Modules 3 & 4: Viticulture - Winegrapes and Grape Growing Flashcards
The top five grape varieties planted worldwide in 2018 are included in the list below.
Rank them in order of importance acreage-wise (with the most widely planted variety as 1).
Chardonnay
Cab Sauv
Merlot
Airen
Tempranillo
Zinfandel
Cab Sauv
Merlot
Tempranillo
Airen
Chardonnay
Zin
Describe Cabernet Sauvignon (color, origin, grape, wine)
Berries are thick-skinned, small, and dark
blue in color; they are high in tannins and
acidity; they are currently the most widely
planted red variety in the world; originated
from Bordeaux in France
Concord grape - a strongly flavored grape that is widely used for juice, jams and jellies.
Vitis Labrusca
A native grape that has no useable berries
Vitis Californica
The European grape species that includes most mainstream varietal wines of the world
Vitis Vinifera
Muscadine or Noble grape - bronze colored grape that is resistant to Pierce’s disease.
Muscadinia rotundifolia
Hybrid Direct Producer
Vitis vinifera x Phylloxera - resistant species
What type of disease is Red Blotch
Viral
What type of disease is Powdery Mildew
Fungal
What type of disease is Botrytis cinerea
Fungal
What type of disease is Phylloxera
Insect Pest
What type of disease is elemental sulfur treatment
Fungal
What type of disease is Leaf Roll
Viral
What type of disease is Pierce’s Disease
Bacterial
How many grape varieties exist?
over 5000
what compound causes the pigmentation is the skin
anthocyanin
Describe Merlot
This variety is often blended with Cabernet
Sauvignon; makes a fruity wine that matures
quickly; originally from Bordeaux, France,
and is the most widely planted variety in
Bordeaux
Describe Tempranillo
Berries and wine have a fairly neutral flavor
profile with some plum and strawberry
aromas; it makes full-bodied wines due to
tannins and acids and is often blended with
other varieties; it is prone to disease; it
originated in northern Spain
Describe Syrah (Shiraz)
Berries are thick-skinned and almost black in
color; it has floral and spicy aromas; it thrives
on hillsides and was originally from the
northern Rhone region of France
Describe Grenache (Grenacha)
A high sugar variety with fruity aromas; often
lacks acidity, tannins, and color; ripens late
and requires hot, dry growing conditions;
used in blends (a common blend is Grenache,
Syrah, Mourvèdre or GSM); extensively
grown in the Rhone Valley of France;
probably originated in Spain and still widely
grown there
Describe Pinot Noir
Clusters are compact and berries have low
levels of tannins and color in the skins; makes
medium to light-bodied wines; traditionally it
is not blended with other varieties; white
juice is used for sparkling wine production;
an ancient variety from Burgundy in France
Describe Zinfandel
Makes jammy-flavored red wines; often
ripened to high sugar levels which results in
high alcohol wines; often used to make a
blush or rosé wine termed ‘White Zinfandel’;
a popular variety in California; originated in
Croatia where it is known as Crljenak, Kaštelansky; in Italy it is known as Primitivo; it came to California about 150 years ago;
Describe Airen
A drought and disease resistant variety with
high yields; not considered to make high
quality wines; is mostly used in blends; from
Spain and highly planted there
Describe Chardonnay
Disease resistant and easy to grow adapting
to diverse climate and soil conditions; used
to make sparkling wine; most popular white
grape variety; originally from Burgundy,
France
Describe Sauvignon Blanc
tropical fruit and gooseberry aromas; has
high acidity; good for blending and
traditionally blended in Bordeaux with
Semillon to make dry and sweet wines;
second most popular white variety; originally
from Bordeaux, France
Describe Trebbiano Toscano (Ugni Blanc)
Neutral flavor (undistinguished) with some
fruity aromas and high acidity; widely planted
in France and used for distillation (i.e.,
Cognac and Armagnac in France); ancient
grape from Italy and still widely planted there
Describe Riesling
Makes dry to very sweet wines; light bodies,
acidic, with fruity, spicy aromas; originally
from Germany and still widely planted there;
often infect with Botrytis cinerea (noble rot)
to make very sweet wines
Describe Thompson Seedless
Neutral flavor; versatile and used for
blending; has high yields and does well in
hot, dry climates; used for raisins (known as
Sultana in some areas of the world)
Name four other notable white grape varietals and where they are from
Chenin blanc (from Loire Valley, France,
grown in South Africa)
Gewürztraminer (from Alsace region of
France)
Sémillon (from Bordeaux, grown in Australia)
Colombard (from France)
Name 8 other notable red varieties and where they are from
Gamay noir (from Beaujolais, France)
Cabernet franc (from France)
Malbec (from France, popular in Argentina)
Nebbiolo (from Italy)
Barbera (from Italy)
Sangiovese (from Italy)
Mourvèdre (from Spain)
Poulsard (grown only in the Jura Mountains
of France)
5 Rootstocks resistant to Phylloxera and other
pests and diseases; used for breeding for
other traits such as drought resistance, etc.
Vitis rupestris, Vitis riparia, Vitis berlandieri,
V. arizonica, V. girdiana
Describe grafting
joining the rootstock to the trunk/stem or branches
site where they are joined is called the graft union
Name 3 things you can use to treat fungal diseases
sulfur powders, copper sprays and fungicides
What can you do to control Pierce’s disease
controling the insect vector
What can you do to control viral diseases
use clean plant materials for planting and grafting
List the 6 stages of grapevine growth
Budbreak
Flowering
Fruit Set
Veraison
Harvest
Dormancy
Name 4 things why canopy management is important
controls the size and shape of the vineyard
controls the amount of light that reaches the fruit
controls the amount of fruit
impacts wine flavor
Describe the berry structure (3 components, what they contain)
Skin - pigment, tannins
Seeds - Tannins
Pulp - juice, no pigment
3 things to mitigate frost
Spraying with water
smudge pots
wind turbines
typical life of a vine
20-25 years
typical yield of grapes in california per acre
2-26 tons
typical premium wine yield
3-7 tons per acre
how many gallons in a ton of grapes
160 gallons or 600 liters
What is spur pruned, cordon trained vine
the cordons branching from the main trunk stay in place from year to year. The cordons have been trained to follow a trellis wire, branching out laterally in two directions from the main trunk . The spur, which is last year’s wood is the most recent wood on the vine and it is pruned to leave two buds for the coming year’s growth.
What is cane pruning
nearly all the vine from the previous year is removed
except for one or two canes from the head of the trunk and a renewal spur. The canes are
trained along a trellis wire. Along the length of the cane will be buds that become the shoots
and flower clusters for the coming year.
The grape variety Concord is a variety of the _________________ grape species
Vitis Labrusca
