An Enviable Primacy: D.O.C.

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Let us now talk about the first D.O.C. (Denominazione di Origine Controllata, controlled designation of origin in English) ever. It all dates back to September, 24 1716, when the Gran Duke of Tuscany Cosimo III ‘de Medici issued an edict entitled Sopra la Dichiarazione de’ confine delle Quattro regioni Chianti, Pomino, Carmignano e Valdarno Superiore, which in English would be “About the Delineation of the Boundaries that Limit the Four Regions of Chianti, Pomino, Carmignano and Valdarno Superiore”. The edict aimed at defining the regions were D.O.C. wine had to be produced. The difference between the current D.O.C. and the Medici’s one is that Cosimo’s edict did not provide any rule nor regulation concerning production techniques. Yet, what Cosimo did take care of was to issue a decree to control the different phases of wine production.
The first D.O.C. designation concerned precisely the regions of Chianti (between Panzano and Greve), Carmignano (west of Florence), Pomino (east of Florence) and the Valdarno Superiore (the western and eastern hills along the Arno River between Florence and Arezzo, where Petrolo belongs). The reason lies in the fact that wines produced in those regions already cherished a long tradition and were among the most renowned. Cosimo III decided to issue the edict also to allow those wines to be exported and sold in foreign markets. Therefore, it was fundamental to guarantee the good quality of the wine in order to protect the good reputation the Gran Duchy had all around Europe.
If you pay attention, you can notice that on every bottle of Chianti Classico wine, the label features the traditional “black rooster” and states “since 1716”, in order to remember the edict.

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