Coda di Volpe

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Coda di Volpe painted for L'Ampelographie by Viala and Vermorel Coda di volpe Viala Vermorel.jpg
Coda di Volpe painted for L'Ampélographie by Viala and Vermorel

Coda di Volpe is a white Italian wine grape variety that has been historically grown in the Campania region around the town of Naples. It is often confused with another white Italian wine grape, Emilia, that share many of the same synonyms as Coda di Volpe. [1]

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Relationship to other grapes

For many years, the white Campanian variety Caprettone was thought to be a clone of Coda di Volpe but DNA analysis in the early 21st century showed that the two grapes were distinct varieties and not closely related. Likewise, Coda di Pecora was also discovered to be a distinct variety. Also, while it shares the synonym Pallagrello with the Campania varieties Pallagrello bianco and Pallagrello nero, there is no known genetic relationship between the three grape varieties. [2]

Synonyms

Various synonyms have been used to describe Coda di Volpe and its wines including Alopecis, Cianca rossa, Coada Vulpi, Coda di Pecora, Coda di Volpe bianca, Coda di Volpe de Maddaloni, Coda di Vulpe durante, Crapettone, Durante, Falerno, Guarnaccia bianca, Lisica opasca bjelaja, Lisitcha opachka biala, Pallagrello and Pallegrello bianco.

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Vermentino Variety of grape

Vermentino is a light-skinned wine grape variety, primarily found in Italian wine. It is widely planted in both in Sardinia and Liguria, to some extent in Corsica, in Piedmont under the name Favorita, and in increasing amounts in Languedoc-Roussillon. The leaves are dark green and pentagonal. The grapes are amber-yellow and hang in pyramidal bunches. The vines are often grown on slopes facing the sea where they can benefit from the additional reflected light. The Vitis International Variety Catalogue now gives Italy as its origin.

Greco is an Italian wine grape that may be of Greek origin. The name relates to both white (Greco bianco) and black (Greco nero) grape varieties. While there is more land area dedicated to Greco nero, the Greco bianco is the grape most commonly referred to by "Greco". In the Campania region it is used to produce the Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG) wine Greco di Tufo. In Calabria, it is used to make the Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC) wine Greco di Bianco. The name "Greco" is sometimes used as a synonym for several varieties of supposed Greek origins-most notably Trebbiano.

Fiano (grape) Variety of grape

Fiano is a white Italian wine grape variety that is grown primarily in the Campania region of southern Italy and on the island of Sicily. In Campania, this fairly strong flavored white wine grape is particularly noted around Avellino where the Denominazione di origine controllata e Garantita (DOCG) wine of Fiano di Avellino is produced. The grape has a long history in the Campanian region and is believed to have been the grape behind the ancient Roman wine Apianum. Even today, the name Apianum is permitted to appear on wine labels of the DOCG wine Fiano di Avellino.

Verdeca is a white Italian wine grape variety that is primarily grown in the Colli Piacentini region of Emilia-Romagna in central Italy and Apulia in southern Italy where ampelographers believe that the grape may have originated. In Apulia, it is one of the main grapes in the Denominazione di origine controllata wines of Locorotondo DOC and Martina Franca DOC along with Bianco d'Alessano. In Campania, it is grown on the slopes of Mount Vesuvius where it used as a blending variety with Falanghina, Coda di volpe and Greco in both the white wines and the sweet dessert wine of the region, Lacryma Christi. It is also a minor component used in the some vermouth production.

Bombino bianco is a white Italian wine grape variety planted primarily along Italy's Adriatic coast line, most notably in Apulia. The vine is prone to high yields and often produces neutral flavor wines. The grape is known under many synonyms throughout Italy including Debit and Pagadebit, names which came from the grape's reputation for being a high yielding and reliable crop for vineyard owners to grow that would assure them that on each vintage they could pay off their debts.

Piedirosso Variety of grape

Piedirosso is a red Italian wine grape variety that is planted primarily in the Campania region. The grape is considered a specialty of the region, being used to produce wines for local and tourist consumption. Its name "piedirosso" means "red feet" that reflects the bottom of the vine which used to be red similar to the red feet of a pigeon.

Caprettone is a white Italian wine grape variety that is grown in the Campania region of southern Italy where it is a minor blending component in the Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC) wine of Lacryma Christi bianco. Caprettone is also grown in the Rogue River Valley of southern Oregon. Historically, the grape was believed to be a clone of the Campanian grape Coda di Volpe but DNA analysis has shown that the two grapes are instead distinct varieties.

Coda di Pecora is a white Italian wine grape variety that is grown in the Campania region of southern Italy, particularly in the province of Caserta. The name Coda di Pecora means "goat's tail" in the local dialect and for many years was thought to be a clonal variation of another white Campanian variety, Coda di Volpe, whose name means "foxtail".

