Dimiat

"Wippacher" redirects here. For the French wine grape that is also known as Wippacher, seeGouais blanc.

Dimyat
Grape(Vitis)
Color of berry skin	Blanc
Species	Vitis vinifera
Also called	Seelist of synonyms
Origin	Bulgaria
Notable regions	Black Seacoast
VIVCnumber	5716

Dimyat(Bulgarian:димят) is a whiteBulgarian winegrape.It is one ofBulgaria's most widely planted white grape varieties, second only toRkatsiteli.Wines made from this variety are noted for theirperfumearomas.While someampelographersbelieve that the variety is indigenous to Bulgaria, legends have developed around Dimiat being named after a city in theNile Deltaand was brought back to Europe byCrusadersin theMiddle Ages.

History

The exact origins of the Dimyat grape are unknown, with some ampelographers believing the vine to be native to the Bulgaria area. RecentDNA typinghas shown it to be a crossing ofGouais Blanc(Weißer Heunisch) with another, unidentified grape variety.Gouais is a parent of several older European grape varieties. One alternative hypothesis, which is highly improbable given the Gouais parentage, is the legendary tale that the grape was native to theNile Deltavalley (where today there is an Egyptian city with a similar name,Damietta) and was brought back toThraceby Christian Crusaders.

It is likely that the grapecrossedwithRieslingto produce the pink-skinnedMisket Varnenskigrape variety.

Wine regions

The Dimyat grape is almost exclusively grown in Bulgaria with vineyards mostly in the south and eastern parts of the country.It is most widely planted in theChirpan,PreslavandShumenregions around theBlack Sea.Other Bulgarian wine regions growing some Dimyat includeHaskovoandVarna.After Rkatsiteli, it is the second most widely planted white grape variety with over 23,720 acres (9,600 hectares) planted in 2005.

Dimiat is most commonly found in south and eastern Bulgaria, areas that used to be part of the historical region of Thrace.

Outside of Bulgaria, there is small plantings of the variety in the neighbouringGreek wineregion ofThraki(part of what was the historical region of Thrace). Here Dimyat is known under its synonym ofZoumiatiko.

Viticulture and winemaking

The Dimiat vine is characterized by the large size of the individual grape berries with the potential for highyieldsif not kept in check.Duringveraison,the berries turncopperyellow.In addition to being used in the production of table wines, Dimiat is oftendistilledto produce Bulgarianbrandy(rakia).

Wines

Dimiat wines are usuallylight bodiedand very aromatic. The wines are usually made with some level ofsweetnessranging from off-dry to very sweet.In Bulgaria, somedessert winesare made from Dimiat.The wine is often served very chilled and is usually consumed young, without muchaging.

Synonyms

The varioussynonymsof Dimiat include-Ahorntraube, Beglerdia, Beglezsia, Bekaszaju, Bekaszölö, Belezsi, Belina, Belina krupna, Belogollandskii, Belogollanskii, Bemena, Bois Jaune, Damiat, Damjat, Damjat bial, Debela lipovina, Dertonia, Dertonija, Dertonilia, Dimiate, Dimjat, Drobna Lipovscina, Dymiat, Fehér Szemendriai, Galan, Koplik, Krupna belina, Laschka, Laska belina, Mana Kuki, Misket de Silven, Misket Slivenski, Nagyvögü, Pamid, Pamit, Parmac, Plovdina, Plovdina esküska, Plovdina eskulska, Saricibuk, Plovdiska, Podbelec, Podbeuz, Radoviska plovdina, Roscara, Rosiora, Saratchobok, Saridzibuk, Semendra, Semendria, Semendru, Senederevka, Smederevka, Smederevka bianca, Smederevka bijela, Smederevka white, Szemendriai féher, Szemendriai Zöld, Szemendrianer, Tök szöllö, Töksölö, Tökszölö, Töröklugas, Wippacher, Wippacher ahornblättrig, Yapalaki, Zarja, Zmedervka, Zoumiatico, Zoumiatis, Zumjat, Zumjatiko and Zumyat.