I am getting old, but I am not that old. So, it is merely my understanding, not my experience, that the white wines of Italy were once held in higher esteem than the reds, at least in the English speaking world. My guess is that the relative positioning of the two colours of wine flipped in the 1980s with the explosive popularity of Italian food and restaurants. A good old Gavi might do well with a penne alla vodka, but anything with a red sauce wants a Chianti.

In any event, fashion is cyclical and the Italian whites got their revenge in the last decade or so with the craze for Pinot Grigio. I am fairly certain that Pinot Grigio is the most despised wine grape among sommeliers since it has become a kind of shorthand for a not very interesting glass of white wine in the restaurants of North America.