Nerello is a name given to two varieties of red

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented grapes. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different ...

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus '' Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years a ...

s that are grown primarily in

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

and

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label= Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, aft ...

.J. Robinson ''Vines, Grapes & Wines'' pg 213 Mitchell Beazley 1986 *''Nerello Mascalese'', which is named after the Mascali area in

Catania Catania (, , Sicilian and ) is the second largest municipality in Sicily, after Palermo. Despite its reputation as the second city of the island, Catania is the largest Sicilian conurbation, among the largest in Italy, as evidenced also b ...

where the grape is thought to have originated. It is grown mainly on the northeastern side of Sicily and is thought to be superior in quality to the Nerello Cappuccio. While it can be used for blending, the grape is often made into

varietal A varietal wine is a wine made primarily from a single named grape variety, and which typically displays the name of that variety on the wine label.The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, 2000.winepros.com.au. ...

wine. The grape is believed to be an offspring of the Calabrian wine grape Mantonico bianco.J. Robinson, J. Harding and J. Vouillamoz ''Wine Grapes - A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavours'' pgs 5, 593-594 Allen Lane 2012 *''Nerello Cappuccio'' It is widely used in the

Etna DOC Etna is a ''Denominazione di origine controllata'' (DOC) for wine from the Etna region in Italy. Etna D.O.C. territory is closely tied to the biggest active volcano in Europe, Etna. Much of the volcano is covered with crops and natural vegetation. ...

as a blending grape that adds color and

alcohol Alcohol most commonly refers to: * Alcohol (chemistry), an organic compound in which a hydroxyl group is bound to a carbon atom * Alcohol (drug), an intoxicant found in alcoholic drinks Alcohol may also refer to: Chemicals * Ethanol, one of sev ...

to the wine. It is one of the three grapes used to make the wine ''Corvo Rosso''. An Italian study published in 2008 using

DNA typing Genetic testing, also known as DNA testing, is used to identify changes in DNA sequence or chromosome structure. Genetic testing can also include measuring the results of genetic changes, such as RNA analysis as an output of gene expression, or ...

showed a close genetic relationship between

Sangiovese Sangiovese (, also , , ) is a red Italian wine grape variety that derives its name from the Latin ''sanguis Jovis'', "the blood of Jupiter". Though it is the grape of most of central Italy from Romagna down to Lazio (the most widespread grap ...

on the one hand and ten other Italian grape varieties on the other hand, including Nerello. It is therefore likely that Nerello is a crossing of Sangiovese and another, so far unidentified, grape variety.''‘Sangiovese’ and ‘Garganega’ are two key varieties of the Italian grapevine assortment evolution''
, M. Crespan, A. Calò, S. Giannetto, A. Sparacio, P. Storchi and A. Costacurta, Vitis 47 (2), 97–104 (2008) The organoleptic characteristics of the monovarietal Nerello Mascalese generally are a ruby red color, with subtle grenade tones; a strong fruity scent of red berry fruits, with slight floral shades, a spicy hint, and a feeble effusion of vanilla and tobacco, with a persistent trace of licorice; and a dry, tannic, persistent and harmonic taste, with a strong body. At sight, the wine seems surely more mature than it appears when smelled or tasted. Treating this vine variety in a traditional way, it can produce a wine presenting the above-described characteristics.

Wine styles

Around the city of

Messina Messina (, also , ) is a harbour city and the capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 219,000 inhabitants in t ...

in northeast Sicily, both Nerellos are sometimes blended with the local red grape

Acitana Acitana is a red Italian wine grape variety that is grown in northeast Sicily where it is often blended with Nerello Cappuccio and Nerello Mascalese around the village of Messina though Acitana is officially not a permitted variety for wines label ...

in wines made outside the regulations of the Faro DOC.

References

Red wine grape varieties Wine grapes of Italy {{wine-grape-stub