Murgia

Styles

Principal grape varieties

Terroir

• The north-western Murge are formed from compact limestones belonging to the lithological unit of the Bari and Altamura limestone, a formation dating to the Cretaceous whose thickness reaches 3,000 metres.
• The plateau encompasses the north-western Murge, which contain the highest elevations of the entire massif — Monte Caccia at 680 metres and Torre Disperata at 686 metres — with an average altitude that rarely falls below 350 metres above sea level.
• The Murge correspond to a tabular relief bounded on its south-eastern edge by an extensive escarpment, while towards the north-east, moving towards the Adriatic, the relief gradually descends to sea level.
• Erosion by wind and by rainwater rich in carbon dioxide has shaped an extensive calcareous plateau devoid of permanent watercourses, with a subterranean water table that in the Murge Alte sector can reach as deep as 400 metres below sea level.
• The climate is typically pseudo-steppic, with mean annual temperatures ranging from 10 to 19 degrees Celsius and from 0 to 4 degrees Celsius in the coldest months, while rainfall from April to October amounts to approximately 300 millimetres, representing roughly half of the annual total.
• Vegetative growth is not particularly vigorous owing to climatic fluctuations, and yields are naturally limited to quantities that rarely exceed 100 quintals per hectare.

• The area's viticultural history is documented from the landing of the Greeks through to the present day, passing through the medieval period, with finds such as wine amphorae recovered during archaeological excavations.
• The zone has traditionally been shaped by Land Reform, which was based on the subdivision of landholdings to allow multiple family units to derive their income.

• Murgia bianco displays a straw-yellow colour of varying intensity, a fruity nose, and a characteristic palate that is dry and savoury.
• Murgia rosato displays an intense cherry-pink (cerasuolo) colour and a persistent nose, while on the palate it is dry and characterful.

Facts drawn from the specification's terroir-link section by automatic interpretation — see the source.

All appellations in Italy

Sources

• eAmbrosia register (EU) — File number PGI-IT-A0600