Marsala is a wine, dry or sweet, produced in the region surrounding the Italian city of Marsala in Sicily. Marsala first received Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC) status in 1969. The DOC status is equivalent to PDO: most countries limit the use of the term Marsala to those wines that come from the Marsala area, to which the European Union grants Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) status.