The Italian politician Giovanni Goria (1943-1994) was appointed Italy's youngest prime minister at the time in 1987. As Minister of Agriculture, he passed the "Goria Law" named after him, which came into force in February 1992. The main aim was to emphasise geographical origin by introducing a new quality level. This was intended to solve the problem of many wines being denied DOC status because the grape varieties and vinification methods used in the Vino da Tavolas were not taken into account in the DOC regulations.
Following the French model of Vin de pays, the new IGT (Indicazione Geografica Tipica) country wine category was created, which, however, did not allow for a more precise origin than Italy. The level lay between Vino da Tavola(table wine) and the quality wines classified as DOC or DOCG. In contrast to the stricter quality wine regulations, it offered winegrowers more freedom in the selection of grape varieties and production methods.
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The glossary is a monumental achievement and one of the most important contributions to wine knowledge. Of all the encyclopaedias I use on the subject of wine, it is by far the most important. That was the case ten years ago and it hasn't changed since.
Andreas Essl
Autor, Modena