Wine route
Strada dei Vini di Romagna
2 days, 110 km · 7 stops
Open the driveEmilia Romagna · DOC
Sangiovese di Romagna DOC Romagna's Own Sangiovese, From Imola to Rimini
Romagna's own Sangiovese, grown on the hills south of the Via Emilia from Imola to Rimini. Since 2011 the label reads Romagna DOC Sangiovese. The wine is the one this name always meant: at least 85% Sangiovese, ruby red, cherry and violet on the nose, a light grip and a bitter-edged finish. Sixteen village names, Superiore and Riserva sit above it.
25
Wines live now
£11-£35
Price range today
3
UK retailers
Decode the label
What the label tells you
One denomination, 5 things it can say on the front. Colour first, then the qualifier.
On the label
Romagna Sangiovese
the base wine, no extra word
From 1 December of the harvest year, no minimum ageing
12% minimum alcohol
Cherry, violet and a bitter-edged finish. The weekday bottle of Romagna, at its best within three years.
No bottles in stock right now
On the label
Romagna Sangiovese Superiore
lower yields, a longer wait
From 1 April of the year after harvest
12.5% minimum, from 10.5 tonnes per hectare
The same grape from a stricter crop: a rounder middle and a little more depth.
In stock from £11.90 See the 11 bottles ↓On the label
Romagna Sangiovese with a sub-zone name
Predappio, Modigliana and fourteen more
95% Sangiovese minimum, 9 tonnes per hectare
From 1 September of the year after harvest, 12.5% minimum
The place goes on the label and the recipe tightens. Modigliana is the austere, mountain one; Predappio has vivid fruit and firm tannins.
In stock from £14 See the 8 bottles ↓On the label
Romagna Sangiovese Riserva
the cellar tier
24 months from 1 December of the harvest year
13% minimum alcohol
Time turns the cherry towards dried fruit and leather. A sub-zone Riserva waits until 1 September of the third year after the harvest.
In stock from £11.20 See the 6 bottles ↓On the label
Romagna Sangiovese Passito
the rare dried-grape red
Dried grapes on the vine or in the loft
12% actual alcohol, 6 to 20 g/l of sugar
Almost never seen in the UK. Dry to lightly sweet, made from grapes shrivelled before pressing.
No bottles in stock right now
The boundary
Where it is
Everything on this page, the estates, the bottles, the sub-zones, sits inside this line.
Estate 1
San Patrignano
Visit →Coriano
Tastings available
Denomination
Grapes Used
Estate 2
Azienda Agricola Tre Monti
Visit →Imola
Tastings available
Denomination
Grapes Used
Estate 3
Drei Donà – Tenuta La Palazza
Visit →Forlì
Tastings available
Denomination
Grapes Used
Estate 4
Fattoria Zerbina
Visit →Marzeno
Tastings available
Denomination
Grapes Used
Estate 5
Ronchi di Castelluccio
Visit →Modigliana
Book online
Denomination
Grapes Used
Estate 6
Tenuta Mara
Visit →San Clemente
Tastings available
Denomination
Grapes Used
Sangiovese di Romagna DOC zone
Estates you can visit Wine route in the zoneOutside the zone
A strip of hills on the Adriatic side of the Apennines, running south-east for a hundred kilometres from Imola to Rimini. The Via Emilia and the Rimini to Bologna railway draw the downhill edge: everything on the flat plain to the north is out. The vines climb the valleys of the Lamone, Montone, Rabbi, Bidente, Savio and Marecchia rivers, on clay, sandstone and the poor limestone the locals call Spungone. Fifty-four towns and villages in the provinces of Bologna, Ravenna, Forlì-Cesena and Rimini qualify, and sixteen of the best-known hill villages have their own name on the label.
Inside the zone
16
Named sub-zones
54
Communes across four provinces
85%
Sangiovese minimum, 95% with a sub-zone name
1967
First DOC, folded into Romagna DOC in 2011
12 t/ha
Maximum crop for the base wine
Click or tap a pin for its estate. The numbered pins match the estate cards below.
