The Euganean Hills have a volcanic origin, as their typical conic shape shows. A mix of mild climate – guaranteed by the near Adriatic sea – and of a soil – made up of broken volcanic stones, rich in minerals and microelements – has created an ideal place for vines to grow. In fact, vines have always been present in the area and keep having a strong influence on the landscape. The human hand has slowly, but steadily changed the aspect of the territory, since the first settlements and because of the flourishing of a hard-working civilisation.
The first reference it is possible to find in a document, as far as the different kinds of vines growing in the Euganean Hills are concerned, dates back to the 5th century. This is sufficient to explain how old and noble is the tradition of the Euganean wine. In the Middle Ages, the monastic orders transformed the marshy land on the foot of the hills into a fertile countryside. A new impulse was given to the vines cultivation, also thanks to the experimentation of new wines productions. The development continued until the 18th century, when vines of French origins were introduced in the area and when new investments in the drainage of the lands and in the construction of new cellars have been done. Nowadays, thanks to Technical Assistance Program, promoted by the Province of Padua during the ‘60s and the ‘70s, the territory boasts a huge variety of wines, and the production is managed by expert farmers.
A Ministerial Decree, dated 1969, established the Euganean Hills as a DOC area for the production of wine. In 1972, the Voluntary Consortium for the safeguard of the Euganean Hills DOC wines was founded. This brand guarantees the origin and the quality of the wines, certified after chemic and organoleptic analysis; moreover, the wines have to receive the favourable opinion from a technicians and a wine-tasters’ committee, before being included in the DOC classification. 
Among the DOC wines produced in the area there are: Colli Euganei Bianco, Colli Euganei Pinot bianco, Colli Euganei Chardonnay and Colli Euganei Moscato (spumante version available), Colli Euganei Tai, Colli Euganei Rosso (novello and riserva versions available), Colli Euganei Cabernet, Colli Euganei Cabernet Franc, Colli Euganei Cabernet Sauvignon and Colli Euganei Merlot (the riserva version of the last wines is available).
Real typical specialities are: the Colli Euganei Pinello, a straw yellow wine with hints of green, delicate in fragrance and fresh in taste (sparkling version available); the Colli Euganei Serprino (sparkling version available), a straw yellow, pale and bright wine and the Colli Euganei Fior d'Arancio. This one is a straw yellow wine with hints of gold and a lingering, intense fragrance typical of its grape, the Moscato giallo, also available as spumante and passito.
