In the kingdom of the Primitive

King of the countryside, king of the tables. Primitivo di Manduria is a blood wine, the lifeblood of the history and people of a territory that has always felt it flowing through its veins. Everywhere throughout the countryside the gaze meets the plant of the sovereign vine: the first to see its grapes ripen (from the Latin primativus), the first for the sales volumes of its wines among the great Italian nectars. The saplings and espaliers are themselves panoramas, in living paintings dotted with sheep tracks, farms and rural houses, with the sea on the horizon. Red, full-bodied, with hints of red fruits. But also spicy, with references to liquorice, clove and jams, depending on the types and refinements. The wine that conquers the world is ready to seduce the visitor too, being tasted in the many cellars of the city and in the wineries of the historic center, where it always reveals itself to be seductive and intense, both in the dry DOP versions and in the sweet natural DOCG versions. At the table, the best combination of dry Primitivo is with traditional pizzarieddi (macaroni) and braciole (meat rolls) with sauce. With blue cheeses, chocolate and almond paste, however, the best marriage of sweet Primitivo.