Eating lunch in Italy's Bolgheri wine country, it is not hard to understand why the number of international visitors to this bucolic corner of Tuscany has doubled in five years. "People have always come in the summer for the beaches," says Riccardo Binda, cutting into a succulently tender slice of Florentine steak, grilled over embers.

"Now we're getting visitors all year round. It's something new that has developed as the reputation of Bolgheri's wine has grown." Binda is the general manager of the local consortium of winemakers in an area known for its production of high-quality Bordeaux-style reds.