S.Anna di Isola Capo Rizzuto is a lengthily named DOC of the Calabria wine region in the far south of Italy. It is named after the commune of Sant'Anna, on Calabria's eastern coastline. The isola in the name is something of a misnomer, as the 'island' in question is in fact a peninsula: the Capo Rizzuto which completes the DOC title. The commune occupies a special place in Mediterranean geography, not only as one of Italy's most easterly points, but also because it overlooks the Gulf of Taranto to the north, the Gulf of Squillace to the west, the Ionian Sea to the east and the Mediterranean itself beyond that. Catanzaro, a larger town just to the west, is known as the città tra due mari (city of two seas) for similar reasons.
The DOC title was introduced in January 1979, just a few months prior to its neighbor Melissa, 30 miles (48km) up the Ionian Sea coast to the north. It covers exclusively red (rosso) and rose (rosato) wines made from a combination of indigenous vine varieties; white (bianco) wines from the area are sold under IGT and VDT titles.
The key vine variety used here is Gaglioppo, which accounts for between 40% and 60% of any blend. Gaglioppo is locally known by several synonyms including Arvino and Aglianico, although it is entirely unrelated to either the Petite Arvine of the Swiss Valais, or the Aglianico which has made its name around Vulture in Basilicata. The variety may be accompanied in S.Anna di Isola Capo Rizzuto wine blends by any combination of six other varieties (four red and two white). Nocera, Nerello Mascalese, Nerello Cappuccio and Malvasia Nera are the red varieties, Greco Nero and Malvasia Bianca the white varieties. It may be surprising that a deep, red wine from the south of Italy can be made with a portion of white grapes, but this is not too unusual: the robust reds of the northern Rhone valley (Cote Rotie, for example) are often made more supple and alluring with an addition of Viognier, sometimes as much as 20%.
The arcing coastline around S.Anna is a vital component in the local terroir, as it is in the highly successful summer tourist economy here. The Mediterranean Sea helps to moderate the intense heat of the south Italian summer; the name Il Mezzogiorno, meaning 'The Midday', is often applied to Italy's southern half in reference to this persistent heat. The cooling and heating of the land over the course of a summer day causes morning and afternoon breezes that are chanelled by the subtly undulating topography. This minimizes the risk of fungal vine diseases in humid climates and further improves the climate's suitability for quality viticulture.
