Frappato di Vittoria or Frappato is a red Italian wine

Italian wine

Italian wine is wine produced in Italy, a country which is home to some of the oldest wine-producing regions in the world. Italy is the world's largest wine producer, responsible for approximately one-fifth of world wine production in 2005. Italian wine is exported largely around the world and has...

 grape variety planted primarily in Sicily

Sicily

Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...

. As a varietal

Varietal

"Varietal" describes wines made primarily from a single named grape variety, and which typically displays the name of that variety on the wine label. Examples of grape varieties commonly used in varietal wines are Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Merlot...

, Frappato produces light bodied wines with a distinct grape

Grape

A grape is a non-climacteric fruit, specifically a berry, that grows on the perennial and deciduous woody vines of the genus Vitis. Grapes can be eaten raw or they can be used for making jam, juice, jelly, vinegar, wine, grape seed extracts, raisins, molasses and grape seed oil. Grapes are also...

y aroma. It is most commonly seen as a component of Sicily's only DOCG wine, Cerasuolo di Vittoria, which consists of 30-50% Frappato and 50-70% Nero d'Avola

Nero d'Avola

Nero d'Avola is "the most important red wine grape in Sicily" and is one of Italy's most important indigenous varieties. It is named after Avola in the far south of Sicily and its wines are compared to New World Shirazes, with sweet tannins and plum or peppery flavours...

.

An Italian study published in 2008 using DNA typing showed a close genetic relationship between Sangiovese

Sangiovese

Sangiovese is a red Italian wine grape variety whose name derives from the Latin sanguis Jovis, "the blood of Jove"...

on the one hand and ten other Italian grape varieties on the other hand, including Frappato. It is therefore likely that Frappato is a crossing of Sangiovese and another, so far unidentified, grape variety.

Synonyms

Frappato di Vittoria is also known under the synonyms Frappato, Frappato Nero, Frappato Nero di Vittoria, Frappatu, Frappatu di Vittoria, Nerello, Nerello di Catania, and Nero Capitano.

Other grape varieties

Frappato is also the name of a white Italian grape variety. This Frappato is less common than Frappato di Vittoria and is only known under the synonym Frappatu.