The vineyards that provide grapes for the making of the Colli Albani grapes are situated in a zone noted for its patrician villas, monasteries and sanctuaries that extends southward from the Lake of Albano. It includes the communes of Ariccia, Albano, Pomezia, Castelgandolfo and Lanuvio.
       Vines have been cultivated in the district for many centuries. Noted writers of Imperial Rome described the wines of the hills, which were highly appreciated at the tables of the city's nobles.

       The wine they called Albano is without doubt the ancestor of the Castelli Romani wines in general and the modern Colli Albani in particular. However, winemaking is even older than Imperial Rome. The hills were the site of the Latin community of Albalonga, which existed before the foundation of Rome.

       After the Romans crushed and annexed Albalonga, they regularly celebrated the feast of Jupiter Latiaris on the hills by pouring libations of "golden wine."
       Over the centuries, the Colli Albani wine has never lacked admirers and the citations by illustrious personalities are legion. The wine's popularity undoubtedly goes beyond its undisputed quality.

       For centuries, the popes have maintained a summer residence at Castelgandolfo in the heart of the production zone. The fresh fragrance of the wine appealed to the pontiffs and to the numerous aristocrats, artists and literary figures who frequented their court.

Map of the production area

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