Groppello di Santo Stefano

The vine Groppello di Santo Stefano belongs to the family of Groppelli, all originating from the area that goes from Lago di Garda to Val di Non in Trentino. Many Latin authors wrote about this variety, including Virgil and Pliny the Elder. Compared to other Groppelli varieties, Groppello di Santo Stefano, widespread in Lombardy, produces more intense and full-bodied wines. Often, however, the subvarieties are mixed together. Groppello name comes from lump (“nodo” in the Venetian dialect), as the berries of this variety are closely packed. Groppello vine is found mostly in Veneto (in the provinces of Vicenza, Verona and Treviso), Trentino and Lombardy (in the provinces of Brescia and Bergamo). The berry is black, medium, spherical, slightly flattened with skin of medium consistency, covered with bloom, homogeneous, blue-black colored. At times this grape has a slightly herbaceous flavor. Its bunch is small, cylindrical or cylindrical-conical, rarely with a small lump, very compact and with a medium, pentagonal, three-lobed or five-lobed leaf. Groppello di Santo Stefano prefers loose soil, well exposed, that ensures a good maturation and better defense against attacks of botrytis. The wine obtained from Groppello di Santo Stefano grape has a ruby color with medium acidity and full-body, soft and round on the palate, slightly spicy.