Mavro ( el, μαύρο, meaning "black") is an indigenous red
grape cultivated on the island of
Cyprus.
The grape takes its name from its dark colour. The Italian ampelographer, Count Giuseppe di Rovasenda refers to it in 1877 as Cipro Nero ''(Cyprus black)''.
An ancient variety, its suitability to the hot Cypriot climate has made it the dominant cultivated vine on the island. It accounts for 70% of cultivated vines. Of note is that Mavro continues to grow on ancient rootstock unlike most mainland European grapes that are grafted on North American rootstock. This is a consequence of Cyprus’ escape from the
phylloxera
Grape phylloxera is an insect pest of commercial grapevines worldwide, originally native to eastern North America. Grape phylloxera (''Daktulosphaira vitifoliae'' (Fitch 1855) belong to the family Phylloxeridae, within the order Hemiptera, bugs ...
epidemic that had devastated most other European vineyards, in the 19th century.
Mavrud is a Bulgarian wine with a similar name made from mavrud grapes. Recent genotyping has shown that these two varieties (Mavro and Mavrud) are not related.
Mavro grapes are used in the production of several (predominantly red) local wines.
[ Most notably however, Mavro is blended with the ]Xynisteri
Xynisteri (also spelled xinisteri; el, ξυνιστέρι) is an indigenous white grape grown on Cyprus.
According to some estimates, 33% of Cypriot vineyards, on the south slopes of the Troodos mountain range are planted with this grape varie ...
grape for the production of Commandaria, a well-known Cypriot dessert wine.
References
{{reflist, 2
Red wine grape varieties
Grape varieties of Cyprus