Prior to now, there have been collectors and consultants concerned with associating a winery’s title with an anticipated style; right this moment, there’s a rising group of wine lovers who are likely to hyperlink the organoleptic and sensory traits of a wine not solely to a winery or label but additionally to experiences tied to the great thing about the places, their environmental integrity, and the recollections created throughout visits to the origin territory.
UGAs (quick for ‘Unità Geografiche Aggiuntive’ and pronounced ‘ooh-gah’) are particular to Italy and are designed to seize the essence of a territory. Recognized pre-2016 as MGAs (‘Menzione Geografica Aggiuntiva’), they signify delimited geographical areas inside a bigger zone – for instance, the Barolo MGA of ‘Vignarionda’ within the township of Serralunga d’Alba.
An integral a part of the manufacturing laws of the corresponding DOC or DOCG, the required title of an space can solely be indicated on the label if the wine in query is obtained from grapes sourced from that exact UGA.
If one needs to discover a parallel with the French system, the UGAs can be nearer to the idea of lieu-dit: in contrast to the French cru, or the Italian subzone – which each impose extra restrictive laws and because of this denote the next rating of high quality than the fundamental appellation –UGAs shouldn’t have any particular hierarchical classification.
The indication of a UGA on the label of a bottle of wine doesn’t usually impose stricter guidelines to the vigneron (though the brand new Alto Adige MGAs look set to alter that) and neither does it proclaim superiority over a generic bottling; it merely demonstrates place, whereas high quality is tied to the talent of the producer.
The phrases of Giovanni Manetti, president of the Chianti Classico DOCG consortium, talking to Decanter, are crystal clear:
‘The guiding philosophy of the UGAs is profoundly completely different from that of Burgundy. Whereas in Burgundy the designation of the crus goals to establish very restricted however qualitatively wonderful parts in comparison with the remainder of the designation, the UGAs of Chianti Classico have been designed as a brand new geography for your complete designation.
‘The truth is, the UGAs don’t purpose to establish particular locations however signify a horizontal division of the Chianti Classico territory, with none need to create a qualitative pyramid, which for our designation is represented by the three completely different typologies: Annata, Riserva and Gran Selezione.’
Recognition of terroir is a vital think about wine high quality, and a direct consequence is shopper demand for distinctive wines that inform a narrative. UGAs present a method to rejoice this by permitting customers to grasp the provenance of the grapes and stimulate a deeper curiosity within the values of the territory. Moreover, UGAs permit producers to distinguish themselves and their ranges, creating distinctive manufacturers that appeal to each fanatics and buyers.
What function does it serve to point a UGA on the label?
Primarily, designating a UGA on the label serves to extra exactly spotlight the origin of a wine and to emphasize sure qualitative and quantitative traits.
‘In our case,’ says Andreas Kofler, president of the Alto Adige DOC consortium, ‘the primary aim was to delineate climatically and geologically homogeneous areas, additionally taking into consideration historic references such because the outdated cadastral map of Maria Teresa from 1858. Every delimitation system has its personal peculiarities, and ours additionally displays the specifics of the Alto Adige territory.
‘Not like Burgundy or Barolo, the place a number of crus are recognized for a single selection, our strategy has been to affiliate essentially the most appropriate varieties with every space, in line with studied standards. This manner, we provide the patron better safety: agronomists and oenologists have fastidiously studied which selection expresses itself finest in every single UGA, maximising the precise traits of every UGA.’
In 2010, Barolo settled totally on historic names for the 181 MGAs that have been recognized – names that fanatics already recognised and related to top quality. Due to this fact, regulating the MGAs served to formalise present practices with the purpose of additional enhancing the viticultural heritage.
‘I don’t consider that the introduction of a regulatory framework will essentially result in a rise within the costs of wines from a geographical unit,’ states Eduard Bernhart, director of the Alto Adige consortium.
‘Nevertheless, with the implementation of latest laws and the ensuing discount of DOC portions to 25% for UGA wines, in some circumstances the manufacturing of bottles will lower. This might, in the long run, have an effect on costs.’
Manetti notes that ‘With the UGAs, the Chianti Classico Gran Selezione wines are higher identifiable and, due to this fact, recognisable out there, permitting the patron to assign, within the medium to long run, an added worth to the bought bottle.’
Is the proliferation of UGAs useful for customers?
The rising demand from customers to know the origin of the territory from which a product comes can solely discover solutions in additional correct and dependable communication programs, to which the UGAs successfully reply, nonetheless understanding all the UGAs within the quick time period can show a little bit of a headache.
Most consortia have developed new maps and ‘origin pyramids’, and run informative seminars and masterclasses. Some – as within the case of Alto Adige – have created a pictogram, a particular visible component that enables for clear differentiation between the wines of a geographical unit and people with fanciful names, whereas concurrently creating a standard visible identification for all UGA wines from the area.
When did all of it begin and what number of UGAs are on the market?
We might draft a protracted listing of denominations which are evaluating or awaiting approval for the UGA system, however it’s in steady evolution.
2007 noticed the official introduction of the primary MGAs in Barbaresco (66), adopted by its neighbour Barolo in 2010 (181). That very same 12 months, the Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore consorzio recognized 43 MGAs, known as ‘Rive’. In 2013 it was Soave’s flip, with 33 UGAs highlighting the terroir variations inside one of many largest white wine terroirs in Italy. And in 2014, Chianti Classico nominated 11 UGAs.
Extra not too long ago, Franciacorta started the method of together with 134 UGAs in its laws in 2016, however remains to be awaiting validation. Alto Adige introduced 86 UGAs final 12 months, and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano’s 12 UGAs, generally known as ‘Pieve’, come into impact this 12 months.
It’s value mentioning the 12 UGA of Sangiovese Rocche di Romagna. Consorzio director Filiberto Mazzanti explains that they’re really primarily based on a sub-zone manufacturing regulation accredited by the Ministry of Agriculture, designed to spotlight the areas with increased values, making it extra just like the Burgundy cru system than different MGA.
The proliferation of MGAs/ UGAs in Italian wine areas is a transparent signal of a paradigm shift in pondering, in addition to a sworn statement to the maturity of Italian denominations which are catering to a extra discerning drinker.
