Terre di Chieti IGT is a province-wide Indicazione Geografica Tipica title for the Chieti province of Abruzzo, central Italy. It was created in 1995, when the IGT category was first rolled out across Italy. It is complemented by the more location-specific title Colline Teatine IGT, which focuses just on the hills around Chieti city, the provincial capital.
As per the loose production regulations common to all IGT titles, Terre di Chieti wines can (in theory) be anything from dry whites and sweet rosés to sparkling reds. In reality, however, the majority are dry table wines made from just a handful of classic grape varieties – those already established in the region, and those likely to be well received by consumers. As such, Chardonnay, Pecorino and Pinot Grigio make up the majority of white wines made here, while the reds are predominantly based on Sangiovese (Italy's most popular and widely planted grape variety), Montepulciano (a mainstay of Abruzzo's red-wines) and crowd-pleasing Merlot.
It is only logical that red wines made under this title should be so dominated by Montepulciano and Sangiovese; the former is by far Abruzzo's most commonly planted grape variety, the latter a reliable and classically Italian red-wine grape which thrives in the local terroir. No less surprising is the prevalence of Pecorino and Chardonnay in the white wines. Pecorino is a core variety all over Abruzzo, and Marche just to the north. It has become a staple wine grape of the local IGTs, most notably from the Colline Teatine and the Colline Pescaresi which surround Pescara. Chardonnay's popularity here needs little explanation – it is arguably the world's most marketable wine grape, and grows well here, making it an obvious addition to any Abruzzo vineyard.
Beyond these well-known grape varieties, the IGT's disciplinare di produzione (the document which stipulates which lays out the dos and don'ts for the appellation) permits the production of single-variety wines from relatively wide range of other grapes. These include local classics like Passerina, Cococciola and Falanghina as well as the internationally popular Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc.
