This hard-to-come-by grape variety is mostly cultivated in the province of Asti, in the Castiglione Monferrato area and a few neighboring townships.
The adult leaf is medium-small, wedge-shaped and with three or five lobes. The light green blade is clearly folded into a very slightly bullate cup shape.
The ripe bunch is medium-large or large, cylindrical with well-developed wings, sometimes with long stalks.
The medium-small berry is blue-black with very bloomy skin and characterized by a slightly aromatic taste.
Budbreak: Medium (second ten days of April).
Ripening: Medium-early or medium (end of September).
This is a moderately vigorous grape variety with high fertility and abundant yields. Ruché prefers short pruning, but is usually trained on espaliers and takes Guyot pruning; it is tolerant of downy mildew.
Ruché is used to make a rather unusual, slightly aromatic wine, with relatively low acidity, good alcohol content and a balanced body with an original gustatory and olfactory impact.
