Colli di Faenza is a DOC of the Emilia-Romagna wine region of northern Italy. Created in August 1997, the title covers both red and white wines. The reds are made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Ancellotta, Ciliegiolo and Sangiovese, and the whites from Chardonnay, Pinot Bianco, Trebbiano, Pignoletto and Sauvignon Blanc.
Both varietals and blended wines are made under the Colli di Faenza title, the finest of which are red riserva wines aged for two years prior to commercial release (half of this time must be in oak barrels). The varieties permitted for use in the DOC's varietal wines are Sangiovese, Pinot Bianco and Trebbiano, the most traditional and local of the grapes now used to make the district's wines.
The blends are notable because they're based on French varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay. This is telling of the international popularity these varieties have, and how Italy's wine authorities have decided to accommodate this. A standard Colli di Faenza Rosso wine must contain at least 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the remaining portion is made up of any one or more of the other red varieties listed above. Similarly, a Colli di Faenza Bianco wine is made from at least 40% Chardonnay, and the remainder consists of one or more of the other white grapes sanctioned under the DOC laws.
The Colli di Faenza which give the DOC its title are the hills to the south and west of Faenza town in the province of Ravenna. This area of eastern Emilia-Romagna is typically very flat and much of it lies below sea-level, making it unsuited to high-quality viticulture. For this reason, the foothills of the northern Apennines have become an obvious destination for aspiring local viticulturalists. Prime vineyard sites sit all along this line of hills, which runs from Marche to Piedmont and separates Emilia-Romagna from Tuscany. Much of the foothill zone in the east of the area end is covered by the region's oldest DOCG, Albana di Romagna, whose catchment area entirely encompasses the Colli di Faenza. Further to the west lie Reno, the Colli Bolognesi and the Colli di Scandiano e Canossa, and further west still are the Colli di Parma and the Colli Piacentini, 125 miles (200km) away. The importance of the Apennines to the winemaking here is hard to overstate.
