Nielluccio

It is the principal grape variety used in the production of the Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée AOC red wine Patrimonio, where it must by law make up 95% of the blend.

Indeed, the German Vitis International Variety Catalogue data base of known grape cultivars does not even give Nielluccio a separate entry, rather grouping it in as a synonym of Sangiovese.

Plantings declined for most of the 20th century as French immigrants from North Africa imported cuttings of varieties common in Algerian wine such as Carignan and Cinsaut.

[4] Today Nielluccio is found almost exclusively on Corsica where it is the principal grape variety behind the AOC wines grown around Patrimonio in the north of the island.

While its plantings declined during the 20th century, updates to the encépagement for Corsica's AOCs have been allocating increasingly higher proportions of red and rosé blends to the use of Nielluccio.

[9] Along with Sciacarello and Grenache, Nielluccio must compose at least 50% of the blend for red wines labeled under the general Vin de Corse AOC.

The variety buds early and ripens late which puts it at risk for both spring time frosts and grape rots with rains during harvest.

Nielluccio in Viala & Vermorel.
Nielluccio may have been introduced to Corsica by the Genoese while the island was under the rule of the Republic of Genoa.
The VIVC database list Nielluccio as a synonym of Sangiovese (pictured) instead of a separate grape variety.
While Nielluccio is found throughout the island, the AOC regions of Patrimonio in the north (in purple) and Porto-Vecchio in the south (in blue) have the most plantings of the variety.