Incrocio Manzoni or Manzoni grapes is a family of grape varieties named after Professor Luigi Manzoni (1888-1968) of Italy's oldest school of oenology located in Conegliano, in the Veneto region. Manzoni created the new grape varieties by selecting, crossing and grafting vines from various vineyards during the 1920s and 1930s. The family includes both white and red grape varieties. Although most Manzonis are grown in northeastern Italy, they are mainly grown in the Piave area of Province of Treviso and are only now starting to be sold commercially in Europe and the United States. [1]
The name Incrocio is Italian for crossing with the second part of the name usually being the last name of the grape breeder. These means that not every Incrocio grape variety are Manzoni grapes with varieties such as Incrocio bianco Fedit 51 (a Garganega and Malvasia bianca Lunga crossing), Incrocio Bruni 54 (a Sauvignon blanc and Verdicchio crossing) and Incrocio Terzi 1 (a Barbera and Cabernet Franc crossing) being mostly unrelated to Professor Manzoni or his crossings. The numbers after grape type refer to location of the vineyards for the original grafts; for example, 6.0.13 refers to the row, vine and vineyard. [1]
There are several different Incrocio Manzoni grapes which have been selected for cultivation. The two most successful are Manzoni bianco and Manzoni Moscato which are most commonly known under their non-numerical designations, while the others have not had as much success and are rare in plantation.
Incrocio Manzoni 2.15 or Manzoni 2.15, is a red variety which is a cross of Glera (formerly known as Prosecco) and Cabernet Sauvignon that was produced during a series of trials between 1924 and 1930. It is also known under the synonyms I.M. 2.15, Manzoni 2-15, Manzoni nero, Manzoni rosso, and Prosecco × Cabernet Sauvignon 2-15. [2]
Professor Manzoni's original intent was to create a white wine grape variety from a crossing of Prosecco and Sauvignon blanc but ended up using pollen from Cabernet Sauvignon which resulted in a black-skinned grape variety. Manzoni 2.15 is a winter-hardy grape variety with good frost resistance that can be very vigorous unless kept in check by winter pruning, vine training and leaf-pulling. Like its parent, Cabernet Sauvignon, it is a late ripening grape that needs a long growing season to achieve full physiological ripeness. [1]
In 2000 there were 169 hectares (420 acres) of Manzoni 2.15 planted mostly in the province of Treviso around the village of Conegliano and hills of Montello. It is a permitted grape variety in the Denominazione di origine controllata (DOC) zone of Colli di Conegliano where it can make up to 10% of the red wine blend along with Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Marzemino. Outside the DOC, it can be made into a varietal wine under the Indicazione geografica tipica (IGT) designation of Colli Trevigiani where some producers have been experimenting with a blanc de noir sparkling wine made using the traditional method of secondary fermentation in the bottle. [1]
According to Master of Wine Jancis Robinson, varietal wines made from Manzoni 2.15 tend to have low tannins with herbaceous aromas (particularly if made from grapes not fully ripe) and notes of both red and black fruits. [1]
Manzoni bianco or "Incrocio Manzoni 6.0.13", is a white variety which is a cross between the Riesling and Pinot blanc grapes that was created through a series of trials between 1930 and 1935. In 2005, it was suggested that Chardonnay, instead of Pinot blanc, was the second parent of Manzoni bianco, but DNA analysis has shown that Professor Manzoni's original cross is, indeed, Manzoni bianco's parentage. [1] The grape is also known under the further synonyms of "I.M. 6.0.13", "Incrocio Manzoni 6.0.13", "Manzoni 6.0.13", and "Manzoni Bijeli". [3]
From its parents, Manzoni bianco inherited an adaptability to various vineyard soils and climate conditions. It also has strong resistance to many viticultural hazards including the apoplexy grape disease esca, powdery mildew and sour rot. Like Riesling it is an early to mid-ripening grape variety. [1]
In 2000, there were 9,555 hectares (23,610 acres) of Manzoni bianco in Italy, mostly in the Friuli, Trentino, and Veneto regions, but plantings of grape have since spread southwards, so that it can now be found in Calabria, Molise and Apulia. The grape can be used for blending into the white wines of the Colli di Conegliano (at a minimum of 30% of the blend), into Trentino bianco DOCs, and as a varietal in the Vincenza DOC. Producers in the Vigneti delle Dolomiti IGT of northeast Italy have also experimented with various varietal styles, including both spumante and frizzante sparkling wines made from late-harvest grapes. Outside of Italy, Spanish winemakers in the Penedès region of Catalonia have started to plant the variety, making oak-aged varietal examples of the wine. [1]
