There are certainly other white grapes that grow in Tuscany: Vermentino or Trebbiano, Chardonnay of course, to name a few. But Vernaccia di San Gimignano is special for at least a bunch of reasons.

This type of grape in fact has been cultivated continuously in this area since the 13th century and the wine produced out of it was known and appreciated by aristocrats and the powerful alike: the pope, the king, the Medici family, scientists, artists, even Dante mentioned it in the Purgatorio of his Divine Comedy. It was the first Italian wine to obtain the appellation DOC in 1966 and last, but not least, the soil is an ancient seabed, rich in tuff, clay and limestone that add sapidity and structure to the wine.