Patata novella is a potato meant to be eaten fresh. Regione Campania describes it as the crop of early and very early varieties whose growth is favoured by mild climates, which is why it belongs on the table as soon as the tubers are ready.
From sowing onward, the crop cycle that carries the tubers through to physiological maturity unfolds between January and June. That window is the whole story of the season: the plant is asked to finish its work while the year is still young, so the harvest arrives as a first potato, not a late one.
Look at the tuber itself and the craft of recognition is in the eyes: they sit more strongly toward the apical end, set along a spiral line on the long body of the potato. That small map of buds is how the fresh eating potato presents itself—ready for the kitchen while the calendar is still in the first half of the year.