A Grapevine with Nuragic Roots
There is a grapevine that has been growing in Sardinia since before Sardinia had a name. It is called Nuragus, it occupies almost 40% of the island's vineyards, and it carries with it a history that begins in the Bronze Age — among Phoenician sailors, stone nuraghes, and commercial exchanges with the East.
Yet, for many years, it was almost forgotten. Left to itself, cultivated without ambition, vinified without care. Then, as often happens with true things, it returned. And today Nuragus is one of the freshest, most savory, and most honest Sardinian white wines one can find.
Origins and History: From the Phoenicians to the Nuraghes
The earliest records of Nuragus date back to the Nuragic civilization, which dominated Sardinia from the 18th century BC until the 2nd century AD — the same civilization that built the stone towers that still dot the island's landscape.
Around 1000 BC, with the expansion of Sardinian mining, intense trade began with the Phoenicians. It was they, according to ampelographers, who brought the first Nuragus specimens to the island — particularly during the founding of Nora, the ancient Phoenician city in southern Sardinia. Hence the Punic prefix “Nur,” which many scholars identify as the root of the name.
Its dialectal synonyms already say it all: abbondosa (abundant) and burdu (wild) — its most unmistakable qualities: great productivity and extraordinary resistance.
In 1974, Nuragus obtained the DOC designation — official recognition for a grape variety that history had already consecrated millennia before.
Characteristics of the Grapevine: Rustic, Adaptable, Generous
Nuragus is the most cultivated indigenous white grape variety in Sardinia. It is found predominantly in the provinces of Oristano and Cagliari, but over time it has spread throughout the territory. Three qualities make it unique:
- Rusticity: it adapts to any type of soil, from the plains of Campidano to coastal areas
- Productivity: its compact and generous bunches guarantee abundant yields even in difficult vintages
- Resistance: it tolerates the heat and drought typical of the Sardinian climate well
Nuragus Wine: Profile and Character
When vinified as a single varietal, Nuragus produces a wine with a pale straw color and greenish hues — a color that already speaks of freshness at first glance.
On the nose, it is elegant and immediate: white flowers, green apple, citrus — a scent reminiscent of morning in the vineyard, before the sun is fully up. On the palate, it reveals a good balance between freshness and savoriness, with a light structure and a pleasant persistence.
Nuragus is also available in sweet, sparkling, and spumante versions — the Nuragus di Cagliari DOC includes all three.
A wine that does not try to impress. It tries to accompany — and it always succeeds.
Pairings: Nuragus at the Table
Nuragus is the quintessential Sardinian white wine for everyday meals. Light, fresh, fruity — it naturally pairs with the most iconic dishes of island cuisine:
- Fregola with clams — the most classic and most Sardinian combination
- Fish soup — the savoriness of the wine dialogues with the seafood broth
- Pane carasau with extra virgin olive oil and fresh cheeses
- Culurgiones — the pasta stuffed with mint and potatoes finds its ideal beverage in Nuragus
- Roast porceddu — the freshness of Nuragus elegantly cuts through the fattiness of the meat
Serve at 10°C — cold enough to be refreshing, but not so cold as to lose its aromas.
Nuragus and Zankitai: The Same Grape, Two Souls
We at Colline del Vento know Nuragus well — it is one of the grape varieties of our territory, the one that grows among the granite and wind of Villasimius.
We vinify it in two very different ways: in the most classic, fresh, and immediate version — and in Zankitai and C’alma, our orange wines, where Nuragus undergoes a long maceration on the skins that completely transforms it: from a lively white wine to an amber, structured, complex wine.
Same grape, same land. Two opposing characters. Both authentic.
Salude e trigu.
