Pelaverga Piccolo
Pelaverga Piccolo is a rare red grape that grows almost exclusively in Verduno, on the northern edge of the Barolo area. Only about 34 hectares are planted. The wine, Verduno Pelaverga DOC, is light in colour, fragrant and has a distinctive peppery touch. A very different face of the Langhe from Barolo.
Pelaverga Piccolo at a glance
- Colour: red grape
- Origin: Verduno, in the Langhe
- Wine: Verduno Pelaverga DOC (also: Verduno DOC)
- Plantings: just over 34 hectares, in Verduno, Roddi and La Morra
- Producers: around twenty
- Ageing: no required ageing, on sale from 1 March after the harvest
Piccolo is not Grosso
The name can be confusing. Around Saluzzo, at the foot of the Alps, grows Pelaverga Grosso, the grape of Colline Saluzzesi Pelaverga. Despite the name, they are two different grapes. Research from 1991 showed that Pelaverga Piccolo is not related to Pelaverga Grosso. Piccolo has smaller berries and a character all of its own.
History
According to tradition, the Blessed Sebastiano Valfrè, a priest from Verduno, brought cuttings from the Saluzzo area in the 18th century. Given the DNA research, that is mainly a nice story.
For a long time Pelaverga Piccolo grew among the Nebbiolo and Barbera and disappeared into blends. The Comm. G.B. Burlotto winery kept making it as a single-variety wine, around a thousand bottles a year in the 1950s and 1960s. In 1972 Castello di Verduno planted the first vineyard with only Pelaverga Piccolo, and other growers followed. In 1994 the grape was officially registered, and in 1995 the Verduno Pelaverga DOC was created. Since 2000 the producers have worked together in their own association, today called Verduno è Uno.
The Verduno Pelaverga DOC
- At least 85% Pelaverga Piccolo, the rest other non-aromatic red grapes
- Grapes from all of Verduno and parts of Roddi and La Morra
- Maximum 9 tonnes of grapes per hectare
- No required ageing period or type of vessel
- On sale from 1 March of the year after the harvest
Most producers age the wine in stainless steel to keep the aromas pure. A few use large, old wood or amphora.
Taste and style
Verduno Pelaverga is light ruby red with a purple glow. On the nose you find red fruit, violets, roses and above all pepper: white and green pepper, sometimes with a hint of coriander. That peppery note comes from rotundone, the same aroma compound you find in Syrah. On the palate the wine is light to medium-bodied and supple, with soft tannins and mild acidity. Thanks to warmer summers, the alcohol nowadays can reach around 14%.
Food with Pelaverga
Pelaverga is a true food wine. It goes with the merenda sinoira, the Piedmontese early-evening snack, and with vitello tonnato, carne cruda, tajarin, agnolotti del plin and bollito misto. Because the tannins are soft, it even works with fish in tomato sauce.
Tasting Pelaverga
Almost all Pelaverga is sold in Italy. If you are in the area, go and taste it in Verduno itself, for example at Comm. G.B. Burlotto, Castello di Verduno or Fratelli Alessandria, or at the cantina comunale. Read more about the village on our page about Verduno. Or discover the other grape varieties of Piedmont.
