Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
though the annals are fi lled with “Bianco-
Something” varieties, and understanding
which might be Bianca Capriana is no easy
task. It was rediscovered and planted in the
experimental vineyard of the Centro per la
Sperimentazione in Vitivinicoltura (Center for
Study and Experimentation in Viticulture) of
the province of Verona in the late 1970s. A non-
aromatic variety, it is characterized by a
medium-small, cylindrical, usually sparse
grape bunch (130 grams on average), and
round, thick-skinned, yellow berries. It ripens
in September, has good vigor and medium
resistance to common pests. The microvinifi ca-
tions I've tasted remind me of dried fruits and
ripe, almost stewed apples. The wine is light
bodied and fresh, with clean acidity and a
saline nuance; it's actually not bad.
the variety was thought extinct, but Vouillamoz
and Moriondo located two centenary vines near
the Valle d'Aosta cities of Gressan and Aosta,
which were subsequently proven to be Bianco
Comune or Gros Blanc (or Blanc Comun, as it
is called in French Switzerland). The pheno-
type of the two grapevines reportedly matched
with that of Bianco Comune as documented by
Gatta in 1838, and DNA testing proved the
vines under examination to be of a distinct
variety. Bianco Comune was the most common
white grape of the middle Valle d'Aosta in the
nineteenth century, but only a few years later its
cultivation was declining. Clearly, there is no
wine yet made from this variety, so all we can
do is wait and hope that it will be multiplied
and propagated quickly so that we may all taste
a sip of history.
Bianchino Faentino
Biancone
See
MONTÙ
, chapter 4.
where it's found:
Tu sc a ny.
national regis-
try code number:
30.
color:
white.
Limited to the island of Elba, and not pro-
duced in any numbers of commercial interest,
Biancone's high yields have masked its true
potential in recent years. For this reason, it was
long confused with the highly productive Treb-
biano Toscano. The bunch is short and pyrami-
dal, with two wings, and like those of the
Treb -
biano
s, very large (roughly seven hundred
grams!). The berries are dark yellow-green and
are harvested in September, usually later than
Trebbiano Toscano. Biancone appears to grow
particularly well on the island of Elba. For
wines, search for the estate of Antonio Arrighi,
who knows Biancone better than most people
and is in love with his local native grapes. He
owns fi fty-year-old vines but not enough to
make a monovarietal bottling, choosing to blend
Biancone into his Elba Bianco wine. Arrighi
feels that Biancone adds perfume and acidity to
Trebbiano
-based wines, but that it needs well-
exposed sites, otherwise it doesn't ripen fully.
Biancone has been apparently planted in Aus-
tralia, though I'm not sure the variety planted
there is exactly the same variety grown on Elba,
Bianco Antico
where it's found:
Campania.
national reg-
istry code number:
not registered.
color:
white.
Also known as Pinot Antico, Bianco Antico
is a very rare variety that has genetic profi les
similar to those of the
Falanghina
s and Pinot
Blanc. It has only recently come back to atten-
tion; the fi rst Bianco Antico wines were made
in 2009. I have not tasted it, but reportedly the
wine tastes of ripe citrus fruit and yellow apple,
with a pretty fl oral nose. As Bianco Antico is
high in acidity, it is thought it might make very
good sparkling wines. I know of no bottles
available for sale.
Bianco Comune
where it's found:
Valle d'Aosta.
national
registry code number:
not registered.
color:
white.
This is one of the most recently rediscovered
native grape listed in this topic. Prior to 2007,
