📍 San Gimignano

San Gimignano is a small medieval town in the province of Siena in Tuscany, known for its towers: about a dozen tower houses survive. Its old centre is on the UNESCO list. It is also where Tuscany's best-known white wine, Vernaccia di San Gimignano, is made. The area is part of Tuscany.

Vernaccia is a white grape grown on the slopes around the town. The best vineyards lie on sandstone soils. It is considered unrelated to other Italian Vernaccias, such as Vernaccia di Oristano in Sardinia or Vernaccia di Serrapetrona in Marche. In 1966 the wine became the first Italian DOC, and in 1993 it was upgraded to the top DOCG category.

In the early twentieth century Vernaccia nearly vanished from the vineyards: the more productive Trebbiano and Malvasia replaced it. Since the 1960s the wine has come back, valued for its freshness and clear taste.

Besides the white wine, the San Gimignano DOC also covers red and rosé wines from Sangiovese. But it was Vernaccia that brought the town its fame, and it is drunk alongside saffron, pecorino and other local products.