Grape Varieties Flashcards
Merlot
Early budding - vulnerable to spring frosts.
Mid ripening - can be picked before autumn rain.
Susceptible to coulure, drought, BBR - sorting is necessary. All can reduce yields.
Reaches higher sugar levels than Cabernets (advantage previously but with a warming climate is less so today).
Contributes medium to pronounced intensity fruit (strawberry, red plum.and herbaceous in cooler years. Cooked blackberry and black plum in hot years), medium tannins and med-high alcohol to Bordeaux blends
Cabernet Sauvignon
Late budding - protection to frost.
Small berried and thick skinned with high tannin content - high tannin wines.
Prone to fungal diseases, especially powdery mildew and the trunk diseases Eutypa and Esca.
Late ripener - vulnerable to autumn rains.
Produces highest quality fruit on warm, well drained soils such as gravel soils in Medoc.
Contributes pronounced violet, blackcurrant, black cherry and menthol/herbaceous flavours, medium alcohol and high acidity + tannins to Bordeaux blends.
Petit Verdot
Early budder and ripens later than Cab Sauv making it unpopular in the past in Bordeaux (frost, autumn rains and failure to ripen)
Semillion
Mid-ripening.
Susceptible to BBR and noble rot in the right conditions.
Can be high yielding.
Low intensity apppe, lemon and grassy when underripe. Has a medium body, medium alcohol and med-med(+) acidity.
Contributes low-med intensity aromas, weight and body, and med acidity to high quality, dry white blends. (Softens Sauv Bs intense flavours and high acidity).
Has affinity with sweet spice from new oak.
In botrytis affected wines it contributes pronounced honey and dried fruit, and a waxy texture.
More susceptible to noble rot than Sauv B - often a high proportion in blend eg Climens and d’Yquem.
Prized for ageability, develops toast and honey.
Muscadelle
Very prone to BBR.
Largely used in sweet white wines where it contributes flowery and grapey notes.
Gamay Noir
Early budding, so susceptible to spring frosts.
Vulnerable to millerandage in cold, damp, windy conditions, which can reduce yields.
It has thin delicate skins so is vulnerable to rot and wind.
Early ripening, so can usually be picked before autumn rains arrive.
Wines made from Gamay can express different nuances depending on topography and soil, giving wines of varying tannins and fruitiness, mainly relating to ripeness of skins and seeds. Good drainage, sunlight interception and warm granite soils = intense fruit character compared to being leafy and green in less ripe examples.
Productive grape so yields need to be controlled to produce concentrated, ripe grapes, usually done by reducing the number of buds to restrain high fertility.
Riesling
Cold-hardy variety (suitable for cold winters)
Buds late, providing protection against spring frosts.
Requires a good site: full exposure the sun with good drainage, and a long growing season to ripen fully, but if provided is capable of high quality at high yields.
Retains acidity as it ripens.
Can provide natural high levels of sugar and is susceptible to botrytis, making it ideal for producing sweet wines.
Depending on ripeness, riesling displays fruit from green apple to tropical, with floral aromas such as honeysuckle. It is capable of making wines with pronounced intensity and great conplexity.
With age, it develops toast, honeyed and petrol-like aromas.
Gewurztraminer
Early budding, so prone to spring frosts, and early ripening, avoiding autumn rains.
Rapidly accumulates sugars, but is often picked late to achieve fully ripe skins to maximise aromas and avoid unripe tannins.
A vigorous variety, requiring careful pruning and canopy management, but only moderately productive, due to coulure.
Can suffer from chlorosis and dessication of the stems.
Pinot Blanc
Early budding, so vulnerable to spring frosts.
Prone to fungal diseases.
Early ripening
Auxerrois
Early ripening, low aromatic variety producing wines with low acidity.
Pinot Gris
Early budding and early ripening.
Produces moderate yields and is susceptible to BBR and downy mildew
Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains
Tolerant of dry weather so suitable to Mediterranean climates.
Susceptible to powdery mildew BBR and mites.
Melon
Quite hardy, making it well suited to cool regions, but buds early making it prone to spring frosts.
Ripens early, reducing the threat of risk at harvest and can produce high yields.
