Theloosetannin

Sept 28th-Ruchè

Ruchè, or Rouchet, is a red grape that is thought to be indigenous to the Piedmont region of Northwestern Italy (but some believe it may have come from Burgundy). Only if the grape is grown within the defined geographical area of the Ruchè di Castagnole Monferrato DOCG, can the bottle bear the Ruchè name. ThisContinue reading “Sept 28th-Ruchè”

Sept 21st-Piccola Nera

In keeping with my recent trend, this week I selected another grape with very little information available about it due the grape’s scarcity. Piccola Nera (translated means ‘little black’ and is named so because of the size and color of the grape) is a red grape found primarily in Trieste in northeastern Italy. This regionContinue reading “Sept 21st-Piccola Nera”

Sept 14th-Perricone

Perricone is a red grape native to the Italian island of Sicily. On the western side of Sicily, around Palermo and Trapani, it is known as Pignatello. This name is believed to be the result of the red soils of Trapani called pignatidare. Perricone has been misidentified many times over the years, being mistaken forContinue reading “Sept 14th-Perricone”

Sept 7th-Inzolia

Inzolia is a white grape most likely native to the island of Sicily, an Italian island off the toe of the boot of the mainland. It is also grown in Tuscany where it goes by the name Ansonica. In Sicily, Inzolia is most notably used in the production of Marsala wine, partly due to theContinue reading “Sept 7th-Inzolia”

August 31st-Nascetta

Nascetta is an indigenous white grape variety to the Alba area within the region of Piedmont in northern Italy. Alba is far more renowned for being home to Barbera d’Alba, Nebbiolo d’Alba, and Dolcetto d’Alba. Alba is located in the Langhe DOC. The wines produced in this appellation can contain various combinations of the 14Continue reading “August 31st-Nascetta”

August 24th-Tressalier (Sacy)

Tressalier is an ancient white grape from the region of Saint-Pourçain of northern France. The grape also used to be grown in other areas between Paris and Dijon, where it is known by the name Sacy. Today, it is primarily grown in Saint-Pourçain, where it can consist of 20-40% of blends with Chardonnay. It isContinue reading “August 24th-Tressalier (Sacy)”

August 17th-Susumaniello

Susumaniello is a red grape native to the Puglia region of southern Italy (the heel of the boot). At the turn of the century, there were only about 4 hectares of the vine grown, all from this region. Since this time, there has been a significant resurgence and now there are around 400 hectares underContinue reading “August 17th-Susumaniello”

August 10th-Trebbiano Spoletino

There’s a Trebbiano grape, which I wrote about way back on Sept 15th 2021, but this is slightly different and much less common. Trebbiano Spoletino is a native grape to the Umbria region (specifically from the Spoleto neighborhood of Trevi) in central Italy, just northeast of Rome and south of Florence. Standard Trebbiano Toscano orContinue reading “August 10th-Trebbiano Spoletino”

August 3rd-Erbaluce

The Piedmont region of northwestern Italy is primarily known for the powerful reds Barolo and Barbaresco, made from the Nebbiolo grape; however, there are still some white wines grown here also. Erbaluce (urb-buh-loo-chay) is an indigenous white grape variety to this area. The earliest mentions of the grape date back to the early 17th century.Continue reading “August 3rd-Erbaluce”

July 27th-Hondarrabi Beltza and Zuri

Hondarrabi has 2 distinct versions, a white (Zuri) and a red (Beltza) grape. Both are indigenous to the Basque region of northern Spain, but Zuri is substantially more common. Both grapes are the primary grapes used in the production of Txakoli (cha-co-li) wines, the customary wine from this region. By law, these wines must containContinue reading “July 27th-Hondarrabi Beltza and Zuri”