Colline del Genovesato IGT (Indicazione Geografica Tipica) is one of a handful of IGT titles used in Liguria, north-western Italy. It covers the Genoa province, whose administrative center is the city of Genoa, after which the province is named. This historic port-town is located on the Ligurian coast roughly 60 miles (100km) from the border with France.
Genoa is Italy's sixth-largest city, the nation's largest seaport and one of the most populous cities on the Mediterranean. Genoa, whose impressive history and landmarks have earned it the nickname La Superba ('the Superb One'), was the birthplace of Christopher Columbus, a fact taken into consideration when the city became the official European Capital of Culture for 2004. Parts of the old town – specifically the so-called Strade Nuove ('new streets') and the Palazzi dei Rolli palace – were later confirmed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The name Colline del Genovesato translates literally (and rather inelegantly) as ‘the hills of the Genoa area’, although in reality the province is covered in its entirety – valleys, plains and mountains included.
Colline del Genovesato wines come in various forms – white bianco, rosé rosato and red rosso, each color with its still and sparkling (frizzante) variant. There are even sweet, dried-grape passito wines produced under the title, and light, red novello wines destined for early consumption.
The vineyards that produce Colline del Genovesato wines tend to lie at altitudes between 330ft and 1000ft (100–300m), on south-east-facing slopes with gradients between 35% and 50%.
Naturally, given the area’s proximity to the Ligurian sea, sandstone and various forms of limestone are common. Turbidite clays (the result of ancient underwater avalanches) are also a feature of the local terroir.
The production area overlaps significantly with the province's DOC titles Val Polcevera, Golfo del Tigullio and Riviera di Ponente. Their counterparts in the neighboring Savona province are covered by the Colline del Savonese IGT title.
