Abbuoto grapes

Abbuoto grape is a red wine grape variant which has its origins based out of Italy. These grapes are primarily cultivated in the region of Lazio, which falls to the central part of the Italian Peninsula.

The Abbuoto grape is primarily used as a blending grape and is famous for its body, phenolics and its alcohol content.

This grape variety is a cross between the Campania red grape varieties-Piedirosso and Casavecchia and is planted across 800 acres of land in Italy today.

However, some studies indicate that Casavecchia grape might actually be a cross between the Abbuoto grape and Malvasia Bianca di Candia, rather than the other way round.

In the local native language, this grape is also referred to by the name Cecubo and Aboto.

Origin of Abbuoto Grape

Abbuoto grape is certainly indigenous to central Italy. Caecuban wine, the wine produced using Abbuoto grapes was produced in a small vineyard in the marshy low-lying region of southern Terracina.

Caecuban wine made from Abbuoto grapes was a wine, which was relished by the romans, and it was a white wine back then. This wine would later be aged for a number of years using a standard roman technique due to which the wine would change its colour to that of ‘flames’.

These grapes were however destroyed in the middle of the first century, which dealt such a big blow that this variety was never able to recover completely.

Abbuoto grapes though continued to be used as a blending grape due to the characteristic colour it gave to the wines, making it look like a true wine. This grape made a small comeback when neglected vines thought to be of ancient Abbuoto were found around some of the marshy areas of Lake Fondi, which is fifty miles to the south of Rome.

These vines were cut and nursed back to health thus giving Abbuotoa new leap of life. Since then, this wine continues to help in the production of Cècubo in the district.

Wines with Abbuoto Grapes

Cecubo – Villa Matilde
€15.00 Find merchant

Abbuoto Wines – a drink for the royalty

Abbuoto grape was very famous back then and was used for making wines such as Cecubo in Italy and Caecubum in Latin.

Horace, the Roman poet often has made a reference to this wine throughout his work, as a drink used to mark grand celebrations. According to Horace, even the victory of Octavius Caesar over Cleopatra and Anthony was marked with the popping of this wine. This wine was the ultimate prize back then and it was so famous, it was considered a drink for the royalty.

The region where this wine was produced back then (Northern Campania and Southern Lazio) was referred to as Caecuban countryside.

Viticulture and Wine making for Abbuoto

The Abbuoto vine produces dark coloured large berries having thick skins of almost black purple colour. This grape variant usually ripens in the mid of the harvest season, but sometimes might be irregular or inconsistent when it comes to cultivation.

The Abbuoto grape develops in bunches which are a little large, five lobed, pentagonal, cylindrical conical in shape with one or two wings.

This grape due to its thick skin, easily tolerates the powdery mildew along with most kinds of fungal diseases. However, it is sensitive to spring frosts.

Abbuoto Wines

Abbuoto grapes offer a colour and depth to the wine helping winemakers produce rustic wine.

The wines made using Abbuoto requires moderate ageing and it is commonly mixed with Negroamaro and Primitivo.

A famous winery in Lazio with the name Villa Matilde has created a version of Cecubo which takes Primitivo variant as a main grape, sprinkled with a splash of Abbuoto.

Flavours and Aromas of Abbuoto

On the nose, this wine gives the aromas of fig, baking spice, prune and leather.

On the palate, this wine gives a flavour of black cherry, prune, black plum with a little bit of savoury leather and a dusty earthy character.

It also gives a pronounced cola flavour which is quite odd to a wine. As far as body is concerned, it is medium, with high acidity and dusty, fine tannins.

Food Pairings with Abbuoto

The foods which taste good with Abbuoto include hard cheeses, and even flavoured less spicy dishes. This wine goes well with cuisines like Italian and Japanese.

Author

Michael Bredahl

Wine Writer

Michael is an online enthusiast, with a lot of knowledge about online marketing. Traveling around the world to hunt for the perfect wine. Latest on Sicily, where Etna has a huge impact on the taste, which is strong with a bitter aftertaste for the youngest wines, but older wines are fantastic. Drinking wine, and writing about them, are one the passions. Remember to drink responsibly 🙂

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