Fetească neagră

Fetească neagră, the black maiden, is the most serious red grape Romania has of its own. It comes from the Moldavian region that straddles the modern border with Moldova, and it is old enough that its origins are unrecorded. It is the red counterpart to the two white Feteascăs, though the family link is a matter of name rather than of proven parentage.

It gives a genuinely full wine, which is unusual among the native reds of the region. The colour is deep, the tannin is ripe and moderate, the acidity is medium, and the fruit runs to dried plum, black cherry and a distinct note of blackcurrant leaf. It takes oak well, which is not true of Băbească Neagră, and the better bottlings are aged in barrel and can hold ten years.

The vine is demanding in the vineyard: it buds early and so is exposed to spring frost, and it needs a warm site to ripen its tannin properly. Dealu Mare, on the south facing slopes of the Carpathian foothills, is the zone most associated with it, and it is also grown across the border in Moldova.