red grape · regional specialty
Ciliegiolo
Tuscany, Italy
Say it
chee·lee·eh·joh·loh
Four syllables; stress on third (gio). Name derives from ciliegia (cherry) + diminutive -olo, meaning 'little cherry.'
On the palate
red cherryblack cherryraspberrystrawberryvioletblack pepper
How you spot it blind: intensely cherry-scented, soft-tannined, aromatic red with violet lift
The story
First written down · 1590s, Tuscany
Documented by Florentine agronomist Soderini circa 1590; competing 2004 and 2007 DNA studies are irreconcilably split on whether Ciliegiolo is a parent or an offspring of Sangiovese.
Where it lives
Maremma, Tuscany · Umbria · Liguria · Lazio
Shows up as
still redrosésweet