Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
the cultivar risked extinction on Sardinia—
though low fertility and yields didn't endear it
to farmers either. Today, its diffusion is limited
to the area around the Sardinian city of Sassari
(where it represents roughly 13 percent of the
area under vine), and in the countryside around
Issiri, Ossi, Tissi, Sorso, Usini, and Usi. Accord-
ing to Cherchi, the countryside around Usini is
potentially Cagnulari's one
grand cru;
the vari-
ety seems to prefer its calcareous-clay soils.
More than other Sardinian cultivars, Cagnulari
maintains a snobby, aloof disposition in its
remote northeastern Sardinian home.
the world knows this grape variety much better
as Nero d'Avola. For that reason, I'll refer to it as
Nero d'Avola in the rest of this discussion.
In fact, the name Nero d'Avola derives from
the Sicilian dialect name Calau Avulisi, which,
given its spelling and pronunciation, you'd be
excused for thinking meant “Calabrese,” but
you'd be wrong. Calau Avulisi means “coming
down from Avola,” the little town near Ragusa
from which this feisty grape set out to conquer
the rest of the island, and the world. So Nero
d'Avola's nickname, Calabrese, was arrived at
via a series of modifications: from Calau
Avulisi, to Calaurisi, Calavrisi, Calabrisi, and
Calabrese. Others have suggested that
Calavrisi
is simply a word in dialect meaning “from
Calabria,” thereby hinting at a possible Cala-
brian origin of the variety, but this seems a
simplistic interpretation of the name's genesis,
and few experts endorse it. The Nero d'Avola
moniker is a more modern evolution, due to the
typically Italian habit of calling dark grapes
Nero-Something; the place from where the
variety supposedly hails is one of the “Some-
things” most often attached. Hence, the dark-
berried grape from Avola became Nero d'Avola
in popular winespeak, but the offi cial name
remains Calabrese, for now. Already in the
early seventeenth century, Cupani wrote of a
round-berried Calavrisi (while Nero d'Avola's is
more elongated, almost elliptical) but only in
the nineteenth century did the Calabrese name
become again associated with Avola and the
black color descriptor.
Ampelographically, Nero d'Avola has
medium-large, conical, compact, winged
bunches, with medium-large oval berries.
There are four offi cial clones of Nero d'Avola
(AM 28, AM 39, Ampelos VCP 2, and Regione
Sicilia 64), but according to Alessio Planeta of
the world-famous Planeta estate, which has
done so much to bring Nero d'Avola into the
limelight, a large number of very different bio-
types exist, born out of adaptation to Sicily's
many different
terroirs
over the centuries.
“There must be at least one hundred different
Nero d'Avolas out there,” he shakes his head
Which Wines to Choose and Why
Everyone has favorite grape varieties and wines,
and I'll admit Cagnulari is one of mine. It is
most often used in blends (usually with Can-
nonao and Pascale), but 100 percent Cagnulari
wines can be made, for example in the DOC
Alghero. Cherchi's version is a joy: lovely pink-
ish-red hue, fragrant red-berry aromas, refresh-
ing midweight body, and plenty of vinosity and
fruity-fl oral charm. I fi nd that Cagnulari wines
are a great deal more perfumed and lighter in
body than those made with Bovale Sardo, which
are far more herbal and tarry in their aroma
and fl avor profi le, and more tannic and tougher
in texture. The two wines really don't taste any-
thing alike to me.
wines to try:
Giovanni Maria Cherchi***,
Chessa**, Cantina Santa Maria La Palma*,
Carpante, Poderi Parpinello.
Calabrese
where it's found:
Sicily, Calabria.
national
registry code number:
46 (where Nero
d'Avola is listed as a synonym).
color:
red.
For centuries, Nero d'Avola has also been
called Calabrese in all regions of Italy, from Cal-
abria to Sicily to Tuscany, and Calabrese is the
offi cial name listed in Italy's National Registry
of grape varieties. However, Calabrese is a
name used to describe other varieties in Italy
(usually erroneously) and everyone in Italy and
