osso di Cerignola is produced in the community of the same name in Foggia province. It is located in the northernmost part of the region in a district that corresponds with the ancient zone of Daunia, which was bounded in the north by the river Tiferno and to the south by the Ofanto.Legends about the site are closely linked to the feats of Diomedes in Homeric times. The hero was said to have founded three cities in the region: Argyrippa-Arpi, Canosa and Siponto. And it was in Apulia that he was killed by King Daunus. At Lucera in the district of Daunia, ex-votos offered to Diomedes were displayed in the shrine of Athena.
The Diomedes legends mention a far wider area of southern Italy than was cited in other myth cycles. There are references to the Islands of Diomedes, today the Tremiti, and to the Fields of Diomedes between Lucera and the Gargano peninsula. The hero was associated with nearly every place in the region.
Rosso di Cerignola is made from grapes of the Uva di Troia and Negro Amaro varieties. The vineyards of the area have been planted almost exclusively in Negro Amaro since the 6th century BC. The wine obtained from Negro Amaro ranges in shading from ruby to garnet red and its flavor features a pleasantly bitterish vein. Because of those constant characteristics and the black hue of the clusters, the variety was called "niuru maru" in the local dialect. The name was gradually transformed into Negro Amaro.
In the Salento nearly two centuries ago, another variety known as Negro Dolce was also widely cultivated. Its characteristics were exactly the opposite of Negro Amaro's.
