Schioppettino (Ribolla Nera)
Classic aromas of Schioppettino are: Black Cherry, Blackberry, Boysenberry and Black Plum
Schioppettino is a red grape varietal that comes from the region of Friuli in the northeast of Italy. It was once known as Ribolla Nera but is becoming known more as Schioppettino – which was originally the name of the wine made from Ribolla Nera.
In the earlier years of the 20th century, Schioppettino almost disappeared thanks to the Phylloxera louse that wiped out the majority of vineyards in the Friuli region. It is thanks to the Rapuzzis who decided to preserve the grape in the 1970s which has lead to quite a few producers now making single varietal wines from this grape varietal. There are now a total of 96ha, a small but significant increase on less than a hectare before the 1970s.
Schioppettino is now making some excellent red wines that have fine, smooth tannins with medium-full bodies. They have flavours of black plum, blackberry, boysenberry and black pepper.