Bigolona is a white

Italian wine Italian wine () is produced in every region of Italy. Italy is the country with the widest variety of indigenous grapevine in the world, with an area of under vineyard cultivation, as well as the List of wine-producing regions#Countries, world's ...

grape variety This list of grape varieties includes cultivated grapes, whether used for wine, or eating as a table grape, fresh or dried (raisin, Zante currant, currant, sultana (grape), sultana). For a complete list of all grape species, including those unimp ...

from the

Valpolicella Valpolicella (, , ) is a viticultural zone of the province of Verona, Italy (wine), Italy, east of Lake Garda. The hilly agricultural and marble-quarrying region of small holdings north of the Adige is famous for wine production. Valpolicella ra ...

region of northeast Italy where it has been growing since at least the early 19th century. The wine has traditionally been used in the production of

late harvest Late harvest wine is wine made from grapes left on the vine longer than usual. ''Late harvest'' is usually an indication of a sweet dessert wine, such as late harvest Riesling. Late harvest grapes are often more similar to raisins, but have been ...

and

botrytized ''Botrytis cinerea'' is a necrotrophic fungus that affects many plant species, although its most notable hosts may be wine grapes. In viticulture, it is commonly known as "botrytis bunch rot"; in horticulture, it is usually called "grey mould" or ...

dessert wine Dessert wines, sometimes called pudding wines in the United Kingdom, are sweet wines typically served with dessert. There is no simple definition of a dessert wine. In the UK, a dessert wine is considered to be any sweet wine drunk with a mea ...

s with the grape's synonym ''Smarzirola'' being derived from the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

''marcire'' meaning "to rot".J. Robinson, J. Harding and J. Vouillamoz ''Wine Grapes - A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavours'' pgs 107-108 Allen Lane 2012

History

Bigolona was first documented growing in the Valpolicella region in the early 19th century. By the 1970s, the grape was on the verge of extinction until viticulturalists at the Istituto Sperimentale per la Viticoltura in

Conegliano Conegliano (; Venetian language, Venetian: ''Conejan'') is a town and ''comune'' of the Veneto region, Italy, in the province of Treviso, about north by rail from the town of Treviso. The population of the city is of people. The remains of a 10th ...

and

Verona Verona ( ; ; or ) is a city on the Adige, River Adige in Veneto, Italy, with 255,131 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region, and is the largest city Comune, municipality in the region and in Northeast Italy, nor ...

began propagating cuttings to preserve the endangered vine. While the grape was not yet listed on the official register of

Italian grape varieties References Supplemental references used for chart

*J. Robinson, J. Harding and J. Vouillamoz ''Wine Grapes - A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavours'' pgs XXVIII-XXX Allen Lane 2012. . {{DEFAULTSOR ...

in time for the 2000 census, producers within the

Veneto Veneto, officially the Region of Veneto, is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the Northeast Italy, north-east of the country. It is the fourth most populous region in Italy, with a population of 4,851,851 as of 2025. Venice is t ...

Indicazione geografica tipica ''Indicazione geografica tipica'' () is the third of four classification of wine, classifications of wine recognized by the government of Italy. Created to recognize the unusually high quality of the class of wines known as Italian wine#Super Tus ...

'' (IGT) zone have begun making wine from these revived plantings.

Viticulture

Bigolona is a mid-ripening grape variety that lends itself well to the production of late-harvest and botrytized wines. The synonym ''Smarzirola'' is derived from the Italian word ''marcire'', which means "to rot", and highlights the grape's affinity for being infected by ''Botrytis cinerea''. Among the

viticultural hazards This is a list of diseases of grapes (''Vitis'' spp.). Bacterial diseases Fungal diseases Miscellaneous diseases and disorders Nematodes, parasitic Phytoplasma, virus and viruslike diseases See also *''Ampeloglypter ater'' *''Ampe ...

that wine growers of Bigolona have to be mindful is the vigorous nature of the vine and the tendency to produce large, leafy

canopy Canopy may refer to: Plants * Canopy (biology), aboveground portion of plant community or crop (including forests) * Canopy (grape), aboveground portion of grapes Religion and ceremonies * Baldachin or canopy of state, typically placed over an a ...

as well as high yields if not kept in check by

pruning Pruning is the selective removal of certain parts of a plant, such as branches, buds, or roots. It is practiced in horticulture (especially fruit tree pruning), arboriculture, and silviculture. The practice entails the targeted removal of di ...

green harvest Viticulture (, "vine-growing"), viniculture (, "wine-growing"), or winegrowing is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ...

ing.

Wine regions

Today Bigolona is cultivated almost exclusively in the Valpolicella region and around the commune of

Illasi Illasi is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Verona in the Italian region Veneto, about west of Venice and about east of Verona. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 5,112 and an area of .All demographics and other statistic ...

in the

province of Verona The province of Verona (Italian: ''provincia di Verona'') is a province of the Veneto region in Italy. On its northwestern border, Lake Garda—Italy's largest—is divided between Verona and the provinces of Brescia (Lombardy region) and Trentin ...

. There the grape is often used in the production of late-harvest dessert wines, including

vin santo Vin Santo (; ) is a style of Italian dessert wine. Traditional in Tuscany, these wines are often made from white grape varieties such as Trebbiano and Malvasia, although Sangiovese may be used to produce a rosé style known as "Occhio di Pernic ...

and ''

passito Straw wine, or raisin wine, is a wine made from grapes that have been dried off the vine to concentrate their juice. Under the classic method, after a careful hand harvest, selected bunches of ripe grapes will be laid out on mats in full sun. ( ...

'' style wines. While the grape can be made as a

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. ...

under the Veneto IGT designation, it is most often blended with other local white grape varieties such as

Garganega Garganega (, ; meaning "from Gargano") is a variety of white Italian wine grape widely grown in the Veneto region of North East Italy, particularly in the provinces of Verona and Vicenza. It is Italy's 6th most widely planted white grape. ...

Synonyms

Over the years, Bigolona has been known under a variety of synonyms including: Bigolara, Bigolona bianca, Bigolona Veronese, Sampagna and Smarzirola.

Vitis International Variety Catalogue The Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) is a database of various species and varieties/cultivars of grapevine, the genus ''Vitis''. VIVC is administered by the Geilweilerhof Institute for Grape Breeding (''Institut für Rebenzüchtung G ...

(VIVC)
Bigolona
'' Accessed: April 24th, 2014

References

{{reflist White wine grape varieties