Greco

Greco is a family of Italian wine grape varieties, mainly grown in Campania and Calabria in southern Italy. The name covers both a white grape (Greco bianco) and a black one (Greco nero), and its supposed Greek origin remains debated among experts.

History

The Greco vine is thought to descend from an ancestor that Greek settlers may have brought to southern Italy more than 2,500 years ago. Historians and Italian growers have speculated that the grape may have been part of the blends behind the ancient Roman "cult wines" Falernian and Aminean, although this is not firmly documented.

Over time the name "Greco" was applied to several varieties of supposed Greek origin scattered across Italy, which complicates their identification. Ampelographers still disagree on whether Greco is a single variety with several clones or a group of varieties sharing one name. It is also unclear whether any of the Italian "Greek vines" are grown in Greece today.

After the Second World War, Greco, like many southern varieties, faced the risk of disappearing. Wartime destruction of vineyards and the migration of growers to cities and abroad led to a sharp decline. Family wineries and heritage projects, such as the Villa of the Mysteries project led by Piero Mastroberardino, helped keep the vine alive in the south.

In the early twenty-first century, DNA profiling showed that some Italian plantings labelled Greco are genetically identical to Asprinio.

Culture

Greco bianco ripens late and is vulnerable to downy and powdery mildew, which demands careful vineyard work. Its clusters are distinctively "winged", a feature ampelographers use to recognise it. The wines are noted for their aromatics, with aromas of peach and fresh green foliage, and they gain herbal notes with age. Critic Jancis Robinson has described them as vaguely similar to Viognier.

Its best-known expression is in Campania, where it gives its name to Greco di Tufo DOCG, made around the town of Tufo and seven neighbouring hill villages on soils derived from volcanic tuff. The area was promoted to DOCG in 2003 and requires at least 85% Greco, usually completed with Coda di Volpe. According to Master of Wine Mary Ewing-Mulligan, these wines are generally ready to drink three to four years after harvest and can keep developing for ten to twelve years. A sparkling version is also allowed.

In Calabria, a specific clone of Greco bianco makes Greco di Bianco DOC, a dessert wine in a partly dried passito style, with a minimum alcohol of 17%. It has a deep amber colour and aromas of citrus and herbs, and wine writer Peter Saunders counts it among the best Italian dessert wines.

Greco also features in many southern DOCs, such as Gravina in Apulia, Capri, Penisola Sorrentina and Sannio, where it appears in white blends, and in Sannio also in classic-method sparkling wines. Greco nero, the red form, is more widely planted and is found mostly in Calabria, where it is often blended with Gaglioppo.