Arvesiniadu or Arvisionadu is a rare native white

Italian wine Italian wine is produced in every region of Italy. Italy is the world's largest producer of wine, with an area of under vineyard cultivation, and contributing a 2013–2017 annual average of 48.3 million hl of wine. In 2018 Italy accounted fo ...

grape variety This list of grape varieties includes cultivated grapes, whether used for wine, or eating as a table grape, fresh or dried (raisin, currant, sultana). For a complete list of all grape species including those unimportant to agriculture, see Viti ...

that is grown on the island of

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...

. It is usually used in blends but can also be made into

sweet Sweetness is a basic taste most commonly perceived when eating foods rich in sugars. Sweet tastes are generally regarded as pleasurable. In addition to sugars like sucrose, many other chemical compounds are sweet, including aldehydes, ketone ...

or dry

varietal A varietal wine is a wine made primarily from a single named grape variety, and which typically displays the name of that variety on the wine label.The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, 2000.winepros.com.au. ...

style wines under the ''

Indicazione geografica tipica ''Indicazione geografica tipica'' () is the third of four classifications of wine recognized by the government of Italy. Created to recognize the unusually high quality of the class of wines known as Super Tuscans, IGT wines are labeled with th ...

'' (IGT) designation of ''Isola dei Nuraghi''.J. Robinson, J. Harding and J. Vouillamoz ''Wine Grapes - A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavours'' pg 58 Allen Lane 2012 The research project "AKINAS - Unique vines from the biodiversity of Sardinia" defines Arvisionadu as a "Unicum", a term used to define those vines for which no genetic correspondence has been found.

History

The first documented mentioning of the Arvesiniadu grape was in Italian wine writer Andrea Manca dell'Arca's 1780 treatise on agriculture in Sardinia.

Viticulture

As first noted in Manca dell'Arca's 18th century book, Arvesiniadu is a late-ripening grape variety that can be very vigorous and prone to producing excessive foliage if not properly cared for by

canopy management In viticulture, the canopy of a grapevine includes the parts of the vine visible aboveground - the trunk, cordon, stems, leaves, flowers, and fruit. The canopy plays a key role in light energy capture via photosynthesis, water use as regulated ...

techniques.

Regions

Arvesiniadu is found only on the island of Sardinia, particularly in the historic region of

Goceano The Goceano ( sc, Costèra) is a historical and geographical region of center-north of Sardinia island, Italy. It covers a surface of 480 km2 and has a population of 13,000 inhabitants (27 inhabitants/km2). It is located inside the Province ...

in the

comuni The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

Benetutti Benetutti ( sc, Benetuti) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Sassari in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari and about southeast of Sassari. Several prehistorical archaeological remains have been discover ...

and Bono. As of 2015, there were only of the grape planted on the island.

Styles

Arvesiniadu is most often seen as a blending grape in the white wines of Sardinia, usually as a minor partner to more prominent white Sardinian varieties like

Malvasia Malvasia (, also known as Malvazia) is a group of wine grape varieties grown historically in the Mediterranean region, Balearic Islands, Canary Islands and the island of Madeira, but now grown in many of the winemaking regions of the world. ...

Nuragus Nuragus (Latin: Valentia) is a small town, in administrative terms a ''comune'' (municipality), in the Province of South Sardinia in the Italian autonomous region of Sardinia, located about north of the local capital Cagliari. Nuragus borders ...

and

Vermentino Vermentino is a light-skinned wine grape variety, primarily found in Italian wine. It is widely planted in both Sardinia and Liguria (wine), Liguria, to some extent in Corsica, in Piedmont under the name Favorita, and in increasing amounts in Lan ...

. Under the IGT designation of ''Isola dei Nuraghi'' the grape can be made a varietal in either dry or sweet ''

passito Straw wine, or raisin wine, is a wine made from grapes that have been dried to concentrate their juice. The result is similar to that of the ice wine process, but is a much older process and suitable for warm climates. The technique dates back ...

'' style.

Synonyms

Over the years, Arvesiniadu has been known under a variety of synonyms including: Arvisionadu, Alvu Signadu, Argu Ingianau, Argu Ingiannau, Arvesimiadu bianco, Arvu Siniadu, Arvusiniadu, Arvusiniagu, Avrisiniadu and Uva Oschirese.

Vitis International Variety Catalogue The Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) is a database of various species and varieties/cultivars of grapevine, the genus ''Vitis''. VIVC is administered by the Geilweilerhof Institute for Grape Breeding (''Institut für Rebenzüchtung Gei ...

(VIVC)
Arvesiniadu
' Accessed: March 20th, 2014

References

{{reflist White wine grape varieties