THE WINE THAT EXISTS ONLY ON “SECOND LIFE”. THE INTERNET’S VIRTUAL WORLD PAR EXCELLENCE WILL ENJOY THE “OTHER” SAGRANTINO: THE WHITE AND FRUITY EXPERIMENT BY WINEMAKER CAPRAI IS VIRTUALLY ALIVE

In reality it does not yet exist, but it is about to become virtually alive on “Second Life”, Internet’s virtual world par excellence, made up of over 4.5 million “residents”. We are talking about the white variety of the Sagrantino grape, a new endeavor that Marco Caprai (the entrepreneur who is merited with the rebirth of the famous Umbrian red variety of Sagrantino) is now working on.

White Sagrantino, which does not naturally exist, is at the center of a study at the vineyards of Arnaldo Caprai, but before it will exist in the real world, it will first take root in the virtual world of “Second Life”, in an attempt to simulate and anticipate the possible development of the new grapes and to collect precious information on public reaction, even if it is only a “virtual” public. It is a sort of general trial that also represents a new way of doing marketing and communications within the wine world. Caprai is, in fact, the first wine producing company ever to construct vineyards and wineries in the virtual world of “Second Life”.

The Umbrian winery will be aided by Professor Raffaella Albanese (a teacher at the Sociology of Emotions department at the Link Campus of the University of Malta in Rome), who will begin a research project together with Caprai to exalt the intrinsic abilities and qualities of the young entrepreneur who would like to test herself in this project, by supervising the emotional aspect, in order to thus avoid the false illusions of the virtual world.

“In the real world” – explained Marco Caprai – “it will take many years for the complete development of white Sagrantino at an industrial level. On Internet, however, we have the possibility of anticipating the timeframe, thus collecting information, impressions and experiences of the public. It is an investment in the future, a new way for us to do marketing which accelerates the possibility that, one day, white Sagrantino will become one of our products”.
The real research and experiments on white Sagrantino are already underway, and even at Vinitaly (the annual expo held in Verona, this year from March 29 to April 2) it was possible to taste the first results.

It is not a simple clone, but a truly new “individual” possessing the same DNA as the Sagrantino that exists today, with only one difference, white grapes instead of red. “Today” – continued Marco Caprai – “a completely new chapter begins in the story of Sagrantino. After 18 years of research by a team of 10 agronomists headed by Leonardo Valenti of the University of Milan, we have finally managed to obtain a variety that, though not existing in nature, was dormant within the genetic characteristics of the Sagrantino grape we know of”.
This absolute novelty has been obtained through self-fertilization, one of the methods for the genetic improvement of grape varieties, also used to create new varieties by allowing for the creation of pure lineages of a specific variety.

Though it does include human intervention, it has nothing to do with molecular genetics and the transfer of genes.
This work has revealed all of the genetic characteristics of Sagrantino, both those that are dormant and those that are recessive, among which are the white colored grapes. The experiment makes up part of a long work process by Caprai to thoroughly examine all of the qualities of Sagrantino, from its genetic variability to all of the possible characteristics inherent to the variety, both for use in selecting better clones, as well as to discover the genetic origins of this grape variety, which would have not only immediate but also larger, long-term productive implications.

The ancient Sagrantino vineyard, after having obtained DOCG status in 1992, has been conquering the most refined palates and has become part of a tight circle of the top wines most requested by restaurants and wine shops all over the world. The most authoritative guides have long deemed Sagrantino di Montefalco by Caprai as one of the best Italian wines. And it must also be given credit for “launching” the town of Montefalco (with its rich artistic heritage) on to the international tourism circuit.

Arnaldo Caprai’s company, together with other top names of ‘Made in Italy’ goods, has become part of the Symbola Foundation, a foundation created to defend quality Italian products. It has been collaborating since 1990 with the University of Milan for the clone selection of Sagrantino. Among the most innovative projects is that titled “The Origins of Sagrantino”, which is an attempt to discover a grape variety related to Sagrantino in the Caucases, the area where the European grape originated. If it is in fact found, Sagrantino would become the name for a process, a viticultural tradition linked to a territory, to the culture of Montefalco. It would become a brand name, a product internationally safeguarded by the laws for registered products.

In 2006, Caprai produced 650 million bottles (30% of which were destined for export) for total earnings of 5.8 million euros. The wine is made from 150 hectares of vineyards, of which 35 are now destined for experimental activities.