Italian vine made famous by the over-promoted albana di romagna. Now widely planted in the emilia-romagna region, its chief claim to fame is being mentioned in the 13th century by medieval agricultural writer petrus di crescentiis. Most Albana is late ripening, thin-skinned, and prone to rot but the Albana Gentile di Bertinoro clone has thicker skins than most and results in relatively deep-coloured white wines with marked acidity, which is useful in the best, long-lived sweet versions. Total area planted had declined to 1,523 ha/3762 acres by 2010.