According to Master of Wine Jancis Robinson, Manzoni bianco is considered to be the most successful and highest quality crossing produced by Professor Manzoni. It is usually made as a dry wine but producers have been making more full-bodied off-dry styles in a manner similar to how German winemakers treat Riesling. Varietal examples of Manzoni bianco tend to be rich and highly aromatic with notes of honey, jasmine, lime, orange-peel and verbena. [1]
Manzoni Moscato is a red grape variety that is a crossing of Muscat Hamburg (also known as Black Muscat) and Raboso Piave created through a series of trials between 1930 and 1935. [1] It is also known under the synonyms Incrocio Manzoni 13.0.25 and Manzoni 13.0.25. [4]
Professor Manzoni's intent was to create a variety with the soft fruit flavors and consistent yields of Raboso Piave with the robustness and strong viticultural resistance of Muscat Hamburg. The result crossing, Manzoni Moscato, is a late-ripening grape variety that can be very vigorous and productive with strong resistance to powdery mildew. [1]
Today, Manzoni Moscato is one of the least widely planted of the major Manzoni grapes with most of the grape's plantings found in the province of Treviso around the villages of Cessalto, Fontanelle and Mareno di Piave as well as in Tezze sul Brenta in the province of Vicenza. Here the grape is most often used to produce light-bodied, off-dry, sparkling rosé wine that can be very deeply colored for a rosé. The grape is sometimes blended with the pink-skinned Manzoni grape, Manzoni rosa, to produce the sweet wine Manzoni liquoroso which has become a specialty of the Scuola enologica di Conegliano in Conegliano. [1]
Manzoni rosa or Incrocio Manzoni 1.50, is a pink-skinned variety which is a cross of Trebbiano and Gewürztraminer (also known as Traminer Aromatico) that was created during a series of trials between 1924 and 1930. Out of these trials four successful crossings were produced with Manzoni ultimately deciding to propagate the crossing that shared the pink-skin coloration of its parent varietal Gewürztraminer. [1] The grape is also known under the synonym Manzoni 1-50. [5]
Professor Manzoni's original intent with the crossing was to create a grape variety that produced the reliable yields and viticultural resistance of Trebbiano with the aromatics and quality potential of Gewürztraminer. The resulting cross, Manzoni rosa, is an early to mid-ripening grapevine that can be very fertile and high yielding with strong resistance to many fungal grape disease. [1]
During the 1950s and 1960s, growers around the viticultural school of Conegliano experimented with plantings of the variety but very few of those original plantings remain in commercial production today. While a few modern producers still make varietal examples of Manzoni rosa, most of the grape's plantings are blended with Manzoni Moscato to make the fortified wine Manzoni liquoroso at the Conegliano school. [1]
Cabernet Franc is one of the major black grape varieties worldwide. It is principally grown for blending with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in the Bordeaux style, but can also be vinified alone, as in the Loire's Chinon. In addition to being used in blends and produced as a varietal in Canada and the United States, it is sometimes made into ice wine in those regions.
Aurore is a white complex hybrid grape variety produced by Albert Seibel and used for wine production mostly in the United States and Canada. Over a long lifetime Seibel produced many complex hybrid crosses of Vitis vinifera to American grapes. It is a cross of Seibel 788 and Seibel 29.
Carignan is a red grape variety of Spanish origin that is more commonly found in French wine but is widely planted throughout the western Mediterranean and around the globe. Along with Aramon, it was considered one of the main grapes responsible for France's wine lake and was a substantial producer in jug wine production in California's Central Valley but in recent years, it has been reborn as a flagship wine for many cellars in the south of France as well as in Catalonia.
The Muscat family of grapes includes over 200 grape varieties belonging to the Vitis vinifera species that have been used in wine production and as raisin and table grapes around the globe for many centuries. Their colors range from white, to yellow, to pink to near black. Muscat grapes and wines almost always have a pronounced floral aroma. The breadth and number of varieties of Muscat suggest that it is perhaps the oldest domesticated grape variety, and there are theories that most families within the Vitis vinifera grape variety are descended from the Muscat variety.
Dornfelder is a dark-skinned variety of grape of German origin used for red wine. It was created by August Herold (1902–1973) at the grape breeding institute in Weinsberg in the Württemberg region in 1955. Herold crossed the grape varieties Helfensteiner and Heroldrebe, the latter which bears his name, to create Dornfelder. Helfensteiner and Heroldrebe were both crosses created some decades earlier by Herold. Dornfelder received varietal protection and was released for cultivation in 1979. It was named in honor of Immanuel August Ludwig Dornfeld (1796–1869), a senior civil servant who was instrumental in creating the viticultural school in Weinsberg.
