| CANAIOLO
Canaiolo, also known as Canaiolo Nero to distinguish it from the white-berried version ("Drupeggio") widely used alongside Trebbiano, Malvasia, and Grechetto in many central Italian white blends, is one of the historic red grapes of Tuscany. Along with Sangiovese, it was, in the century between 1870 and 1970, the basis of the blend of Chianti Classico, the other Chianti-style wines produced in a substantial part of the territory of Tuscany, and of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. Significant evidence exists, in fact, to suggest that Canaiolo was the most important grape of all in Chianti Classico until World War I. It was only the result of the prestige which Sangiovese enjoyed as a result of the work of Baron Bettino Ricasoli (the second Prime Minister of the newly united kingdom of Italy in 1860 and a dedicated agricultural reformer and viticultural experimenter), who gave Sangiovese a privileged place in his famous "formula" for Chianti, Sangiovese + Canaiolo, which tipped the scales in favor of the former grape.
A variety of this importance must obviously have a long history behind it, and this is indeed the case for Canaiolo: Petrus de Crescentiis cited "Canajuola" as early as in the first decade of the 14th century and describes it as a "lovely grape, one to cherish and protect" ("bellisima uva e da serbare"). Canaiolo was successively cited by Soderini in the 17th century and by Villifranchi in the 18th century, by then with the spelling which corresponds to the modern form: Canaiolo.
Canaiolo has, unfortunately, suffered an important loss of popularity and interest on the part of Tuscan cultivators and producers in the twentieth century, though not always for reasons which accurately reflect the true quality potential of the variety. It ripens fairly late in growing season, often even later than Sangiovese, and is consequently - as opposed to such currently popular French varieties as Merlot and Syrah - somewhat vulnerable to October rains, problems of mould and rot, and dilution of the wines. Canaiolo has also had notable difficulties in adapting to many of the American rootstocks onto which European grape varieties are grafted in order to protect them from attacks from the root-eating phylloxera vine louse.
Despite these problems, which are anything but insuperable with a real commitment from producers and proper professional work in the vineyard, Canaiolo remains a useful and interesting variety and one which deserves more attention. Less intense and structured than Sangiovese, it compensates with much aromatic elegance, a direct and expressive fruitiness, and a lovely softness of texture. When cultivated to give the proper body and concentration, it gives a wine of much individual character, one with a personality that is immediately distinctive and perceptible and with good length and persistence on the palate.
Particularly favorable areas for Canaiolo have not yet been identified, nor have clonal research or selections from vine nurseries identified genetically superior material. As a late-ripening variety, Canaiolo needs well exposed vineyards, but, at the present moment, quality seems directly linked to individual estates with a history of high level results from the grape. These properties, which have often replanted Canaiolo from their own cuttings and avoided the rather variable quality of much Canaiolo supplied by vine nurseries, are now in position to respond to consumer interest in wines which offer new and different sensations, alternatives to much of the standardized wine now on the market. |
