Barbera (grapes)

Last updated March 13, 2019

Barbera is a name shared by several wine and table grape varieties with the most notable being the red Barbera grape of Piedmont in northwest Italy. Other grapes which are known as Barbera, either as part of their primary name or as a synonym, include:

Wine is an alcoholic drink made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol, carbon dioxide, and heat. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts produce different styles of wine. These variations result from the complex interactions between the biochemical development of the grape, the reactions involved in fermentation, the terroir, and the production process. Many countries enact legal appellations intended to define styles and qualities of wine. These typically restrict the geographical origin and permitted varieties of grapes, as well as other aspects of wine production. Wines not made from grapes include rice wine and fruit wines such as plum, cherry, pomegranate, currant and elderberry.

Table grapes are grapes intended for consumption while fresh, as opposed to grapes grown for wine production, juice production, or for drying into raisins.

Barbera is a red Italian wine grape variety that, as of 2000, was the third most-planted red grape variety in Italy. It produces good yields and is known for deep color, full body, low tannins and high levels of acid.

Barbera Amara
Barbera bianca
Barbera Ciaria
Barbera del Sannio
Barbera di Patrunat
Barbera Sarda
Barbera Selvatico
Durasa, known under the synonym of Barbera Rotonda
Ervi, crossing known under the synonym of Barbera x Bonarda 108
Freisa, known under the synonym of Barbera
Sanches, Brazilian hybrid grape crossing known under the synonym of Barbera Min
Terzi 1, crossing known under the synonym of Barbera x Cabernet Franc N.1

Barbera bianca is a white Italian wine grape variety that is grown in the Piedmont wine region of northwest Italy. Despite being named Barbera bianca, the grape is not a color mutation of the red Piedmontese wine grape Barbera that is the third most widely planted grape variety in Italy. In fact, DNA analysis conducted in the early 21st century shows no genetic relationship at all between the two grape varieties.

Barbera del Sannio is a red Italian wine grape variety that is grown in the Campania region of southern Italy. Despite the similarities in name and appearance, the grape has no close genetic relationship with the Piedmont wine grapes Barbera or Barbera bianca or the Sardinian wine grape Barbera Sarda and is, instead, more closely related to the Campanian varieties Casavecchia and Catalanesca and the Apulian grape Nero di Troia.

Barbera Sarda is a red Italian wine grape variety that is grown on the island of Sardinia where it often used to add acidity to blends. Despite the similarities in their names, there is no known close genetic relationship between the Sardinian Barbera and the notable Piedmontese wine grape variety Barbera. Nor does there seem to be any close relationship with other grapes names Barbera, such as Barbera bianca and Barbera del Sannio.

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