Wine Arcana

Grape

Frappato

Also known as Frappato di Vittoria

Frappato is a dark-skinned Vitis vinifera grape associated with southeastern Sicily, especially Vittoria. Its red wines often combine a relatively light ruby colour with pronounced floral and red-fruit aromas. It is bottled on its own and blended with Nero d'Avola in Cerasuolo di Vittoria, where the two grapes contribute to a shared regional style.

The grape's connection with Vittoria is well documented in nineteenth-century accounts. Its precise origin remains uncertain. Today its main Sicilian centres include the provinces of Ragusa and Syracuse.

Fruit, colour, and variation

Frappato can give rose or violet impressions alongside red berries and spice. Its aromatic intensity can be striking in a wine with modest colour and weight. Tannin, acidity, and alcohol still vary considerably with the material planted and the way the grapes are grown and fermented.

The Italian Vitis Database describes two biotypes with differences in ripening, pigmentation, and aromatic compounds. Wines from one had less alcohol and fewer phenolic compounds; those from the other showed more colour, body, and tannic structure. Both retained appreciable acidity. These differences help explain the range between delicate Frappato and fuller examples without requiring a different grape name.

Around Vittoria

Vittoria's vineyards occupy a warm Mediterranean setting between the Hyblaean plateau and the sea. Coastal breezes and cooler nights moderate the heat in many sites, while soil depth and underlying rock affect the water available to vines through summer.

At Planeta's Mogli vineyard in Acate, for example, loose red sand overlies a layer of calcareous rock. The producer identifies that underlying layer as important to the vineyard's water supply. Its Frappato grows on a spur-pruned trellis. Donnafugata also uses trellises for its Vittoria Frappato, with both Guyot and spur-cordon pruning. These sites illustrate how vineyard design and the soil beneath the surface help sustain ripening in a dry summer.

Varietal wines and blends

Tank maturation can leave Frappato's fruit and floral aromas prominent. Donnafugata's Bell'Assai 2024, for example, fermented on its skins in steel and spent about seven months in tank before bottle maturation.1. Donnafugata, Bell'Assai 2024, technical sheet, accessed 11 September 2026. The maturation described applies to this bottling. The choice preserves a clear view of the grape's aroma while allowing time for the young wine's texture to settle. Extraction and maturation can also produce firmer wines with more emphasis on structure.

Cerasuolo di Vittoria requires 30–50% Frappato, with 50–70% Nero d'Avola. The defined growing area covers parts of Ragusa, Caltanissetta, and Catania.2. Istituto Regionale del Vino e dell'Olio, Disciplinare di produzione della DOCG Cerasuolo di Vittoria, consolidated 2020, articles 2–3, accessed 11 September 2026. Here Frappato's fragrant character joins the colour and substance Nero d'Avola can supply. The permitted proportions leave producers room to adjust the blend to their vineyards and the season.

Sources