Skip to main content

Grappa 101: A Crash Course on the Italian Pomace Brandy

You’ll never forget your first grappa experience (whether you want to or not). This journalist’s was after dinner at her uncle’s house in Isola del Liri, a small town located an hour southeast of Rome. The grappa in question was the homemade stuff brought to their house by a neighbor, and damn was it harsh. If you’ve ever heard someone compare grappa to lighter fluid or rocket fuel, this is the kind of stuff they were talking about. But just as with any other spirit, there are excellent, smooth grappas, and there are harsh, tear-inducing grappas. The key is to get to know the spirit and taste a variety of different bottlings to find out what types you like the most.

What is Grappa?

Grappa — which by EU law must be produced in Italy, in the Italian part of Switzerland, or in San Marino, the lovely microstate within Italy — is a pomace brandy, or a spirit that’s distilled from the leftovers of winemaking. These scraps are the skins, pulp, seeds, and stems that are often discarded after all the juice is pressed out of the grapes. But just like using the whole animal is important to Italian cuisine, squandering these byproducts is considered prodigal in Italian society. “Grappas express a concept dear to the Italians: the culture of sustainability and no waste, the culture to drink together, a celebration of local product, and finally, the patience for maturation,” says Pietro Caldarelli, the sommelier and beverage director at Feroce Ristorante in Manhattan.

Image used with permission by copyright holder

As a certified sommelier, Caldarelli began working in Italian restaurants around New York City, including the lauded Roman import Antica Pesa. But throughout his experience, no matter how authentic the restaurant, Caldarelli realized that no place featured an extensive grappa menu that reflected the diversity and beauty of the spirit. Which is why he decided to stock Feroce’s grappa cart with more than 30 expressions, including a few truly special reserve bottles. As grappa fans, we’re used to only finding one or two bottlings in a restaurant, if we’re lucky to find any at all. So we were stunned when presented with the sheer variety of grappa types when we recently dined at Feroce.

What Grapes are Grappas Made From?

Just like wine, grappa can be made from one type of grape or a blend of different grapes. A single grape grappa is called a “monovitigno” or “di vitigno” and must be comprised of at least 85% of one grape varietal. “Some monovarietal grappas are more expensive than blend grappas, but they express a totally different structural aromatic compound,” Caldarelli says. “Monovarietal grappas made of ribolla, like the Tosolini Van Gogh, are some of the rarest and most expensive grappas around. Grappas made from 100% Chardonnay, like the Nonino movarietale, express notes of tropical fruits and have a delicate finish.”

Can Grappa Be Aged?

Like spirits, grappa can also be aged. “Grappa, by law, has different levels of aging: Bianca, Vecchia, and Stravecchia or Riserva,” Caldarelli says. “The more time the grappa spends aging, the more expensive it will be.”

We recently attended a grappa seminar at Bar Convent Brooklyn, led by the Wine & Spirit Education Trust, and they thoroughly explained what each of these aging terms means:

  • Bianca or Giovane:Giovane literally translates to “young” and denotes a grappa that is unaged.
  • Affinata (in Lengo): “Refined (in wood).” This is a term sometimes used to describe grappa that’s been aged for less than one year in wood.
  • Vecchia or Invecchiata: “Old or aged.” This is a legal designation denoting grappa that’s been matured in wood for at least 12 months.
  • Stravecchia or Riserva: “Very old or reserve.” This is a legal designation denoting grappa that’s been matured in wood for at least 18 months.

Grappa doesn’t need to be aged in a particular type of barrel, so the variety of wood and seasoned casks used to rest the spirit gives each expression its unique flavor profile. “The choice of the oak is very important for the final flavor of the grappa,” Caldarelli says. “La Trentina ages its top grappa in port wine casks, giving a robust flavor to the grappa. Sassicaia is aged in the same oak barrel of the Sassicaia wine. Ornellaia ages its grappa in used French barrique. Aged grappa is very much like a luxury product—it is delicious, elegant, and made for thinking. You should sip it with dark chocolate and dried figs.”