Has good resistance to powdery mildew.
It has tight bunches of fruit and is susceptible to downy mildew and BBR.
Makes wine with high acidity, a light body and low to medium - alcohol.
Low intensity green apple aromas and often made sur lie.
Acceptable to good, with some very good, inexpensive to mid.
Chenin Blanc
Buds early.
A vigorous variety and if its allowed can carry high yields.
Prone to powdery mildew, BBR (and positive effect of botrytis) and trunk diseases.
Ripens late, and ripens unevenly, so for the best quality it has to be picked on several passes through the vineyard, which in turn limits the amount of mechanisation.
Because of this, where growers are seeking a high proportion of botrytis affected grapes, multiple passes through the vineyard by hand is necessary, adding to cost.
Cabernet Franc
Early budding, making it prone to spring frosts.
Prone to coulure and therefore reduction in yields.
Mid ripening, so can often be picked before autumn rain begins. Although if underripe the flavours can be excessively leafy.
It’s winter hardy, making it suitable for cool areas.
Grolleau Noir
Early budding and mid ripening.
Prone to BBR.
Sauvignon Blanc
Late budding and relatively early ripening, making it suitable to be grown in cool climates and regions without the threat of early autumn rains.
Grows vigorously and therefore best on poor soils.
Canopy has to be carefully managed to avoid shading (leading to underripe, overly green fruit flavours).
Prone to powdery mildew, bbr, and trunk diseases (eg Esca) including, if cordon trained, to the fungal disease eutypa dieback.
Wines typically have pronounced intensity grass, Bell pepper and asparagus with gooseberry, grapefruit, and wet stone flavours (cooler areas) to riper, passion fruit (warmer). Typically medium body and alcohol, with high acidity.
The style is also influenced by picking dates (growers have to judge optimum ripeness, but before acidity drops and flavours become overripe.
Syrah
Vigorous variety. Susceptible to mites and botrytis bunch rot.
In addition to common diseases, there’s a disease called Syrah decline or disorder, in which the leaves turn red and the graft point breaks up, leading to the death of the vine.
Grenache Noir
High yielding variety that needs a warm climate to ripen.
Ripens late and therefore vulnerable to early autumn rains.
Upright growth makes it very suitable to be trained as a bush vine, pruned short to contain vigour, and it does well on dry, low fertility soils.
Has good drought resistance but is prone to coulure and the fungal diseases downy mildew, phomopsis and bbr. Also prone to bacterial necrosis or bacterial blight, a disease that kills leaves and shoots and eventually the plant (the only way of combating the disease is by planting disease-free stock and avoiding contamination from pruning tools.
The grapes can accumulate high sugar levels quickly, which can be an issue for dry wines but makes it very suitable for VDNs.
AKA Cannonau in Sardinia.
Mourvèdre
Late budding and late ripening, only thrives in warm to hot climates. It needs high temperatures at the end of the season to ripen fully, and therefore can be underripe if the summer isn’t hot.
Not drought resistant but requires small but regular amounts of water, eg from deep calcerous soils that store water.
Best pruned short and can be grown either with a cordon system or on bush vines.
Only produces low yields.
Prone to mites, leafhoppers and sour rot (a disease that affects ripening bunches due to insect or bird damage to grapes, which in turn become prone to bacteria and fungi).
In the winery it is strongly prone to reduction, therefore care has to be taken to make sure the must has adequate access to oxygen.
Typically aged in old oak.
Cinsaut/Cinsault
Late budding and high yielding variety with good drought and heat resistance.
To produce high quality, yields must be restricted.
If grown on soils with excessive lime it can suffer from chlorosis.
It is prone to esca and eutypa, and to mites and grape moths.
Viognier
Early budding, prone to frost.
Tends to be grown on trellis system or on poles to prevent wind damage.
Yields tend to be low and unpredictable due to poor flowering and fruit set (coulure) reducing returns.
Picking must be judged accurately as the fruit needs to be fully ripe to have typical pronounced aromas. However, if left too long, they lose flavour and acidity while rapidly gaining sugar, resulting in unbalanced wines that lack flavour.
Marsanne
A late budding white variety that is vigorous and productive.
