Susumaniello is an ancient variety of red wine grape grown in the

province of Brindisi The province of Brindisi () is a province in the Apulia region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Brindisi. It has an area of and a total population of 401,652 (2013). Geography The Province of Brindisi is situated in southeastern Italy, exte ...

Salento Salento (; Salentino dialect, Salentino: ''Salentu''; Griko language, Salento Griko: ) is a Cultural area, cultural, List of historical states of Italy, historical, and geographic region at the southern end of the administrative region of Apuli ...

, Southern Italy.

Distribution and wines

Susumaniello is found only in the Italian region of

Apulia Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian language, Italian name Puglia (), is a Regions of Italy, region of Italy, located in the Southern Italy, southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Ot ...

. Until recently, the variety had fallen quite out of favour with viticulturalists; however, since 6 September 2003 it has been included in the list of varieties approved by the Apulian region for cultivation in the area of central Murgia. It is used as a blending grape in the production of both red and rosé

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

s such as the

Negroamaro Negroamaro (seldom Negro amaro; meaning "black ndbitter") is a red wine grape variety native to southern Italy. It is grown almost exclusively in Apulia and particularly in Salento, the peninsula which can be visualised as the "heel" of Italy. T ...

-based

Brindisi Rosso Brindisi Rosso is a red DOC (Denominazione di Origine Controllata) wine from the Southern Italian province of Brindisi, in the region of Apulia. The official appellation was granted on November 22, 1979, when a presidential decree was published in ...

and

Brindisi Rosato Brindisi Rosso is a red DOC (Denominazione di Origine Controllata) wine from the Southern Italian province of Brindisi, in the region of Apulia. The official appellation was granted on November 22, 1979, when a presidential decree was published in t ...

and the Ottavianello-based

Ostuni Ottavianello Ostuni is a white or ''rosé'' style Italian wine awarded ''Denominazione di Origine Controllata'' (DOC) status in 1972, in the Province of Brindisi of Apulia.M. Ewing-Mulligan & E. McCarthy ''Italian Wines for Dummies'' pg 221 Hungry Minds 2001 ...

Vine and viticulture

Susumaniello needs a warm

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

Origin

There are several theories about Susumaniello's origins, most of which suggest that it came to Apulia across the

Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...

, perhaps from Greece or the

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...

n coast of Croatia.

DNA profiling DNA profiling (also called DNA fingerprinting and genetic fingerprinting) is the process of determining an individual's deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) characteristics. DNA analysis intended to identify a species, rather than an individual, is cal ...

shows that the variety is a natural cross between an Apulian table grape and the white-wine grape

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. ...

, which was once thought to be of Greek origin (whence its southern Italian nickname Grecanico); this led some to the conclusion that Susumaniello was also Greek. According to

folk etymology Folk etymology – also known as (generative) popular etymology, analogical reformation, (morphological) reanalysis and etymological reinterpretation – is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a mo ...

, the name indicates the productiveness of the medium ripening vine, with which you could pack a donkey: the phrase "" means "Run donkey!" in the local

Salentino dialect Salentino () is a dialect of the Extreme Southern Italian ( in Italian) spoken in the Salento peninsula, which is the southern part of the region of Apulia at the southern "heel" of the Italian peninsula. Overview Salentino is a dialect of th ...

Synonyms

Cozzomaniello, Cuccipaniello, Grismaniello, Mondonico, Puledro, Somarello Nero, Susomaniello, Susomariello Nero, Sussumariello, Susumariello Nero, Uva Nera, Zingarello, Zingariello, Zuzomaniello.

Notes and references

* regione.puglia.i
Classificate nuove varietà di vite per la produzione dei vini pugliesi
* politicheagricole.i
Banca Dati Vini DOC, DOCG e IGT
;Footnotes

External links

VIVC Bibliography
{{Wines Red wine grape varieties Wine grapes of Italy Wine grapes of Apulia