The Winery Cantina Sociale di Torre Melissa of Calabria

Discovering the wine region of Calabria

Calabria is a wine region in southern Italy, in fact a large peninsula that juts out between the Ionian Sea and the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is separated from Sicily by the narrow Strait of Messina. Its northern border with Basilicata is marked by the peaks of the southern Apennines. Calabria and its wines have undergone many influences over the centuries.

It was the ancient Greeks who first cultivated wine vines here. For many centuries, Calabrian wines were famous not only in Italy, but also in other European countries. However, their glory began to Fade with competition from French regions such as Bordeaux. These were closer, both geographically and culturally, to key markets such as London and Amsterdam.