The ancient Greeks believed that civilization required olive oil and wine. So not surprisingly as early as the 8th century B.C., the Greeks cultivated olive trees and grapes in their colonies in what today are the southern Italian provinces of Calabria and Sicily.

The regions' mild Mediterranean climate and infertile rocky soils offered ideal growing conditions for producing high quality wines and olive oils. Southern Italian wines gained fame not only in ancient Greece but also in the following empire of ancient Rome.