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Sardinia wine: the grapes and DOCs to know

Cannonau, Vermentino, Carignano and the island's rare grapes, the one DOCG and the DOCs a sommelier student should know, with ways to remember them.

Alper Billik · Advanced Sommelier

Updated October 2026 · 4 min read · Edited with AI

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Sardinia in one minute
The grapes
The only DOCG: Vermentino di Gallura
Cannonau di Sardegna DOC
The other DOCs worth knowing
Producers to know
How to study Sardinia
Test yourself
Questions people ask

The short answer: for an exam, Sardinia comes down to three grapes and one DOCG. Cannonau (Grenache) for red, Vermentino for white, and Carignano in the south-west. The island's only DOCG is Vermentino di Gallura, in the north-east. Learn those, then add the few DOCs below, and you have the island.

Sardinia in one minute

Where: a large island in the Mediterranean, west of mainland Italy, south of Corsica.
Climate: hot, dry Mediterranean summers, cooled by strong winds, above all the mistral from the north-west.
Capital: Cagliari, in the south. Several DOCs carry its name.
History: centuries of Spanish (Aragonese) rule left Spanish grapes behind, which is why Grenache and Carignan are local here.

The grapes

Grape	Colour	What to know
Cannonau	Red	The island's main red; the same grape as Grenache (Garnacha). Warm, ripe red fruit, herbs, soft tannins
Carignano	Red	Carignan; old bush vines on sandy soils in the Sulcis, in the south-west
Monica	Red	Light, easy, everyday red
Bovale	Red	Two local forms, Bovale Grande and Bovale Sardo; deep colour, used in blends
Cagnulari, Girò	Red	Rare local grapes worth knowing by name
Vermentino	White	The island's main white: citrus, herbs, a salty, bitter-almond finish
Nuragus	White	An old local grape of the south; light, neutral whites
Vernaccia di Oristano	White	Not the Vernaccia of San Gimignano; aged under flor, like Sherry
Malvasia, Moscato, Nasco	White	Aromatic grapes for dry and sweet wines

Cannonau: ColourRed; What to knowThe island's main red; the same grape as Grenache (Garnacha). Warm, ripe red fruit, herbs, soft tannins

Carignano: ColourRed; What to knowCarignan; old bush vines on sandy soils in the Sulcis, in the south-west

Monica: ColourRed; What to knowLight, easy, everyday red

Bovale: ColourRed; What to knowTwo local forms, Bovale Grande and Bovale Sardo; deep colour, used in blends

Cagnulari, Girò: ColourRed; What to knowRare local grapes worth knowing by name

Vermentino: ColourWhite; What to knowThe island's main white: citrus, herbs, a salty, bitter-almond finish

Nuragus: ColourWhite; What to knowAn old local grape of the south; light, neutral whites

Vernaccia di Oristano: ColourWhite; What to knowNot the Vernaccia of San Gimignano; aged under flor, like Sherry

Malvasia, Moscato, Nasco: ColourWhite; What to knowAromatic grapes for dry and sweet wines

The only DOCG: Vermentino di Gallura

Vermentino di Gallura DOCG, promoted in 1996, comes from Gallura, the granite north-east corner of the island. Poor granite soils and the wind give a Vermentino that is fuller and more mineral than most. Memory hook: Gallura is the top of the island, and the DOCG is the top of the pyramid. Don't mix it up with Vermentino di Sardegna DOC, which covers the whole island.

Cannonau di Sardegna DOC

Cannonau di Sardegna DOC covers the whole island. Its rules name three subzones: Oliena (also called Nepente di Oliena), Jerzu and Capo Ferrato, and a Classico mention for the provinces of Nuoro and Ogliastra, the mountainous east where Cannonau is most at home.

Memory hook: "Oliena, Jerzu, Capo Ferrato" all sit on the eastern side of the island. Picture the east coast, from the Nuoro mountains down to the cape in the south-east.

The other DOCs worth knowing

DOC	Where	What it is
Carignano del Sulcis	South-west (Sulcis)	Red and rosé from Carignano, often from old bush vines
Vernaccia di Oristano	West coast	White aged under flor; nutty and dry, like a Sherry
Malvasia di Bosa	West coast	A rare white from Malvasia di Sardegna, often in an oxidative style
Cagliari	South	Created in 2011 for Malvasia, Moscato, Vermentino and Monica of the south
Nuragus di Cagliari	South	White from the local Nuragus grape
Monica di Sardegna	Island-wide	Light red from Monica
Vermentino di Sardegna	Island-wide	Vermentino from anywhere on the island

Carignano del Sulcis: WhereSouth-west (Sulcis); What it isRed and rosé from Carignano, often from old bush vines

Vernaccia di Oristano: WhereWest coast; What it isWhite aged under flor; nutty and dry, like a Sherry

Malvasia di Bosa: WhereWest coast; What it isA rare white from Malvasia di Sardegna, often in an oxidative style

Cagliari: WhereSouth; What it isCreated in 2011 for Malvasia, Moscato, Vermentino and Monica of the south

Nuragus di Cagliari: WhereSouth; What it isWhite from the local Nuragus grape

Monica di Sardegna: WhereIsland-wide; What it isLight red from Monica

Vermentino di Sardegna: WhereIsland-wide; What it isVermentino from anywhere on the island

Memory hook for the west coast: Oristano and Bosa sit on the same coast, and both make whites from grapes with an old, Mediterranean name: Vernaccia and Malvasia.

Producers to know

Argiolas: a family estate near Cagliari, known for Turriga, a red from Cannonau and other local grapes.
Sella & Mosca: a large historic estate near Alghero.
Cantina Santadi: the reference for Carignano del Sulcis, including Terre Brune.
Capichera: Vermentino from Gallura.
Contini: the name for Vernaccia di Oristano.

How to study Sardinia

Draw the island and put each DOC where it belongs: Gallura top right, Sulcis bottom left, Oristano and Bosa on the west coast, Cagliari at the bottom, Cannonau's subzones down the east side.
Learn the synonyms: Cannonau = Grenache, Carignano = Carignan. Examiners love them.
Taste one Cannonau and one Vermentino di Gallura side by side. Tasting fixes the facts.
Drill it: for more Italy, see Italy for Level 1 and Italian wine terms.