Mantonico bianco is a white Italian wine grape variety that is grown in the Calabria region of southern Italy. Ampelographers believe that the grape is likely of Greek origins and was transported to southern Italy by ancient Greek settlers. Though the variety has a long history in Calabria, its numbers have been slowly declining with 1100 hectares/2700 acres planted in the region by the end of the 20th century.

Albaranzeuli bianco is a white Italian wine grape variety that is grown primarily in Sardinia. Ampelographers use to believe that the grape was originally Spanish in origin and was introduced to the island when it was ruled by the Crown of Aragon. Recent DNA profiling has suggested that the grape may have originated on the island as a crossing between the red Sardinian wine grape Girò and the Spanish table grape Molinera, known locally as Pansa Rosa di Málaga and distinct from the Veneto wine grape Molinara that is used in Amarone. A pink skinned grape known as Albaranzeuli nero is also found in Sardinia but its exact relationship to Albaranzeuli bianco is not yet clear.

Retagliado bianco is a white Italian wine grape variety that has been growing in Sardinia since at least the late 19th century. Here it is an authorized grape in the Indicazione geografica tipica (IGT) wines of Colli del Limbara where it is usually blended with Vermentino.

Barbera bianca is a white Italian wine grape variety that is grown in the Piedmont wine region of northwest Italy. Despite being named Barbera bianca, the grape is not a color mutation of the red Piedmontese wine grape Barbera that is the third most widely planted grape variety in Italy. In fact, DNA analysis conducted in the early 21st century shows no genetic relationship at all between the two grape varieties.

Besgano bianco is a white Italian wine grape variety that was historically used in the production of the dessert wine Vin Santo, blended with Malvasia Bianca Lunga and Verdea, but today is rarely planted and is more often used for table grape production than winemaking. The grape is also known as Colombana bianca but it is not a color mutation of the Tuscan and Emilia-Romagna wine grape Colombana nera.

Pallagrello bianco is a white Italian wine grape variety that is grown in Campania. The grape has a long history in the region and was one the varieties planted in 1775 by architect and engineer Luigi Vanvitelli in the fan-shaped Vigna del Ventaglio vineyard created for the royal palace of King Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies in Caserta. Following the phylloxera epidemic of the mid-19th century and the economic devastation of the World Wars of the early 20th century, plantings of Pallagrello bianco declined greatly and the variety was thought to be extinct until it was rediscovered growing in an abandoned Campanian vineyard in the 1990s.

Pallagrello nero is a red Italian wine grape variety that is grown in Campania. The grape has a long history in the region and, like the similarly named Pallagrello bianco, was one the varieties planted in 1775 by architect and engineer Luigi Vanvitelli in the fan-shaped Vigna del Ventaglio vineyard created for the royal palace of King Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies in Caserta. Following the phylloxera epidemic of the mid-19th century and the economic devastation of the World Wars of the early 20th century, plantings of Pallagrello nero declined greatly and the variety was thought to be extinct until it was rediscovered growing in an abandoned Campanian vineyard in the 1990s.

Rovello bianco or Greco Muscio is a white Italian wine grape variety that is grown in the Campania region of southern Italy. While the grape has been described in wine literature since 1875, the variety was on the verge of extinction until a collaboration by the University of Naples Federico II and University of Palermo along with a local wine grower in Taurasi help revive the variety with new plantings in 2003.

Addoraca is a white Italian wine grape variety that is grown in the Calabria region of southern Italy where it is blended with Coda di Volpe bianca, Malvasia bianca di Candia and Muscat blanc à Petits Grains in the passito dessert wine Moscato di Saracena.

Barbera del Sannio is a red Italian wine grape variety that is grown in the Campania region of southern Italy. Despite the similarities in name and appearance, the grape has no close genetic relationship with the Piedmont wine grapes Barbera or Barbera bianca or the Sardinian wine grape Barbera Sarda and is, instead, more closely related to the Campanian varieties Casavecchia and Catalanesca and the Apulian grape Nero di Troia.

Bianchetta Trevigiana is a white Italian wine grape variety that is grown in the Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol and Veneto wine regions of northeast Italy. Here the grape is rarely used a varietal but, instead, is a permitted blending grape adding acidity to the wines of several Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC) zones including the sparkling wine Prosecco and has also been used for vermouth production. The name Trevigiana is derived from the province of Treviso where the grape is believed to have originated from.

References

  1. J. Robinson Jancis Robinson's Guide to Wine Grapes pg 58 Oxford University Press 1996 ISBN   0-19-860098-4
  2. J. Robinson, J. Harding and J. Vouillamoz Wine Grapes - A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavours pgs 185, 254, 761-762 Allen Lane 2012 ISBN   978-1-846-14446-2