Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
compact bunch, reminiscent of a closed, small
fi st (
pugno
means fi st; the -
tello
suffi x makes it
a small fi st). Practically nobody had ever heard
of Pugnitello until 1981, when it was discovered
at Poggio di Sassi, near the Tuscan coastal town
of Grosseto. It was then propagated and studied
extensively by the San Felice estate in Chianti
Classico (the fi rst vines were planted in 1987).
Morphologically, Pugnitello looks a little
like Montepulciano, and some experts consider
Pugnitello a biotype of Montepulciano, though
published DNA profi ling results exclude this
(Vignani, Scali, Masi, Milanelli, Scalabrelli,
Wang, et al. 2008). Winemaker Maurizio Cas-
telli isn't so convinced, saying “It looks and
behaves like a Montepulciano.” Another wine-
maker, Gabriella Tani, who at Paterna oversees
production of the excellent Pugni Rosso wine,
believes the two varieties are suffi ciently differ-
ent that a trained eye should not be easily
fooled: “The bunch of Pugnitello is much
smaller; you actually have to go looking for
them on the vines by moving the leaves around.
Undoubtedly there is a resemblance, but with a
little care nurseries can avoid pulling a switch
on unsuspecting estates.”
Producers fi nd Pugnitello interesting due to
its small berries, resistant skins, and sparse
bunch; plus, it has shown noteworthy ability to
accumulate sugars and polyphenols. It has also
proven disease resistant and very vigorous,
though low fertility and small bunches make
for small productions. The only clone available
is PU-PA 1. Pugnitello was entered into the
National Registry on April 15, 2002. Given its
considerable critical and commercial success,
this is one grape variety and wine we are likely
to hear much more of in the future. For the
moment, however, its diffusion is limited to
Tuscany, mainly around Grosseto, Florence,
Siena, and Arezzo.
vintage, and the estate was the fi rst to produce
a pure Pugnitello wine. Today, numerous other
bottlings of Pugnitello exist, either as a mono-
varietal or in blends with other varieties. Wine-
makers like it because it has many of the quali-
ties of Montepulciano (rich color, fl eshy fruit)
but is not as reductive and therefore is less work
in the cellar, and the wines tend to be more
fruity and perfumed. “Sure, it's still a work in
progress,” says Tani. “For example, I think it
needs less oak than Sangiovese; I started out
using
barriques
[a roughly 225-liter oak barrel],
then moved to
tonneaux
[a 500-liter barrel] , and
now much bigger oak casks. I think that Pu-
gnitello's greatest calling card is the rich fl eshy
fruit it can deliver, so maybe oak isn't the
answer at all. I am beginning to look at aging it
in amphoras.” However, oak is not likely to dis-
appear in conjunction with Pugnitello. In fact,
Tani cautions that Pugnitello wine requires a
lot of oxygen and oak helps to avoid the develop-
ment of reductive aromas: “It's very rich in
anthocyanins and so tends to reduce easily,
though not as badly as Montepulciano or Ancel-
lotta, but off odors during the winemaking
process can be a problem, so you can't work
with steel tanks that allow no oxygenation to
take place. Rack and returns and pumping over
are also techniques used commonly in an effort
to maximize oxygen contact with the must.”
A good Pugnitello wine has very rich and
thick red-cherry aromas and fl avors, compli-
cated by plum jam, burnt almond, leather, and
earthy notes. Tani also fi nds suave, almost
decadent aromas and fl avors of dark fruit mac-
erated in alcohol and a hint of marzipan. She
loves the wine, fi nding it to be fruitier and
richer than those made with Sangiovese: she
also believes it to have higher total acidity,
which gives it a long cellar life. “If well made,”
she says, “it's a real fruit bomb, but with plenty
of acidity to help it keep from becoming heavy.”
And pugnitello also ages better than people are
inclined to think, adds winemaker Attilio Pagli:
“I always fi nd it's much better a few years after
the vintage, as it usually picks up a note of
refi nement that isn't very noticeable in its
Which Wines to Choose and Why
Pugnitello is used in IGT blends such as Costa
Toscana and Montecastelli. The San Felice
estate planted one thousand vines from which
three
barriques
of wine were made in the fi rst