Towns worth knowing
Imola
Faenza
Modigliana
Predappio
Bertinoro
Cesena
Rimini
Faenza holds the 1672 deed, the first known document to name the grape; Predappio and Modigliana are the sub-zones UK shops stock most.
In the glass
What it tastes like
Black cherry
Violet
Forest berries
Liquorice
The disciplinare
The rules that define it
The same table on every denomination page, straight from the production rules.
Grape & its role
Share of the blend
050100%
SangioveseThe whole point; 95% once a sub-zone name is on the labelat least 85%Other red grapes approved for Emilia-RomagnaOptional softeners; capped at 5% inside a sub-zoneup to 15%Solid means the rules demand it. Striped means optional, up to that amount. The words on the right say the same rule.
The label now reads Romagna DOC Sangiovese the 1967 Sangiovese di Romagna DOC became a type inside the Romagna DOC in September 2011, and both names are still on UK shelves.
Sixteen sub-zones may follow the name each needs 95% Sangiovese, 9 tonnes per hectare and a wait until 1 September after the harvest.
Riserva means 24 months counted from 1 December of the harvest year; a sub-zone Riserva waits until 1 September of the third year after the harvest.
Hills and foothills, plus the drier sandy and clay soils inside the line qualify. The Via Emilia and the Rimini to Bologna railway set the downhill limit, and wet alluvial or newly reclaimed land is out.
Wood is allowed, never required for the base wine, Superiore, Riserva and Passito alike; ceramic jars are allowed too.
Ageing and alcohol minimums per tier are in the label guide above.
Editor's cellar
Bottles to try, and what Sangiovese di Romagna costs in the UK
Every live Sangiovese di Romagna listing, cheapest to dearest
25 wines · 3 retailers
By style, today
Superiore
from £11.90
Sub-zone
from £14
Riserva
from £11.20
Live prices, compared across 3 UK retailers.
Cellar doors · inside the zone
Estates you can visit
6 working estates with their gates open, numbered to match their pins on the map above.
Only show
No estates match these filters. Clear a filter to see more.
Experiences in the Sangiovese di Romagna zone
Cellar experiences here average around €45. These are the strongest fits for this page.
Tasting
"From Icons to New Classics" Wine tasting in Ronchi di Castelluccio, Romagna Winery
Ronchi di Castelluccio
A tasting journey that recounts the evolution of Ronchi di Castelluccio through four wines representative of its history and present.
1 h 30 From €30 pp
Book via
Winedering
Tasting
"The approach to the great Ronchi" Wine tasting at Ronchi di Castelluccio, Romagna Winery
Ronchi di Castelluccio
Learn more about Ronchi di Castelluccio's identity through a tasting that showcases its most iconic labels alongside its prestigious crus.
From €50 pp
Book via
Winedering
Tasting
"Milestones: the great Ronchi di Castelluccio" Wine tasting at Ronchi di Castelluccio, Romagna Winery
Ronchi di Castelluccio
An experience dedicated to the finest expressions of Ronchi di Castelluccio, designed for those who wish to discover the winery's soul.
1 h 30 From €70 pp
Book via
Winedering
Sixteen names, one grape
The sub-zones
Any of these sixteen names may follow Romagna Sangiovese on a label. Each needs 95% Sangiovese, a smaller crop and a later release than the base wine. Same rulebook, different hills.
Imola
Furthest west, south of the Via Emilia around Imola: over a tenth of the region's Sangiovese grows in Bologna province, nearly all of it here.
Must visit
Azienda Agricola Tre Monti
Serra
The Serra hills between Castel Bolognese and Riolo Terme, up the Senio valley: a continental climate far from the sea gives floral, fresh-fruited wines.
Brisighella
Parts of Brisighella, Faenza and Casola Valsenio, olive country along the Vena del Gesso: sandstone and clay give elegant, floral, fresh wines.
Marzeno
The first big outcrop of Spungone limestone between the blue clays: rugged land that puts force into the wine, fruit well ahead of flowers.
