Calabresella

Italy’s three-handed classic with 40 cards. Call for a three, take the monte, or go it alone, then win 6 of the 11 points against the other two. 3 players.

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How to play Calabresella

  1. 1An old Italian game for three, played with 40 cards (no eights, nines or tens). Everyone gets twelve, and the last four go face down in the middle as the monte.
  2. 2In every suit the cards run, high to low, 3, 2, A, K, Q, J, 7, 6, 5, 4. An ace is worth a point; threes, twos, kings, queens and jacks a third of a point each; the last trick an extra point. Stray thirds are dropped, so there are 11 points to win.
  3. 3Starting left of the dealer, each player bids higher than the last bid or passes for the deal. From low to high: Call, Solo and Solissimo. The top bidder plays alone against the other two, who play as partners. If everyone passes, the deal is thrown in.
  4. 4Call: the declarer names a three they don't have (if they hold all four threes, a two, and so on down). Whoever has it hands it over and gets a card of the declarer's choice back. Then the declarer shows the monte, takes it, and sets four cards aside.
  5. 5Solo: no calling. The declarer shows and takes the monte and sets four cards aside. Solissimo: the declarer plays the hand as dealt, and the monte counts for the defenders.
  6. 6The player left of the dealer leads. There is no trump: follow suit if you can, otherwise play anything. The highest card of the suit led wins. Cards the declarer set aside count for them at the end.
  7. 7The declarer needs 6 points. Each defender pays them 1 for every point over 5, or is paid 1 for every point short of 6. A Solo counts double and a Solissimo four times. Taking every trick doubles it again.
  8. 8We play 9 deals (three per dealer). The highest total wins.

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