina and Moscato grapes producing dry, semi-sweet and liquoroso wines, the latter being more of a dessert wine. It is also a prolific producer of Pinot Noir grapes - some of which are also used to make sparkling wines.

The Valtellina valley is situated near the border with Switzerland and its most well-known DOC wines are produced using mainly the Nebbiolo grape. They've been growing grapes here since the 9th century (though the Nebbiolo grape may have only been grown here since the 19th century) and the region's wines haven't previously attracted much attention, though that seems to be changing. Unusually, some of its finest wines are produced using a semi-dried grape, creating a richly- flavoured Sforzato.