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resistant. Other differences are that Raboso
Veronese seems better suited to sandy soils and
is resistant to cold weather; therefore it is
planted more in the fl at vineyards of the Veneto
plain, where cool winds and frost are not
uncommon. There are four offi cial clones avail-
able of Raboso Veronese: Fedit 2 CSG, ISV-V1,
ISV-V2, and VCR 3; the latter has slightly
smaller bunches, is slightly more productive
and less sensitive to botrytis than the other
clones. The ISV-V2 has the advantage of ripen-
ing a little earlier than the others.
Despite its Veronese name, Raboso Veronese
is not found in the countryside around Verona
(something already pointed out by Molon in
1906: he wrote that “in Verona it is almost
unknown, and the name was given by those
who fi rst brought it to Noventa di Piave”); like
Raboso Piave, according to Zava (1901), it has
long been linked to the countryside around Tre-
viso and Bagnoli di Sopra. Maybe the
“Veronese” is in reference to the farmer (per-
haps a Veronese or Veronesi) who fi rst brought
Raboso Veronese to the Treviso area. Another
possible explanation for the “Veronese”
attribute is that the natural crossing that gave
rise to the grape variety occurred in the 1800s
near Verona and was then transported to the
Treviso area, later disappearing from the
Verona region. The ampelographer Norberto
Marzotto declared that Raboso Veronese was
fi rst brought to the Veronese area by Count
Papadopoli of San Polo di Piave and Cologna
Veneta, in the province of Verona. According to
Crespan, Cancellier, Chies, Giannetto, and
Meneghetti (2006), it is most likely here that
the cross between Raboso Piave and Marzemina
Bianca took place. General Ampelography of the
Province of Treviso (1870) states that Rabosa
Veronese was grown in the Treviso area along
with Rabosa Nostrana (or Trevisana, in other
words Raboso Piave), and eventually became
more widely used than Raboso Piave. In 1931,
the viticultural indications for the provinces of
Veneto drawn up by the Experimental Institute
of Viticulture and Enology of Conegliano rec-
ommended Rabosa Veronese as an ideal grape
for the provinces of Treviso (lowlands), Venice,
Padua, Vicenza, and Rovigo. Today, Raboso
Veronese grows everywhere Raboso Piave does,
but unlike the latter it is also found in the coun-
tryside around Vicenza and in Emilia-
Romagna, near Ferrara and Ravenna.
Which Wines to Choose and Why
Experimental monovarietal Raboso Veronese
wines I have tried, prior to their being blended
with Raboso Piave, seem less acid and tannic
than those made with the latter, but “less” with
any Raboso is a very relative term. Commercially
available wines also strike me as being routinely
gentler and softer than those made with Raboso
Piave. Raboso Veronese wines also exude a more
delicate, fl oral raspberry and Morello cherry
aroma. Some experts do believe that wine made
with Raboso Veronese is more refi ned than
wine made with Raboso Piave—though produc-
ers of Raboso Piave wines strongly disagree.
There are fewer truly monovarietal Raboso
Veronese wines made compared to Raboso Piave
wines. Of course, if we take Raboso Friularo to
be Raboso Veronese (Salmaso, Dalla Valle, and
Lucchin 2008), then the myriad “friularo”-
labeled wines produced today are Raboso
Veronese; but I'm not sure we can be certain
they are all monovarietal. In any case, Raboso
Veronese can be used in many DOCG (Piave
Malanotte), DOC (Bagnoli di Sopra, Piave, and
others) and IGT (Alto Livenza, delle Venezie,
Marca Trevigiana, and others) blends, most of
which overlap with those of Raboso Piave.
wines to try: Barbaran* (a good producer
making both a Raboso Veronese wine and a
Raboso Piave wine—it's very interesting to
drink the two different raboso wines made at
the estate and note the differences, some of
which are due to winemaking, as the Veronese
receives shorter maceration time, thereby
obtaining a gentler wine) and Moletto* (a “Ra-
boso Piave” wine that is all Raboso Veronese).
For sparkling versions, try: Villa Almè* (I Gai
Raboso Veronese Rosato), Luigino Molon*, and
Montegrande* (Frizzante).
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