Canaiolo or Canaiolo Nero, red grape variety grown all over central Italy and, perhaps most famously, a permitted ingredient in the controversial recipe for chianti, in which it played a more important part than sangiovese in the 18th century. It has declined considerably in popularity since it was relatively difficult to graft in the wake of phylloxera, and suffered from poor clonal selection. Only just over 1,000/2,470 acres remained in total in 2010. The decline in popularity of the governo winemaking trick also hastened its decline since soft, full-bodied Canaiolo, without either the structure of Sangiovese or the scent of mammolo, was most prized for its resistance to rot while being dried for governo use. Canaiolo of good quality does still exist in scattered spots in Chianti Classico, notably—and unsurprisingly—at the two ricasoli properties of Castello di Brolio and Castello di Cacchiano in Gaiole in Chianti, in Barbarino Val d’Elsa (where the Castello della Paneretta and neighbour Isole e Olena both use Canaiolo in their Chianti Classico), and in the vino nobile di montepulciano production zone. Efforts to salvage the variety by better clonal and mass selections are under way in Tuscany, but there are few illusions that this will be accomplished either easily or quickly. Canaiolo is also grown, to an even more limited extent, in lazio, sardinia, and the marche.
