Cesanese Comune (more commonly known as just Cesanese) is a red

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 ...

that is grown primarily in the

Lazio Lazio ( , ; ) or Latium ( , ; from Latium, the original Latin name, ) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy, administrative regions of Italy. Situated in the Central Italy, central peninsular section of the country, it has 5,714,882 inhabitants an ...

region. The grape has three ''

Denominazione di origine controllata The following four classification of wine, classifications of wine constitute the Italy, Italian system of labelling and legally protecting Italian wine: * ''Denominazione di origine'' (DO, rarely used; ; 'designation of origin'); * ''Indicazione ...

'' (DOC) regions dedicated to it- Cesanese di Affile DOC, Cesanese di Olevano DOC and Cesanese di Piglio DOC. M. Ewing-Mulligan & E. McCarthy ''Italian Wines for Dummies'' pg 200 Hungry Minds 2001 ''Cesanese di Affile'' appears to be a distinct sub-variety of Cesanese Comune unique to the commune of Affile. (much like '' Brunello'' is a unique clone of

Sangiovese Sangiovese is a red Italian wine grape variety that derives its name from the Latin , "blood of Jove, Jupiter". Sangiovese Grosso, used for traditionally powerful and slow maturing red wines, is primarily grown in the central regions of Italy ...

unique to commune of

Montalcino Montalcino is a hill town and ''comune'' in the province of Siena, Tuscany, central Italy. The town is located to the west of Pienza, close to the Crete Senesi in Val d'Orcia. It is from Siena, from Florence and from Pisa. Monte Amiata is l ...

) There are noticeable differences between Cesanese Comune and the grapes found in Cesanese di Affile, including the size of the grape berry itself. The sub-variety Cesanese d'Affile is considered to be of superior quality of Cesanese Comune and is used as minor ingredient in the Tuscan cult wine Trinoro. J. Robinson (ed) ''"The Oxford Companion to Wine"'' Third Edition pg 148 Oxford University Press 2006 The grape has very old origins, and may have been used in Roman winemaking. Today it is rarely seen outside of the Lazio. Oz Clarke ''Encyclopedia of Grapes'' pg 59 Harcourt Books 2001

History

Cesanese Comune has had a long history in the Lazio regions with

ampelographers Ampelography ( ἄμπελος, "vine" + γράφος, "writing") is the field of botany concerned with the identification and classification of grapevines, ''Vitis'' spp. Traditionally this has been done by comparing the shape and colour of th ...

believing the grape to be indigenous to the region. While it may have been used in Roman winemaking, in recent centuries the grape has been on a steady decline. By 2000 there were less than 2,500 acres (1,000 hectares) of the grape planted in Italy. The grape's decline has coincided with the general decline of

viticulture 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 ...

in the Lazio region as

urban sprawl Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city". Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted ...

and more of the population shift from agriculture to more industrial enterprises. In the 2000s, the Cesanese variety earned publicity for being included in the debut wine Sogno Uno by American porn star Savanna Samson. For her first foray into the wine industry, Samson sampled 80 Italian wines before deciding to base her first wine primarily on the rare Lazio grape. Her 2004 Sogno Uno, which earned a favorable 91pt rating from American wine critic Robert Parker, was composed of 70% Cesanese, 20% Sangiovese and 10%

Montepulciano Montepulciano () is a medieval and Renaissance hill town and ''comune'' in the Italian province of Siena in southern Tuscany. It sits high on a limestone ridge, east of Pienza, southeast of Siena, southeast of Florence, and north of Rome ...

.T. Aspler '
Curves of the Bottle - Interview with Sacanna Samson
"'' Tidings, June 9th, 2008

Wine regions

Cesanese Comune is almost exclusively planted in the Lazio region of Italy, and has long been associated with the ancient town and comune of

Anagni Anagni () is an ancient town and ''comune'' in the province of Frosinone, Lazio, in the hills east-southeast of Rome. It is a historical and artistic centre of the Latin Valley. Geography Overview Anagni still maintains the appearance of a s ...

. It is planted throughout the hills of southeast Latium in the

province of Frosinone The province of Frosinone () is a province in the Lazio region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Frosinone. It has an area of and a total population of 493,605 (2016). The province contains 91 ''comuni'' (: ''comune''), listed in the ...

which has been sub-divided into three DOC regions. The Cesanese di Affile DOC is located around the commune of Affile in the province of Rome, though the sub-variety of ''Cesanese di Affile'' has migrated north to southern

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...

. The Cesanese di Olevano is also located in the province of Rome around the city of Olevano Romano. The mountainous vineyards of the Cesanese di Piglio DOC, centered around the

Piglio Piglio is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Frosinone in the Italian region Lazio, located about east of Rome and about northwest of Frosinone, offering a panoramic view on the valleys of the Sacco and Aniene rivers. History It ...

commune in the

, is considered by wine experts such as Master of Wine Mary Ewing-Mulligan to produce the best quality Cesanese wine but viticulture in the area has declined due to the difficulties in cultivating such mountainous terrain.

Wines

Traditionally Cesanese was used to make

sweet Sweetness is a basic taste most commonly perceived when eating foods rich in sugars. Sweet tastes are generally regarded as pleasurable. In addition to sugars like sucrose, many other chemical compounds are sweet, including aldehydes, ketones, ...

red wines that ranged from slightly sparkling ''

frizzante Sparkling wine is a wine with significant levels of carbon dioxide in it, making it fizzy. While it is common to refer to this as champagne, European Union countries legally reserve that word for products exclusively produced in the Champagne r ...

'' to fully sparkling '' spumante'' styles. In the late 20th century more winemakers began making dry still wines from the grape variety. Under DOC regulations, any wine labeled as Cesanese must contain at least 90% of the grape variety in the wine. Among the other grape varieties permitted to fill in the remaining 10% of the blend are both red and white grapes-Sangiovese, Montepulciano, Barbera, Trebbiano Toscano and Bambino bianco. P. Saunders ''Wine Label Language'' pg 137-138 Firefly Books 2004 Wines made Cesanese are described as light bodied and soft, often recommended to be enjoyed soon after release. Wines from the Cesanese di Affile DOC may have a slight bitter edge.

Synonyms

Among the

synonyms A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means precisely or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are a ...

that Cesanese is known under include Bambino, Bombino nero, Bonvino nero, Bonvino, Cesanese, Cesanese ad acino grosso, Cesanese nero, Cesanese velletrano, Cesanze nero, Ferrigno nero, Ferrigno, Mangiatoria, Nero Ferrigno, Sancinella and Sanginella. Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC
Cesanese Commune
Accessed: November 13th, 2017

References

{{reflist Red wine grape varieties