Primitivo is an ancient vine whose roots are to be found in southern Italy, particularly in the Puglia region .
The studies done on this vine have brought its origins to what is now the Balkan Peninsula, so we are talking about Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, Montenegro and Albania, and thanks to the Illyrians it probably arrived in Italy more than 2000 years ago, and the its presence was consolidated by the Phoenicians who sold it a little throughout the Mediterranean area.
Even the Greeks, who at the time used to spread Hellenic wine everywhere, were unable to make it rooted in Puglia because in this region there were already vines, called “merum vinum” precisely to indicate an undiluted wine and therefore well distinct from the Greek one which was sweetened with water, honey and vegetable resins.
Origins
Relevant figure in the history of the primitive era don Francesco Filippo Indellicati, a senior official of the Roman Imperial Court in Puglia and expert in botany and agronomy, who in the eighteenth century realized that this vine, among the many of its vineyards, had the characteristic of ripening earlier than the others, generating particularly colorful and pulpy fruits, reason for which it was re-baptized Primativus and from which it took the name it bears today.
In the following centuries, Primitivo spread quickly throughout the Puglia region, particularly in Salento, making its best appearance in the areas of Gioia del Colle and in Manduria, and in 1970 it was officially registered in the national catalog of vine varieties.
In 2001, following further investigations and thanks to the evolution of modern technologies, it was discovered that the primitivo was biologically the same as the Zinfandel grown in the United States, in California, where it is currently one of the most widespread grape varieties.
Ampelographic characteristics
A demanding vine, particularly sensitive to hostile climates and molds, characterized by generous bunches with particularly sugary grapes and with skins rich in anthocyanins that guarantee an intense color to the wine. This grape, always covered with bloom which has the task of protecting it from ultraviolet rays and exaggerated dehydration, finds in Puglia the ideal environment to achieve excellent quality.
Two have been recognized in this region DOP , one a Gioia del Colle and the other a Manduria , while the cultivation of Primitivo, which traditionally comes bred to “sapling” e with “free foot” , it is authorized only in some regions of central and southern Italy, such as Umbria, Abruzzo, Lazio, Campania, Basilicata and Sardinia.
Sensory notes and combinations
From this vine we obtain an excellent wine with unmistakable characteristics which, according to evolution, alternates the reflections of ruby red from purple to garnet , often impenetrable and with an enviable consistency.
Intense aromas of plum, blackberry, black cherry, violet , in addition to the typical spicy notes of cinnamon, black pepper, licorice, cocoa, tobacco . A wine of excellent structure, with an important alcoholic content and fascinating softness, well balanced with the right acidity and flavor, as well as impressive tannins . To be combined with dishes of equivalent structure and at a temperature from 16 to 20 degrees depending on the maturation.
See all Primitivo wines .