RARE GRAPE VARIETAL RESOURCE

Once a popular grape in the Italian canton of Ticino, Switzerland, the varietal has been 'usurped' by Merlot .

It makes deeply colored, fruity wines though it does lack some structure and complexity.

(Kindly look below for wineries that cultivate and bottle Bondola as a mono-varietal)

Bondola is an indigenous red grape that is almost unknown outside of Canton of Ticino, in Switzerland. The main vine growing area is the Sopraceneri’s area at the moment, with a more fragmented presence in Sottoceneri. This variety was mentioned for the first time in 1785, but it was actually grown in a much older time. The first official records describing Bondola as a traditional Sopraceneri’s grape variety date back to the 19th century, and it accounted for 50% of the locally-grown grape in 1950.
Grapes have a very thin peel, and are extremely vulnerable to fungal diseases and grey moulds when they ripen up, and are also affected by bad weather. As a consequence, it is not always easy to have a good harvest. This vine is mostly planted on terraced hill slopes, along the river Ticino, for instance. The wine that is made with it, is fruity, fresh, simple and peculiar, made stronger by rough tannins and a high acid content, therefore it is suitable for aging.
A well-known and appreciated wine for very long, Bondola has nearly disappeared today and the reason for its decline was the arrival of Merlot grape, a better variety to make quality wines, even though some families still grow Bondola privately. For instance, one of the few remaining growers remembers that his farmer parents used to grow the “local grape” (Bondola, in fact) in one hectare of their land. The grapes were then sold to a local cooperative, and part of them was withheld for family needs. Children used to step on grapes to press them in a vat, and this practice gave off the classic fruity aroma of this grape, an extremely important element of the local agricultural heritage.
Nowadays, according to the data provided by the Canton authorities, 26 tons of this grape are harvested every year, accounting for 20,000 bottles, at a maximum (since part of the “local grape” is used by the growers’ families).
There is a newly-found growing interest for indigenous Swiss grapes, even on behalf of the UFAG, l’Ufficio Federale dell’Agricoltura- Federal Office for Agriculture, whose agenda promotes the preservation of vegetable genetic resources. Bondola was included in the list of Swiss grapevine worthy of protection on the long run. The wine that is made with this grape variety was recognized as one of the 125 best Swiss wines in 2019. A curious detail: most of Bondola production is consumed in German-speaking Switzerland, while buyers are much rarer in the Canton of Ticino.

(Courtesy of Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity – Ark of Taste) https://www.fondazioneslowfood.com/en/ark-of-taste-slow-food/bondola-grape/

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