Jura Flashcards
Where is Jura in France
small eastern French wine region between Burgundy and Switzerland
What is the history of Savagnin
descended from wild grapes
provided the genetic material for a multitude of natural grape crosses during the Middle Ages.
Has kinship to Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Petit Manseng and Sylvaner!
Aromatic pink-skinned variant is Gewurztraminer.
Native to Jura
What is Savagnin’s link to other grapes
Multitude of natural grape crosses during the Middle Ages.
Has kinship to Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Petit Manseng and Sylvaner!
Aromatic pink-skinned variant is Gewurztraminer.
How has wine production in the Jura changed over the last 150 years
Reduction in production/grape varieties
- disease=mildew, phylloxera
- climate=frosts, freeze
- economic/manmade=wars, economic depression
Consolidation of producers - half of production is 3 wineries
Restructuring of vineyard slopes (remembrement) for more workable plots
Smaller producers making natural wines
Increase in cremant
What are wines made “sous Voile”
a wine that experiences “controlled oxidation due to the semi-permeable nature of surface yeasts that develop on wine in partially filled casks (i.e. casks with ullage).
The primary by-product is aldehyde. The wines develop aromas of walnut, hazelnut and spice.
What are wines made Ouille
It means “topped up.” Wines made in this fashion are made reductively, with minimum oxygen exposure. This term appears most often in conjunction with Savagnin
The aging vessels are filled up and the wine protected from air..
What is ullage
Derives from the French ouillage, has had a variety of meanings and uses in the English-speaking wine trade.
It can mean the process of evaporation of wine held in wooden containers such as a barrel.
The head space left in the container is also called the ullage, or ‘ullage space’, and the wine in that state is said to be ‘on ullage’.
Any space in a stoppered wine bottle not occupied by wine (see fill level).
A bottle or barrel not entirely full is said to be ‘ullaged’.
Who was Louis Pasteur
1822-1895
French chemist and microbiologist
born in the town of Dole in Jura.
development of milk pasteurization anthrax and rabies vaccines
alcoholic fermentation - yeast responsible
Prior to Pasteur, it was believed that fermentation was the result of spontaneous generation; however, Pasteur discovered that yeast was responsible. Despite being Paris-based, each Summer he would return for a working vacation and Conduct experiments in the vineyards and wine cellars of Jura.
Who was Charles Rouget
1828-1899
This winegrower from Salins-les-Bains
wrote an ampelographic compendium in 1897.
A life-long student of the vine, he noted that identical grape varieties often assumed alternate names, especially when grown on different sites and soils.
Who was Alexis Arpin
1867-1946
winegrower and Secretary of the Arbois Viticulture Society,
campaigned against fraud and championed the idea of an appellation of controlled origin for Arbois.
His work to authenticate wine origin set the stage for Arbois to be among the first to receive AOC approval in 1936.
Who was Pierre-Marie-Alexis Milladet
1838-1902
Jura-born botanist and mycologist who studied vine diseases.
taught at the Universities of Strasbourg, Nancy and Bordeaux.
creator of the famous “bouillie bordelaise” or “Bordeaux Mixture” that was used to combat mildew.
Together with botanist Jules-Émile Planchon, the two pioneered the grafting of French vines onto American rootstock to protect the vines from phylloxera
Describe Jura’s climate
continental with alpine influences.
long, cold winters
potentially very warm summers (summer nights tend to stay cool.)
Jura Mountains block moisture-containing west winds, so precipitation falls year-round on the mountains’ western flanks, where the vineyards are located.
Annual rainfall is about 1,000-1,500 mm.
1,800-1,900 hours of sunshine each growing season.
Describe Jura’s topographical features
the Saône Graben formed as the Apls rose.
As the Alps continucd to rise, Jura Mountains pushed westwards, creating a series of folds comprised of sedimentary bedrock that are now plateaus and buttes.
The graben’s uplifts, Morvan uplands and escarpments of the Côte d’Or and the Jura Mountains) were separated by the Bresse Plain. Over time, blind valleys formed in Jura, creating a distinctive topography.
Where are most vineyards found (topographically) in Jura
Some vineyards lie on the south- or southwestern-facing Jura foothills below the first/lower plateau.
Vineyards also appear on the slopes of small limestone hills that detached themselves from the sedimentary bedrock during all the geological upheavals.
Most vineyards are positioned between
220-450 m in elevation.
Define “graben”
A graben is a valley with a distinct escarpment on each side
name the two uplifts of the Saône Graben
Côte d’Or and the Jura Mountains
separated by the Bresse Plain
Identify the predominant soil types of the Jura region
Soils are shale, clay and limestone and are very old
20% limestone 80% clay (opposite to Cote d’Or)
describe the nature of a blind valley
deep, narrow, flat bottomed valley with an abrupt ending.
