Dindarella
Also known as Pelara
Dindarella is a rare red grape of the Verona area, retained among the local varieties of Valpolicella. Its significance lies partly in the region's practice of blending and drying grapes: varieties that occupy little vineyard area can still offer useful differences in fruit condition and behavior after harvest.
Identity and preservation
Pelara is a synonym, though older authors sometimes treated it as a separate grape. The Veneto region's conservation account describes work on local plant material beginning in the 1970s, followed by morphological comparisons that brought these forms together under Dindarella. It records national registration with Pelara as a synonym in 1987.1. Regione del Veneto, Programma di sviluppo rurale 2007–2013, Annex 5, Dindarella entry, p. 15.
The same account describes a vigorous vine suited to long pruning, with fruit that keeps well both on the vine and in the drying room. Bunch looseness can differ between forms. Those differences matter when growers are selecting material for a process in which the grapes must remain sound while losing water.
A place among local blending grapes
The Valpolicella consortium continues to include Dindarella in its overview of the area's varieties. It occupies a much smaller role than Corvina, but helps show why the region's grape heritage extends beyond the main components named in most introductions to its wines.
Its most useful context is therefore the local blend and the handling of fruit before fermentation. The finished wine reflects the proportion used, the other varieties, and whether the grapes were dried.
Sources
- Regione del Veneto, Programma di sviluppo rurale 2007–2013, Annex 5, Dindarella entry, 2007.
- Consorzio Tutela Vini Valpolicella, “The varieties.”