Wine Grape: Ugni Blanc (Trebbiano)
White wine grape usually making uninteresting, neutral wines. In Umbria, as Procanico, it can make better wines. It is a high yielding vine and one of the most cultivated in the world. It is by far the most planted white variety in Italy. It's included in over 80 DOC's and accounts for about a third of all Italian white wine production. Trebbiano is used to produce balsamic vinegar.
As Ugni Blanc, the grape probably arrived in France with the Avignon Popes in the 14th century. Its most important home in France is in the southwest, where it's used in the production of Cognac and Armagnac. Here too, it accounts for the majority of white wine.
Synonyms (and clones)
Also known as Branquinha, Clairette à grains ronds, Clairette Ronde, Douradinha, Bouan, Procanico, Roussan, Talia, Trebbiano Giallo, Trebbiano di Lugana, Trebbiano di Soave, Trebbiano di Toscana, Trebbiano Fiorentino, Trebbiano Romagnolo, Trebbiano Spoletino, Ugni.
Trebbiano d'Abruzzo is not a trebbiano, but Bombino Bianco. Trebbiano di Soave and Trebbiano di Lugana are not Trebbianos, but grapes related to Verdicchio. Trebbiano di Soave can make some very good wines, especially in Italy's Lombary and Veneto regions (Lugana DOC).
Where
France: Bordeaux, Corsica, Poitou-Charentes, Provence, Rhône, Southwest
Italy: Tuscany, Emilia-Romagna, Umbria, Lazio, Abruzzo, Molise, Campania
Also: Bulgaria, Romania, Russia, Greece, Mexico, California, Brazil, Portugal, Uruguay, South Africa, Australia
Principal Wines (and Eaux-de-Vie)
France: Bordeaux: Crémant de Bordeaux AOC; Côtes de Gascongne VDP; Corsica: Ajaccio AOC, Patrimonio AOC; Poitou-Charentes: Pineau-des-Charentes AOC; Provence: Bandol AOC, Bellet AOC, Cassis AOC, Coteaux-d'Aix-en-Provence AOC, Coteaux-Varois AOC, Côtes-de-Provence AOC, Palette AOC; Rhône: Coteaux-de-Pierrevert AOC, Lirac AOC; Southwest: Bergerac AOC, Bergerac Sec AOC, Côtes-de-Duras AOC, Côtes-du-Marmandais AOC, Floc-de-Gascogne AOC
Italy: Emilia-Romagna: Bosco Eliceo DOC, Colli di Faenza DOC, Trebbiano di Romagna DOC; Tuscany: Bolgheri DOC, Colli Dell'Etruria Centrale DOC, Montecarlo DOC, Parrina DOC, Sant'Antimo DOC, Valcichiana DOC, Falerio dei Colli Ascolani or Falerio DOC; Umbria: Assisi DOC, Colli Altotiberini DOC, Colli Perugini DOC, Bianco di Torgiano DOC; Lazio: Trebbiano di Aprilia DOC, Colli Etruschi Viterbesi DOC, Est! Est! Est! di Montefiascone DOC; Abruzzo: Controguerra DOC; Molise: Biferno DOC; Campania: Sannio DOC, Taburno DOC; Puglia: Gioia del Colle DOC. Since the 2005 harvest, white grapes are no longer permitted in Chianti Classico DOCG. Trebbiano is frequently used in Tuscan Vin Santos.
Portugal: Vinho Verde
Characteristics
Color: Straw yellow
Nose: Fruity (golden apples)
Palate: Relatively acidic in cooler regions such as Cognac and more neutral in warmer areas. The best versions balance the acidity with softness and medium alcohol. Light to medium body.
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