Negroamaro

Puglia's bitter-finishing dark red — earthy, herbal.

Negroamaro — the name translates roughly as black-bitter — is Puglia's other major red grape, more often blended with Malvasia Nera in Salice Salentino than bottled solo. Wines tend to deep color, ripe black fruit, and a notable bitter-herbal finish that distinguishes the grape from the riper, sweeter Primitivo. Modern producers have moved beyond the formerly bulk-blender role and now bottle serious Negroamaro reds and dry rosés. Best examples come from old bush-vine plantings on red iron-rich soils in the Salento peninsula.