The red grape variety comes from the Dalmatian coast of Croatia. The name means "little blue" (Mali = little, Plavac = blue). It was first mentioned in 1841 as a "typical Dalmatian variety". Synonyms are Plavatz Petit Noir(France); Babić, Crljenak, Kaštelanski, Kasteljanac, Kastelka, Kusmanic, Pagadebit, Pagadebit Crni, Pagadebit Mali, Pagadebit Pravi, Pagadebit Veliki, Pagadebit Zelenjak, Plavac Mali Crni, Plavac Mali Kastelanski, Plavac Pravi, Plavac Srednji, Plavac Veliki, Plavac Zelenac, Rodulic, Sarac, Sarak, Viska, Zelenac, Zelenak(Croatia); Plavec Mal(Northern Macedonia). It must not be confused with the varieties Babić, Babica, Dobričić, Glavinuša, Grk, Plavina, Tribidrag or Vranac, despite the fact that synonyms or morphological similarities seem to indicate this. According to DNA analyses carried out in 2003, it comes from a presumably natural cross between Primitivo(Tribidrag) x Dobričić, but there are also genetic relationships with the other varieties. Plavac Mali was the parent of Babica and Ninčuša.
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