Dolciame grape variety
V. vinifera L.
RISK OF EROSION: medium – high
DESCRIPTION
The “Dolciame” is a grape variety present in Umbria for a long time, even if its origins are unknown. In the district of Città di Castello it was traditional to classify as Dolciame all the white grape varieties with a pleasant and sweet flavor, which ripened before the Tuscan Trebbiano. The first signs of this vine date back to the Ampelographic Bulletin of 1879 where the Dolciame vine is mentioned. In the General Yearbook for Viticulture and Enology of 1896, Baldeschi cites Dolciame in the district of Gubbio and Malfiore (as a synonym) in that of Città di Castello about the vines grown in Umbria. It is a white grape variety, with a medium-large, medium-compact bunch; berry with a spheroidal shape.
BACKGROUND
The “Dolciame” is a grape variety present in Umbria for a long time, even if its origins are unknown. In the Città di Castello district it was traditional to classify as Dolciame all the white grape varieties with a pleasant and sweet flavor, which ripened before the Tuscan Trebbiano (Cartechini and Moretti 1989). The first signs of this vine date back to the Ampelographic Bulletin of 1879 where the Dolciame vine is mentioned. In the General Yearbook for Viticulture and Enology of 1896, Baldeschi mentions Dolciame in the district of Gubbio and Malfiore (as a synonym) in that of Città di Castello about the vines grown in Umbria. Also in 1896, Prof. Succi in a note on Viticulture and Enology in the province of Perugia mentions the Dolciame in Gubbio, also known as Uva Dolce in Città di Castello. Marzotto (1925) reports that, according to Baldeschi, Dolciame or Dulciame is very similar to Pecorino, while Dulciame which is grown in Passignano (PG), is very similar to Verdello. Dalmasso (1962) erroneously compares Biancame or Dolciame to Albana di Romagna and considers Dolciame di Gubbio as a synonym of Dolcetto, but these are different vines from the one in question. Dolciame has as an established synonym “Malfiore”, as such it was in fact cited in a degree thesis entitled “The cultivation of vines in the upper Tiber valley” discussed in the academic year 1946-1947 by the then student Nicasio Nicasi Zanetti . As a further historical element, it should be remembered that Dolciame was included among the vines authorized, only for the Province of Perugia, for the establishment of the National Register of Vine Varieties (Ministerial Decree 2.2.71., Official Gazette n.71 of 22.03.71). In this register, Dolciame is in fact present with code no. 74. In 1989, Cartechini and Moretti meticulously described the ampelography, phenology, characteristics and cultural attitudes of the Dolciame grape in Umbria. The importance of the study on Dolciame is to be attributed to the fact that in Umbria it was present as a distinct vine, sometimes called Malfiore (as reported by Zanetti in 1946 and subsequently Calò et al. In 2006), and not synonymous with other vines, one of the few which has an exclusively Umbrian history. So much so that over the last century Dolciame has been used for the production of the smoked holy wine of the upper Tiber valley, which became a Slow Food presidium in 2014 (Palliotti and Ceccarelli 2018). In reality today, Dolciame is mainly present in small rows as well as single plants scattered in the countryside of the upper Tiber, often married to maples and managed mostly by elderly people who maintain the tradition of this historical wine product. The selection of this vine was deepened in the area of the upper Tiber valley, where Dolciame was found and then kept in the collection in the Catalog Vineyard located in Monticchio (Deruta, PG) managed by the “Arboreal Cultures” Research Unit of the Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences of the University of Perugia.
TYPICAL PRODUCTION AREA
Dolciame is a grape variety historically widespread in the Upper Tiber Valley, in the municipalities of Città di Castello, Umbertide, Montone, Citerna, San Giustino Umbro and Monte Santa Maria Tiberina; Gubbio. It has recently been introduced in Pietrafitta, in the Municipality of Piegaro (PG).
GASTRONOMIC USE
The sensory profile, highlighted by a panel test organized with the execution of a descriptive-quantitative sensory analysis, made it possible to highlight the role that the compositional parameters, reported above, play on the visual, olfactory and tactile-gustatory aspects. of wines (Figure 1). In wines produced with Dolciame grapes the chromatic notes of straw yellow with greenish reflections stand out. At the gustatory level, the freshness of the wine is very well perceived, with a moderate persistence, which however is balanced by an excellent drink. The olfactory profile denotes fresh sensations, attributable to delicate citrus fragrances, such as orange and grapefruit. The taste of Dolciame wine recalls that of Tuscan Trebbiano, with the difference of a lower overall heat due to a lower alcohol content.
Texts taken from “Regional register of autochthonous genetic resources of the Umbria Region”
biodiversita.umbria.parco3a.org/attivita/registro-regionale/elenco-delle-risorse-iscritte