Image used with permission by copyright holder

If you’re new to grappa, these aged bottlings could be a solid place to start because they are mellowed in wood. But if you’re still unsure about the spirit and don’t want to spend a lot, Caldarelli has some suggestions for folks who want to try it for the first time. “Something like the Alexander Bianca or the Produttori del Barbaresco Bianca would be great starter grappas,” he says. “If somebody wants to try something a little more particular, I would recommend the Poli Camomilla—that softens a little bit of the power from the distillate.”

No matter which grappa you choose, we suggest sipping it after dinner (hopefully a big Italian meal) as it is one of the best digestifs out there. If you’re into amari and have extensively explored the category, then consider grappa to be your next boozy assignment.

Editors' Recommendations

Amanda Gabriele
Amanda Gabriele is a food and travel writer at The Manual and the former senior editor at Supercall. She can’t live without…
What Is Terroir and Is It Really Controversial?
science of drinking at high altitude holding wine vineyard getty

Terroir is a trendy term that relates to the flavor and nature of a food's origin. It began in wine, where it's still a prominent concept, but has crept into everything from coffee and tea to baked goods and specialty salts. Has the t-word tread too far?

It began, like so many wine-related things, in France. Terroir was used as a way to account for the place-ness of a particular wine. In other words, the many conditions at play that make Champagne uniquely Champagne and Burgundy uniquely Burgundy. Over the generations, we learned more and more about how these conditions -- the climate, the soil type, the elevation -- shaped the resulting wines. Now, we have more distinct wine regions on the global wine map than ever, with some 260 American Viticultural Areas (AVAs) in the states alone, with a few more added every year.

Read more
An Idaho Wine Guide to the Burgeoning World of the Gem State’s Wine
Colter's Creek

By now, if you like wine, you probably know that places like Sonoma, Oregon, Walla Walla, Washington, and the Fingerlakes aren't the only shows in town. Because there are so many types of grapes suitable for countless types of terrain and climates, wine is made just about everywhere. Increasingly, it's being done in Idaho, one of the American West's most up-and-coming wine regions. Like Virginia, there's experimentation and a real pursuit of quality, all happening mostly before the big tourist busses and front-page acclaim.
Here's a rundown on the scene. Idaho, long known for its potatoes, is a massive state wedged between Oregon and Washington to the west and Montana to the east. The mountainous north is rugged and home to the Rockies while the south is an agricultural hotbed, a prime spot for wheat and other grains (making it very attractive to brewers and spirits producers) but also more and more rows of vineyards. In fact, more than 70 wineries call Idaho home now, sourcing from 1,300 planted acres ranging from 600-3,000 feet in elevation.

The Gem State is made up of three unique American Viticultural Areas, including the Snake River Valley, the Lewis-Clark Valley, and the Eagle Foothills. Expect that number to increase in the coming years, as more producers take advantage of the abundant potential here. What to expect? Well, being inland and a bit warmer and more arid than fellow regional appellations like the Willamette Valley, Idaho is making some excellent Riesling, Syrah, Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Chardonnay, Merlot, and more.
Split Rail

Read more
What is Aquafaba and How Can it Improve a Cocktail?
String of Hearts cocktail.

It may not be all the rage, but aquafaba certainly accounts for a slice of it these days. On the surface, it's nothing much: quite literally the liquid from chickpeas. But as a cocktail input, aquafaba has true cameo power.

There are many things going for it. For one, it's a vegan option that many bartenders are reaching for instead of using dairy or eggs. Further, many prefer to believe it adds a unique and superior combination of flavor and texture to cocktails that rely on the mouthfeel, like a Pisco Sour or Tom & Jerry, just to name two. At the very least, it's the most fun to say in-form ingredient since the heydays of orgeat or Marsala (yeah, you can mix with that).

Read more