Schioppettino

Schioppettino is a red grape native to Friuli's Colli Orientali, especially around Prepotto near the Slovenian border, where it is also called Ribolla Nera. It was nearly lost after phylloxera and survived thanks to a handful of growers in the 1970s and an official rescue of the variety. The name is said to come from the way its crisp, bursting berries 'crack' like a shot. The wines are medium-bodied and peppery, with wild berries, violet and dark spice, fresh acidity and fine tannins, closer in spirit to northern Rhône Syrah than to anything else in Italy.