Calabresella

Calabresella, also called Terziglio, is an Italian trick-taking card game for three players, although four can play if the dealer sits out each hand. It belongs to the Tressette group and is closely related to the four-player game Tressette. A 40-card pack is used, normally with Italian suits, and the cards rank with the three highest, then the two and the ace, so there are never any trumps. Each player receives twelve cards in batches of four and four cards are left face down as the monte. One player bids to play alone, choosing to call a card from the opponents (Chiamo), to play Solo, or to play Solissimo without calling or exchanging, against the other two who form a temporary partnership. The aim is to take the majority of the card points, chiefly the aces, together with the last trick, which is hard to guarantee because nothing can be trumped. It is a point-trick game with bidding that rewards skill.