RARE GRAPE VARIETAL RESOURCE

The boschera vine is a native and little known vine that grows in and around the Vittorio Veneto area, in the northern part of the province of Treviso, at the foot of the Venetian Pre Alps and therefore on the border with the Belluno area. The first mentions of this vine are found in two important volumes on Treviso viticulture, including “La vite ed il vino nella provincia di Treviso” (The vines and wines in the province of Treviso) by Carpané and Vianello, which already reviewed the viticultural biodiversity in the Marche area in 1874.

It is a white grape variety that was once also known as the “uva del prete” (Priest’s grape). It has a rather compact bunch with medium sized grapes; they have a spotted skin, that is thick, with a dotted peel and a green-yellow colour.

Historically the boschera was cultivated close to the woods, in the vineyards that were considered to be at a high altitude. It would have been for this reason that it has taken the name “boschera”. To ensure the continuity of production, some producers have now begun to transplant it in to the Vittorio Veneto valley.

This grape has a high acidity (a late vinification is preferred) and is particularly suitable as a dried product: around Easter in fact, it is left to dry on racks together with the glera and verdiso varieties to then make the Torchiato di Fregona, sweet wine, which is typical of the area. Some add small quantities of boschera to make Prosecco and sparkling white wines, which are both refermented in the bottle (known as colfondo). Very few producers are experimenting with the pure vinification of this grape. A straw-yellow wine is obtained, that is very fruity and fresh, almost similar to an acidic and light beer.

The production of the boschera variety is very scarce, this vine in fact produces a small amount of grapes and it is precisely for this reason that the winemakers in the area have chosen to replace it with other vines, especially the glera (which is used to make Prosecco) which is a monoculture in the wine landscape. Boschera is a very rare grape: there are between 6 and 7 hectares currently present which, however, are distributed in lots of different places and in some cases, they are present in abandoned vineyards. In the early 2000s, thanks to some young winemakers, work began to restore these vineyards, however, this remains very limited given the low production of bottles.

The research activities necessary for the reporting of this product in the Ark of Taste online catalogue were financed by the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies, the General Directorate of the Tertiary Sector and Corporate Social Responsibility – notice n° 1/2018 “Slow Food in action: communities protagonists of change”, pursuant to Article 72 of the Tertiary Sector Code, referred to in Legislative Decree No. 117/2017.

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

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

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