To produce high quality wine, yields must be kept low to reduce the amount of fruit being ripened. Therefore performs best on stony and low fertility soils such as the steep slopes of the northern valley.
Prone to powdery mildew, mites and bbr.
Medium lemon colour, sometimes gold. Low intensity honeysuckle, lemon and apricot, an oily texture, medium acidity, full bodied and medium to high alcohol.
Roussanne
A late budding variety that grows best on low fertility, well drained soils.
It has poor resistance to wind, and therefore sites must be chosen carefully.
Variable on the amount of fruit it produces (coulure) and is very susceptible to powdery mildew, bbr and mites, lowering yields and requiring additional work. More difficult to grow successfully than Marsanne and therefore less commonly grown.
Wines are medium lemon, sometimes gold. Medium to + aromas of pear with herbal notes, medium to + acidity and medium to high alcohol.
Roussanne is similar in colour and structure to Marsanne but wines tend to age faster.
Grenache Blanc
Relatively early budding, but often not at risk of frost due to the climates its grown.
Has good wind resistance. Prone to the same diseases as Grenache Noir: coulure, downy mildew, phomopsis and bbr. Prone to bacterial diseases necrosis or bacterial blight.
Clairette
Vigorous variety that grows well in low fertility, dry soils: suited to S Rhône and its low rainfall.
To contain vigour it needs to be pruned short and excessive buds removed, but it grows upright and has the advantage of being relatively wind resistant without staking.
Ripens late so prone to early autumn rains.
Prone to oxidation.
Bourboulenc
Late ripener.
Has loose bunches and thick skins offering resistance to BBR and making it suitable for late ripening.
Grows well in warm, dry conditions.
Carignan
Buds late, avoiding spring frosts.
Ripens late, needs to be grown in a warm climate to reliably ripen.
Can produce high yields (200hL/ha and more), which made it highly popular in the past when volume was the most sought after characteristic. These wines frequently had low concentration. To produce high concentration yields have to be massively reduced, which happens naturally when vines are old, eg 50yr+.
Prone to powdery mildew and grape moths.
Not especially suited to mechanical harvesting as the bunches are firmly attached to the vine.
Grapes are high in acidity and tannin. Winemakers will often soften with carbonic maceration or blending with other varieties.
The wines, other than from old vines, are typically unoaked, medium ruby in colour with simple blackberry fruit, high acidity and tannins. Acceptable to good and inexpensive.
Very good or outstanding examples have intense black fruit with spice and earthy notes, and sell for premium or super premium examples.
AKA Carignano in Sardinia
Malbec
AKA Cot.
Vigorous and hence needs careful canopy and yield management dependant on the style of wine being produced.
Susceptible to coulure.
Tannat
Vigorous and best supported on a trellis.
Mid-ripening, therefore normally picked before the onset of early autumn rains.
Prone to BBR that has to be controlled.
Highly tannic.
Petit Manseng
Early budding so prone to spring frosts.
Mid to late ripening.
Has thick skins and is resistant to BBR, making it suitable for late harvesting.
Moderately aromatic and retains high acidity, suitable for the production of balanced sweet wines.
Has the potential for high alcohol, meaning producers must be precise about picking date to balance the goals of full-flavour ripeness, acidity and potential alcohol.
Gros Manseng
Has the same characteristics as Petit Manseng, but has higher yields and usually less aromatic concentration and intensity.
Principally used for dry wines.
Savagnin
Suitable for both conventional wines and oxidative styles.
Buds early so prone to spring frosts.
A thick skinned variety that’s resistant to fungal diseases.
Thrives on steep slopes with marl.
Conventional wines have high acidity, medium - lemon and apple, medium body and medium alcohol.
Poulsard
Buds early, prone to spring frosts.
Prone to coulure and all fungal diseases as it is thin skinned (requires constant attention, adding to cost).
Ripens early, enabling harvest before autumn rains.
Pale ruby, almost translucent and have low intensity red fruit, low tannins, low end of medium alcohol and a light body.
Good to very good and mid to premium priced.
Trousseau
Thick skinned, offering resistance to fungal diseases, though can suffer from BBR.
