Negretto

The Negretto grape is one of the lesser-known indigenous varieties of Emilia-Romagna, the only Italian region where it is implanted. Its name in the past indicated the vines that had a particularly dark berry. During the post-phylloxera reconstruction period, the Negretto was widely used for its hardiness and in particular its tolerance to disease. This vine was not however particularly indicated for the vinification in purity and was used as a blending wine for its richness in color. In recent years almost all the old vineyards of this variety had disappeared, and only thanks to those few passionate wine producers who didn’t give up on their efforts to cultivate this old grape some interesting biotypes are saved. As its name says, the Negretto (meaning black) has a black berry, medium, spherical with waxy skin, medium-thick and tender, black-purple colored. Its cluster is medium, cylindrical-conical, winged, compact with medium size leaf, pentagonal, five-lobed. The Negretto vine prefers clayey and very fertile lands. It is very sensitive to frost and to botrytis and its production is good and constant. Negretto gives a deep red amaranth colored wine with violet tones. Its scent is fresh and tangy, with hints of red berries. The taste is sweet, lively, fruity, slightly tannic and pleasantly sour, weak in body and alcohol lightweight.