‘Pinot Grigio Matto’, meaning “crazy Pinot Gris”, appeared decades ago in some vineyards in Treviso province (Veneto region, North-Eastern Italy). No information is available on its origin and provenance. A preliminary investigation based on DNA genotyping revealed that it shared the same molecular profile of ‘Marzemino’, even if the bunches remained grey at ripening instead of becoming blue-black. The comparison between ‘Pinot Grigio Matto’ and ‘Marzemino’ using ampelographic, chemical and DNA analyses at the berry colour locus revealed the strong similarity between them, except for the data linked to grape colour. Sensorial analyses of white and red wines highlighted the good oenological potential of this grapevine mutant. The availability of dozen mutated vines, showing uniform grey pigmentation of bunches at ripening, testifies that this mutation is well fixed and stable. This study demonstrates that ‘Pinot Grigio Matto’ is a previously unknown, somatic mutant for berry colour of ‘Marzemino’. This study enriches the knowledge of the phenomena contributing to the generation of viticultural biodiversity and varietal evolution, through the identification, maintenance and valorisation of a new variety, generated by a spontaneous bud mutation. Giving the substantial (25%) increase in rosé wine global production, winemaking from ‘Marzemino Grigio’ is a promising prospect.
Carraro et al. (Fri,) studied this question.