Italian wine is produced in every region of Italy. Italy is the world's largest producer of wine, with an area of 702,000 hectares under vineyard cultivation, and contributing a 2013–2017 annual average of 48.3 million hl of wine. In 2018 Italy accounted for 19 per cent of global production, ahead of France and Spain. Italian wine is both exported around the world and popular domestically among Italians, who consume an average of 42 litres per capita, ranking fifth in world wine consumption.
Conegliano is a town and comune of the Veneto region, Italy, in the province of Treviso, about 30 kilometres (19 mi) north by rail from the town of Treviso. The population of the city is of 35,023 people. The remains of a 10th-century castle are situated on a hill that dominates the town. Formerly belonging to the Bishop of Vittorio Veneto, what remains is a bell tower, which now houses a small museum, and outer walls.
Brown Brothers Milawa Vineyard is a family-owned wine company based in Milawa, Victoria, Australia. Brown Brothers was founded in 1889 by John Francis Brown and continues to be owned and operated by his descendants on the original property. Brown Brothers makes wine from a wide range of grape varieties and into a range of styles.
Abouriou is a red French wine grape variety grown primarily in Southwest France and, in small quantities, California. It is a blending grape that, along with Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Fer, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot, is used to make the Appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) wine of Côtes du Marmandais. Abouriou can also be made into a varietal, as it is used in some vin de pays wines. The grape is known for its low acidity and high tannin content.
Moscato Giallo or Yellow Muscat is a white Italian wine grape variety that is a member of the Muscat family of grapes. Known for its large deep cluster of loose, deep-yellow berries and golden colored wine, Moscato Giallo is grown mostly in northern Italy where it is most often used to produce passito style dessert wines. The grape is also planted in Croatia where it is known as Muškat žuti.
Bronner is a white grape variety used for wine. It was bred in 1975 by Norbert Becker at the viticultural institute in Freiburg, Germany. The variety was initially known under its breeding code FR 250-75, and was later named in honour of Johann Philipp Bronner (1792-1864), who was a German pharmacist and viticultural pioneer. It received varietal protection in 1977.
Merzling is a white grape variety used for wine. It was bred in 1960 by Johannes Zimmermann at the viticultural institute in Freiburg, Germany by crossing Seyve-Villard 5276 with the cross Riesling × Pinot gris.
Cabernet Cortis is a dark-skinned grape variety used for wine. It was bred in 1982 by Norbert Becker at the viticultural institute in Freiburg, Germany as part of a programme searching for disease-resistant grape varieties. It received German varietal protection in 2003.
Glera, also known as Prosecco, is a white variety of grape of Slovenian origin, which was brought to the Italian village of Prosecco from the Karst region. The variety was formerly mostly referred to as Prosecco, but in the EU was renamed "Glera" in 2009 to make room for the protection of "Prosecco" as the name of the Italian geographically-protected wine.
Olmo grapes are wine and table grape varieties produced by University of California, Davis viticulturist Dr. Harold Olmo. Over the course of his nearly 50-year career, Dr. Olmo bred a wide variety of both grapes by means of both crossing varieties from the same species or creating hybrid grapes from cultivars of different Vitis species.
Ravat blanc is a white hybrid grape variety that is a crossing of Chardonnay and a Seibel grape. While the Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) maintained by the Geilweilerhof Institute for Grape Breeding list Seibel 5474 as the second parent, Master of Wine Jancis Robinson notes that other authors list Seibel 8724 as the parent. The grape is often confused with the white hybrid grape Vignoles that is often called just Ravat.
Cabernet blanc is a white German and Swiss wine grape variety that is a crossing of the French wine grape Cabernet Sauvignon and Regent. The grape was bred by Swiss grape breeder Valentin Blattner in 1991. Cabernet blanc has strong resistance to most grape disease including botrytis bunch rot, downy and powdery mildew and tends to produce loose clusters of small, thick-skinned grape berries which can hang on the vine late into the harvest season to produce dessert wines. Today the grape is found primarily in the Palatinate wine region of Germany with some experimental plantings in Spain and the Netherlands. In France, in the Languedoc, Domaine La Colombette is heavily investing in PIWI grapes. Amongst others the Cabernet Blanc in their cuvée "Au Creux du Nid", is gaining wide acclaim.
Souvignier gris is a white German wine grape variety that was created in 1983 by Dr. Norbert Becker. It is a cross between Seyval blanc and Zähringer, but was originally thought to be a cross between Cabernet Sauvignon and Bronner.
Bianchetta Trevigiana is a white Italian wine grape variety that is grown in the Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol and Veneto wine regions of northeast Italy. Here the grape is rarely used a varietal but, instead, is a permitted blending grape adding acidity to the wines of several Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC) zones including the sparkling wine Prosecco and has also been used for vermouth production. The name Trevigiana is derived from the province of Treviso where the grape is believed to have originated from.