In a world that evolves very quickly, there is a risk of losing something important. It is necessary to stop, look back, understand in order to then restart with even more enthusiasm. Even the world of wine, which is always in turmoil due to technological innovations, the global change of climate, market pressures, and the influence of fashion, experiences this dynamic. Wine is the product that brings us back to the land; it is the product that in our desires must be so evocative as to represent the territory to which it belongs, almost as if it were a postcard.
In this complex network, there are those who look to the past with new eyes, imagining and betting on a different future.
There are those who firmly believe in the potential of those nearly extinct grape varieties.
which are a true historical and cultural heritage of our lands, too often forgotten and that we could only have known through the stories of our grandparents.
Apulia is showing great sensitivity on this issue, and one of the rediscovered and valued grape varieties is the susumaniello. The meaning of the name refers to a dialectal form that signifies above (susu) the somarello, even though there is another dialectal form "car'c a ciucc" which means to load oneself (indeed) like a donkey for its vigor and the large amount of fruits produced.
Historically, it has been widely described as being extensively cultivated (there were about 900 hectares of it in 1970) but used only as a blending wine, especially for its coloring capacity and acidity that made it a perfect complement to higher-quality grape varieties like Negramaro.
The susumaniello has risked extinction
Because abundant production occurs only until the age of 15 years, this has led to a gradual and inexorable decrease in the cultivated hectares, which were gradually replaced by the same grape variety or by more productive and consistent varieties.
As in all the best redemption stories, the Susumaniello is embraced by some producers. True pioneers who, taking the time to observe its characteristics after 15 years of the plants' life, have written a new story. The Susumaniello, in fact, drastically reduces yields after 15 years, amplifying the potential for high-quality reds. Over the last 20 years, alongside this characteristic, it has also shown its versatility, as in its youth it proves to be versatile and achieves excellent results when vinified as a rosé. The rosé indeed has a marked freshness and in its sparkling version, still pink, adds aromatic complexities to the freshness, making it very interesting. The Susumaniello, over time, also gives us reds of excellent quality, especially when...
The grapes are allowed to over-ripen on the vine.
In this way, the grape variety will be enhanced by the characteristics of the underlying soils, which are mostly sandy and calcareous.
The “redemption” of susumaniello began in 1997 when Pietro Giorgiani, president of Cantine Santa Barbara in San Pietro Vernotico, decided to recover three rows from an old vineyard, starting propagation and refining the processing until, in 2002, the market presentation of “Sumanero” arrived, produced with 60% susumaniello, 20% malvasia nera, and 20% negramaro, where for the first time in the blend, it takes center stage rather than being a supporting role.
In 1998, Gregory Perrucci of Accademia dei Racemi, after purchasing a estate in the Brindisi area that also included a 70-year-old bush-trained Susumaniello vineyard, decided to produce cuttings from it in order to cultivate a new vineyard from which the first pure Susumaniello label, the “Sum,” was born in 2021.
A structured red wine destined for long aging
The 2017 vintage of this wine, now on the market, allows us to appreciate a wine with a strong character where the sensation of dark fruit is balanced by its acidity, which makes the taste long and dynamic. After these first steps, different protagonists are enhancing this grape variety within the Apulian landscape, gradually expanding the cultivated hectares. My advice is to try it with the 'gnummareddi', a typical Apulian dish made from lamb entrails wrapped in sausage casing and cooked mainly on the stove.
The story of susumaniello is one of transformation that is just beginning, and we are here ready to experience it.
