The world's top 10 wine destinations
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There are some who like to drink wine and there are others who love to travel the country where wine is made. Grapes are luscious and vineyards are pretty. And they are mostly located in some of the most breathtakingly scenic locales. We bring you our selection of the world's top 10 wine-growing locations. Take your pick, and feel free to argue. Over a glass of wine, of course!
TUSCANY, ITALY
Tuscany in Italy is one of the world's top wine-growing regions. Viticulture in this region traces its historical roots to the 8th century BC. The famous wines Chianti, Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano are made with grapes grown in the Tuscany region.
SANTA CRUZ, CHILE
Grapes hang from the vine at the Montgras winery in Santa Cruz, Chile. Colchagua Valley is one of the most-travelled winemaking areas in the Latin American country. Though rattled by a recent earthquake, Chile's vineyards still produce some of the New World's finest wines.
STELLENBOSCH, SOUTH AFRICA
The spectacular scenery at a vineyard in South Africa's Stellenbosch area, about 50 km east of Cape Town. By 1700, Stellenbosch had become the wine capital of South Africa.
MENDOZA, ARGENTINA
A vineyard in Mendoza at the foothills of the Andes. The region is Argentina's wine country and is richly planted with grapes. Mendoza is reputed to produce the world's finest Malbec, wine made from a dark purple variety of grape.
OTAGO, NEW ZEALAND
A man works on his vineyard next to Lake Wanaka in Wanaka, New Zealand. In the snowy shadow of the spectacular Southern Alps, these vineyards in the Otago district produce some of New Zealand's most famous wines.
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LA RIOJA, SPAIN
The region of La Rioja in Spain is known for a variety of wines that take the name Rioja. Interestingly, a winemaker in Rioja developed the first bottled version of the wine-based punch Sangria.
MCLAREN VALE, AUSTRALIA
Cyclists ride past vineyards in McLaren Vale in Adelaide, one of Australia's most famous wine-making regions. The renowned Hardy and d’Arenberg wineries are located here.
DOURO, PORTUGAL
Douro is a wine region in Portugal that takes its name from the Douro River. It is one of the earliest known winemaking regions of the world and historical evidence shows that its tradition dates back at least to the 3rd and 4th centuries.
BORDEAUX, FRANCE
A chateau and vineyard in Margaux, Bordeaux, France. One of the world's best-known wine-producing regions, Bordeaux's relationship with wine dates back to the early 1st century, when Romans planted vines in the region. Today, Bordeaux produces a variety of wines that are shipped around the world.
BINGEN, GERMANY
Field worker Anna uses a knife to pick gewuerztramine grapes during a harvest in a vineyard at Rochus mountain in Bingen at Rhine, Germany. Bingen am Rhein is a town at the confluence of the Rhein and Nahe rivers.