Bordeaux gives go-ahead for new grapes
Six ‘new’ grape varieties that could help Bordeaux châteaux fight climate change have been provisionally approved for use, as St-Emilion wineries join forces to build an anti-hail defence system ( below). France’s national appellation body, INAO, approved six varieties proposed for use by producers of Bordeaux AP and Supérieur wines. It’s potentially a major move, although the reality of adapting to climate change is extremely complex.
Touriga Nacional is among four red wine varieties on the list, and it needs little introduction to Port lovers and fans of Portuguese wine in general. The other three are Castets, Arinarnoa and Marselan, the last of which is a crossing between Cabernet Sauvignon and Grenache Noir and has enjoyed success in China in recent years.
Two white wine varieties, Alvarinho and Liliorila, also got the green light. A third, Petit Manseng, didn’t make the final cut.
Producers cited the varieties’ potential to mitigate the impact of climate change without diluting the identity of Bordeaux wines. Useful attributes include high natural acidity, strong aromatics and good resistance to a range of vine diseases, from mildew to grey rot.
For instance, Alvarinho – also known as Albariño in Spain’s Galicia – has ‘strong aromatic qualities [that] make it possible to compensate for the loss of aromas typically
caused by global warming’, said the Bordeaux AP and Supérieur wine producers’ union. It described Castets as an ‘historic and forgotten’ Bordeaux variety that can impart lots of colour and create long-lived wines.
‘The first plantings of the new varieties are planned for 2021,’ said the CIVB Bordeaux wine council.
The six varieties can constitute up to 5% of a producer’s AP vineyard and 10% maximum of final blends, and their names can’t appear on bottle labels. They were approved for use on an experimental basis and clearance may yet be revoked – or confirmed – in 10 or 20 years. News of the varieties came as a more immediate plan to battle the elements was announced on Bordeaux’s Right Bank.