A blind valley is a deep, narrow valley common in limestone/karst landscapes. The valley starts abruptly at the point where its stream emerges from underground. Such a valley is formed when permeable soil or rock, such as limestone, rests atop an impermeable sublayer (of dolomite, sandstone, shale, flysch). Water moves through the permeable top layer and erodes it down to the impermeable layer, thereby forming the valley.
What are the five principal grapes of Jura
Chardonnay,
Savagnin Blanc,
Poulsard,
Pinot Noir and
Trousseau.
Match the grapes to their preferred soils
Chardonnay, Savagnin Blanc, Poulsard, Pinot Nero and Trousseau.
Gravel, grey/blue marl, limestone
Chardonnay= Limestone
Savagnin Blanc= grey/blue marl,
Poulsard=grey/blue marl
Pinot Nero=southern region soils
Trousseau=warm gravel and stony soils
What is the most common training system in the Jura and explain why it is preferred
Guyot
Both Savagnin and Trousseau are susceptible to Esca trunk disease, a fatal bacterial infection that develops from pruning wounds.
To minimize the number of pruning cuts, most vines are cane- pruned; the Guyot training method is most Common
What is vin Jaune
, meaning literally ‘yellow wine’ in French, extraordinary style of wine made in France, mainly in the jura region, using a technique similar to that used for making sherry but without fortification.
In the Jura, where the most famous vin jaune appellation is château-chalon, the wine must be made from the signature local white grape variety the savagnin, grown ideally on marl. The grapes are picked well ripened, often not until late October, ideally at about 13 to 13.5% potential alcohol, to allow for an increase during the ageing process, and fermented as normal. The wine is then put into old 228‐l/60-gal casks usually not quite filled so that the local benevolent film-forming yeast, called here the voile or veil, can develop on the surface. It is similar to the flor which is responsible for fino sherries but can develop at a lower alcoholic strength and a much thinner layer, coloured grey, is considered the best. The ageing ‘cellars’ (which may be above or below ground) are ventilated deliberately to allow temperature fluctuations during which the activity of the voile will change. The presence of the veil prevents severe oxidation, but the important factor in making vin jaune is that for at least five years the wine is left in cask, untouched other than to allow regular sampling to check the amount of ethanal formed (a crucial compound for the taste of vin jaune) and for a dangerous rise in volatile acids. It may not be bottled for a full six years and three months after the harvest. Inoculation or seeding of yeasts to form the voile for Savagnin and even Chardonnay wines was introduced in the 1970s, and today this is used by some producers, but is disapproved of by purists who believe that natural methods produce a better wine and are reliable if ‘cellar’ conditions are right and barrels have previously held wine aged under the voile.
The finest vin jaune from the best vintages will last for 50 or more years in its distinctive 62-cl clavelin bottle (the amount of wine left after keeping a litre in a cask for six years, supposedly).
Research in the 1990s showed that the compound sotolon develops in bottle, providing the distinct spicy or light ‘curry’ flavours in vin jaune. The wine should be served at cellar temperature or warmer and the bottle should be opened well in advance. The wine may be drunk with all sorts of savoury dishes, particularly of course chicken cooked in the wine itself, a classic dish, and the local Comté cheese.
What is vine de Paille
French for ‘straw wine’ (Strohwein in German), a small group of necessarily expensive but often quite delicious, long-lived, sweet white wines.
These are essentially a subgroup of dried-grape wines made from grapes dried on straw mats.
Average yields are minuscule once the grapes have been raisined, but the results are luscious in the extreme, and are invariably sold in half-bottles.
Around 1% of Jura’s wine production is of Vin de Paille from arbois, l’étoile, and Côtes du jura made from savagnin, poulsard, or Chardonnay grapes picked relatively early and dried for at least six weeks, but today rarely on straw. The minimum potential alcohol allowed is 19%
The grapes are generally pressed in January, and 100 kg/220 lbs of grapes may yield fewer than 20 l/5 gal of juice.
Jura producers must age their vins de paille in cask for at least 18 months and the wines must have a natural alcoholic strength of at least 14%. They are capable of long bottle ageing.
Many Jura producers flout these appellation rules to make a lower alcohol version under a table wine designation. Such is the importance of the wine in the Jura that in 2014 the region won a court case preventing Corrèze producers from using the term vin paillé for their version.
What is Macvin
Macvin du Jura, powerful vin de liqueur made in the Jura in eastern France by blending hardly fermented grape juice with marc du Jura.
This somewhat sweet but curiously earthy drink should be served cool as an aperitif or with ice cream dishes.
A version involving spices and heated must was made as early as the 14th century.
Macvin was awarded its own appellation contrôlée, the 400th created by inao, in 1991.