Must visit
Fattoria Zerbina
Modigliana
The mountain oneThe whole commune of Modigliana, high on the Tuscan border: the land turns harsher still and gives firm, powerful, austere, long-lived Sangiovese.
Oriolo
Yellow sands breaking through clay near Faenza: big wines that need time to soften, or lighter fruity ones, depending on the plot.
Castrocaro
The old Romagna Toscana around Castrocaro Terme and Terra del Sole, once ruled from Florence: a zone drawn by history as much as by soil.
Predappio
The famous oneThe commune of Predappio plus slices of Forlì, Meldola, Civitella and Galeata: a local long-berried strain gives vivid fruit and hard, austere tannins.
Meldola
Farmed since Roman times along the Bidente valley, facing north-west to north-east: fine, fruit-led Sangiovese from cooler slopes.
Bertinoro
Albana countryAlbana's home hill above Forlimpopoli, on poor limestone Spungone soils: the Sangiovese here is big and needs a long spell of ageing.
Cesena
The hills behind Cesena, praised since Roman writers: structure that never tips over, with ripe cherry always in front.
Mercato Saraceno
The Savio valley where the Marnoso-arenacea sandstone runs deepest: balanced wines with sweet tannins, best below 200 metres.
Longiano
The warm hills between Cesena and the Rubicone: rich, evidently fruity Sangiovese that loses its elegance if pushed too hard.
Coriano
The hills just behind the Rimini coast, on grey clays with good exposure: the most structured, most cellar-worthy of the Rimini zones.
San Clemente
The warmest corner of the Rimini hills, on gypsum and coloured clays: structured wines that keep a lively acid line.
Must visit
Tenuta Mara
Verucchio
The slopes above the Marecchia valley behind Rimini: the easiest-drinking of the Rimini zones.
Vintage provenance
Why there is no vintage chart
No denomination-wide vintage chart is published for Romagna Sangiovese. The Romagna wine consortium issues harvest reports and critics score individual wines, so quality is tracked producer by producer rather than through an annata table.
2022 was a small, ripe harvest with good reds. 2023 was the flood year: healthy hillside grapes, but a fifth to a quarter fewer of them. 2024 was very good for Sangiovese. Drink base wines young; give sub-zone and Riserva bottles from 2019 to 2022 a few years.
What to check instead
The sub-zone: where a wine comes from inside the zone changes what is in the glass. See them above.
The producer: quality here is tracked estate by estate rather than year by year.
How Sangiovese di Romagna is made
The base wine is at least 85% Sangiovese, with up to 15% of other red grapes approved for Emilia-Romagna. Vineyards belong on the hills and foothills, or on the drier sandy and clay soils inside the line; wet alluvial and newly reclaimed land is out. The Via Emilia and the Rimini to Bologna railway draw the downhill limit. The base wine may carry 12 tonnes of grapes per hectare, must reach 12% alcohol and can be sold from 1 December of the harvest year. Superiore is stricter: 10.5 tonnes, 12.5% alcohol, and a wait until 1 April of the following year. A village name such as Predappio or Modigliana on the label needs 95% Sangiovese, a smaller crop, 12.5% alcohol and a release date of 1 September after harvest. Riserva means 24 months of ageing from 1 December of the harvest year, and 13% alcohol. A Riserva with a village name waits until 1 September of the third year after the harvest. Wood is allowed but never required. Two rarer types exist: a Novello made at least half by whole-berry fermentation, and a Passito from dried grapes.