Prone to poor flowering and coulure, reducing yields.
Vigorous variety, so requires careful management.
To ripen fully it needs a warm site (warm gravels/warm lower slope/well exposed higher, steeper slopes).
Pale ruby in colour, low intensity red fruit, low to medium tannins, medium to high acidity, low end of medium alcohol and a light to medium (-) body.
Good to very good and mid to premium.
Müller-Thurgau
AKA Rivaner.
One of the earliest German crosses.
Earlier-ripening than Riesling, it can produce high yields in almost any condition.
It was Germanys most planted variety in the 1970s and 80s and was widely used in inexpensive blends such as Liebfraumilch.
Much lower acidity than Riesling (generally medium) and gives less structure and character, but can produce wines with attractive but simple floral and fruity aromas for early drinking.
Dornfelder
The most significant German crossing.
Produces wines that are deep in colour, high in acidity with fruity and floral notes.
It used to produce two distinctive styles:
• A fruity, easy drinking style, occasionally with RS, with aromas of sour cherry and blackberry
• A more complex style with ageing potential, produced from lower yields showing greater focus on tannins and structure, fermented or aged in oak.
Silvaner
AKA Sylvaner in Alsace.
Lower in acidity and less aromatic than Riesling.
Can produce a large amount of simple, inexpensive wines with subtle fruit aromas that can range from green to tropical. Where yields are controlled it can produce dry, high quality, medium bodied wines with medium to (+) acidity and a distinctive earthy character.
Grüner Veltliner
Does not thrive in dry soils, so it is better suited to clay and loess, which can retain high levels of water.
It can be very vigorous if planted on fertile soil, and so careful canopy management is necessary to produce ripe grapes.
The skins are thick, and if left in contact with the juice for too long, it can contribute a phenolic taste or bitterness to the wine.
The skins contain the compound rotundone that gives a peppery aroma, characteristic of this variety.
Wines tend to have medium (+) to high acidity. Typically not oaked. They range from simple with green fruit and citrus made for early drinking, of acceptable to good quality and inexpensive, to wines with pronounced citrus and peach with great complexity of aromas and flavours, which can be aged in bottle. These are very good to outstanding and premium priced.
Zweigelt
A crossing between Sankt Laurent and Blaufränkisch.
Ripens earlier and more easily than Blaufränkisch and can be high yielding.
A vigorous variety, so leaf removal and canopy management are important in order to produce quality grapes.
Potassium deficiency in this variety can lead to withering of the grapes before they ripen, leading to loss of crop for that vintage.
Not susceptible to frost or rot, and that, alongside ease of ripening, makes it widely planted throughout Austria.
Wines generally have medium (+) acidity, medium tannin. Red fruit, especially cherry, dominate the flavours and aromas.
Styles range from easy drinking, fruity unoaked wines that are acceptable to good and inexpensive to mid, to full-bodied, oaked styles with the possibility to age - very good and premium.
Welschriesling
Not related to Riesling.
Has high levels of acidity and somewhat neutral aromatics.
Mainly found in Steiermark and usually made into fresh, neutral, unoaked, dry wines of acceptable to good quality and inexpensive.
Plantings are in decline, partially due to decrease in consumption.
Has thin skins, so susceptible to noble rot, in this case the BA or TBA wines have high levels of acidity, pronounced tropical fruit and dried fruit, with the ability to develop in bottle. Very good - outstanding and premium.
Because of its neutral aromatics and high acidity, Welschriesling can also be used for Sekt production.
Blaufränkisch
Early budding, so vulnerable to spring frosts.
Ripens late, so it needs a warm climate to reliably ripen, so generally only found in Burgenland.
Thick skinned, making it disease resistant (important in the humid area around Neusiedlersee).
Can produce high yields, and if left to do so, it will struggle to ripen, creating wines with green aromas and flavours.
When yields are managed, it can produce some of Austrias’ most age-worthy and intense red wines.
Wines tend to be medium (+) to high tannins, high acidity, deep colour and black fruit flavoured.
Wines range from simple, fruity that are good and mid, to very good to outstanding and premium with pronounced black fruit, spicy oak characteristics and high tannins that are premium priced.
