Pugnitello

Since 1987 the University of Florence has carried out a project of collection of Tuscan wine varietal heritage, with the aim of safeguarding against the risk of extinction. Among the vines under scrutiny a real discovery was the Pugnitello, characterized by a small, truncated conical cluster, similar to a fist (hence the name - pugno). There is no definite information regarding its origin, but it is thought to be from the province of Grosseto. This variety has some morphological similarity with the Montepulciano, from which it differs, however, for the lower productivity and the different shape of the bunch. It is not explicitly present in any DOP designation, but we can find it in many IGT of Tuscany. The berry is medium, smooth, rounded, with thick, leathery, blue-black, very waxy skin. The bunch is small, short, pyramidal, medium compact with a medium long, pentagonal, five-lobed leaf. The Pugnitello grape gives an intense red ruby wine with violet hues. The scent is slightly herbaceous, while the taste reveals a full-bodied, high alcohol content, good acidity and very fine tannins.