In depth
Sangiovese has a longer paper trail in Romagna than almost anywhere. A notarial deed of 1672, kept in the State Archive in Faenza, rents out three rows of Sangiovese at Fontanella di Pagnano, near Casola Valsenio. In the late 1700s Cosimo Villifranchi wrote of a San Gioveto romano grown around Faenza. In 1839 Count Gallesio rode from Florence to Forlì and found low-trained vines that were mostly Sangiovese di Romagna. What set Romagna apart was method. Tuscany blended its Sangiovese, as in Chianti. Romagna made it on its own, and the modern rules keep that habit: 85% is the floor, and 95% once a village name goes on the label. The Sangiovese di Romagna DOC dates from 1967. In September 2011 it was folded into the new Romagna DOC as the Sangiovese type, which is why both names still appear on UK shelves. The 2011 reform also drew twelve named areas, one of them then called San Vicinio and now Mercato Saraceno. A 2022 amendment added Imola, Coriano, San Clemente and Verucchio, which took the count to sixteen. They differ in soil as much as in name. Marzeno and Bertinoro sit on the poor limestone called Spungone. Brisighella runs along the gypsum ridge of the Vena del Gesso. Modigliana, high on the Tuscan border, is harsher still and gives firm, austere, long-lived wines. Predappio has a local long-berried strain with vivid fruit and hard tannins. The three Rimini zones differ too. Coriano sits on grey clays just behind the sea. San Clemente is the warmest corner, on gypsum and coloured clays. Verucchio takes the slopes of the Marecchia valley. Compared with a Tuscan Sangiovese the Romagna version is usually rounder and softer, because the clay and limestone soils run warmer. Estates such as Umberto Cesari, Chiara Condello, Nicolucci, Tenuta Pandolfa, Villa Papiano, Mutiliana and San Patrignano show the range. It runs from weekday bottles at about £11 to sub-zone Riserva wines built to keep.
On the table
What to eat with Sangiovese di Romagna
Cherry fruit and a bitter-edged finish want cappelletti or tortelloni al ragù, red meat and game, the consortium's own matches. A Riserva can take aged cheese too.
In-depth guide
Sangiovese di Romagna, answered
A dry red from the hills of Romagna, the eastern half of Emilia-Romagna, made from at least 85% Sangiovese. It is ruby red with cherry and violet on the nose, a light grip and a pleasantly bitter finish. The base wine is sold from 1 December of the harvest year, so most bottles are made to drink young.
Yes. The Sangiovese di Romagna DOC was created in 1967 and folded into the new Romagna DOC in September 2011. Since then the label reads Romagna DOC Sangiovese, but older labels and UK shop listings still use the old name for the same wine.
Romagna has always made Sangiovese on its own rather than in a blend, and its clay and limestone hills run warmer than central Tuscany. The wines are usually rounder and softer, with less acidity than a Chianti. The rules ask for 85% Sangiovese here against Chianti's 60%.
Superiore comes from a smaller crop, 10.5 tonnes instead of 12, reaches 12.5% alcohol and waits until 1 April after the harvest. Riserva means at least 24 months of ageing counted from 1 December of the harvest year and 13% alcohol. A Riserva with a village name waits until 1 September of the third year after the harvest.
Sixteen sub-zone names may follow the wine's name on the label: Imola, Serra, Brisighella, Marzeno, Modigliana, Oriolo, Castrocaro, Predappio, Meldola, Bertinoro, Cesena, Mercato Saraceno, Longiano, Coriano, San Clemente and Verucchio. A wine with one of these names must be 95% Sangiovese from a smaller crop. Predappio and Modigliana are the two names UK shops stock most.
The Romagna wine consortium's own list is red meat, game, cappelletti or tortelloni al ragù, and aged cheese. The cherry fruit and gentle grip also suit the region's ragù alla bolognese and lasagne. Save a Riserva for game or aged Parmigiano.
Drink the base wine within two or three years of the harvest. Superiore and village-name wines are good for five. A Riserva from Modigliana or Bertinoro can go a decade: the rulebook calls Modigliana's wines long-lived and says Bertinoro's Sangiovese needs a long spell of ageing.
Explore more Emilia Romagna
Same region only: the denomination Sangiovese di Romagna drinkers reach for next.
The one to know · DOCG
Romagna Albana
Italy's first white DOCG is a Romagna hill wine that comes dry, sweet or made from dried grapes. Romagna Albana must be at least 95% Albana, grown on the first hills above the Via Emilia. The zone's heart runs from.
4
Wines in stock
12.0%
Min. alcohol