GuildSomm: The Past & Future of Indigenous Varieties

As linked in WineTerroirist, there is an absolutely fascinating article by BryceWiatrak (who he?) in GuildSomm:
GuildSomm:IndigenousGrapes
on the past & future of indigenous grapes.
There's one whole section devoted to sex, with illustrations. It points out that VitisVinifera is largely hermaphrodatic whilst the wild vines, VitisSilvestris, are not and require nearby planting of varieties of the opposite sex for producing grapes. It was long a claim that the VitisVinifera variety, Picolit, was suffering a malady known as floral abortion. In fact, it is simply that Picolit is a sterile variety and requires interplanting with Verduzzo (or something else) to be polinated to set a decent crop.
He talks about the Rhone movement in Calif and the failure of the Cal-Ital movement, attributing it to the adage that "you can't make great wines from Italian grapes outside of Italy", which is now known to be utter nonsense. He recounts the recent successes of Italian varieties by Ryme/Unti/Idlewild/Giornata. Alas, he never done did hear of Bryan Harrington or he would have been included as well, I'm certain.
He details the success that Albarino has had in Calif, especially that early success of BrianBabcock and how well the variety is doing in Lodi.
The article is quite lengthy (30 some pages), but an absolutely fascinating read and highly recommended for the wine geek.
Tom

It points out that VitisVinifera is largely hermaphrodatic

I must read the article.

But isn't it that because vitis vinifera has been selected by man to grow grapes, only those that consistently produce grapes survive, i.e. hermaphrodites.

Those that are male don't produce grapes so are not wanted, those that produce 100% female flowers need to be fertilised by nearby varieties to produce (good sized) grapes. Maybe they produced enough grapes in vineyards with a mix of varieties, but in todays mono-variety vineyards they don't.

The exception is the sterile varieties used mostly for table grapes (in UK seedless grapes have a monopoly of table grapes with the exception in on the odd occasion you'll find Muscat)

It points out that VitisVinifera is largely hermaphrodatic

I must read the article.

But isn't it that because vitis vinifera has been selected by man to grow grapes, only those that consistently produce grapes survive, i.e. hermaphrodites.

Those that are male don't produce grapes so are not wanted, those that produce 100% female flowers need to be fertilised by nearby varieties to produce (good sized) grapes. Maybe they produced enough grapes in vineyards with a mix of varieties, but in todays mono-variety vineyards they don't.

The exception is the sterile varieties used mostly for table grapes (in UK seedless grapes have a monopoly of table grapes with the exception in on the odd occasion you'll find Muscat)

Wow....Peter...I'm impressed by your expertise at sex!!! You should write a DearAbbey column!!

That was the original story on Picolit. Originally, it was planted intermixed w/ Verduzzo. When they went to Picolit mono-culture vnyds & Verduzzo was not there to pollinate; the Picolit quit producing. The farmers attributed it to what they called "floral abortion", a new disease never encountered before. But it was simply that Picolit was sterile. When they started interplanting w/ Verduzzo again, the yields came back, though you'd still find aborted flowers in the bunches that didn't get pollinated.
Tom

I've just read the article. It's a summation and celebration of my feelings over the past 30 years.

He makes the point about human selection of hermaphrodite vines:

undoubtedly ancient humans favored hermaphroditism in the wild vines they propagated themselves. (my emphasis)

He says at the end about the indigenous varieties
Not all grapes are created equal, and assuredly they’re not all as good as Sauvignon Blanc or Merlot.

This is an arguable point if talking about taste. I learned when taking formal wine education, that Sauvignon Blanc was a very much an inferior grape (so was Syrah) and Merlot's only value was in a blend. One has only to look at past wine lists to see how grape fashions change.

Many thanks for finding this and posting the link.

As you liked this, I strongly recommend a book I read in November
Tasting the Past: One Man's Quest to Discover (and Drink!) the World's Original Wines
Kevin Begos

But it was simply that Picolit was sterile. When they started interplanting w/ Verduzzo again, the yields came back, though you'd still find aborted flowers in the bunches that didn't get pollinated.

This makes no sense. If the Picolit flowers were sterile, interplanting with Verduzzo wouldn't have helped. I think the problem here is that the Picolit variety only has female flowers. Verduzzo is hermaphroditic and hence can provide the pollen necessary to fertilize the Picolit flowers.

-Paul W.

Yup, Paul. That’s what I was trying to say.
Picolit is not hermaphrodatic and needs another variety to pollinate.
Tom

If the Picolit flowers were sterile, interplanting with Verduzzo wouldn't have helped.

In Wine Grapes it says Picolit flowers often produce sterile pollen suggesting it is hermaphrodite but on its own doesn't fertilise enough female flowers to produce a decent crop, hence co-planting with another variety

If the Picolit flowers were sterile, interplanting with Verduzzo wouldn't have helped.

In Wine Grapes it says Picolit flowers often produce sterile pollen suggesting it is hermaphrodite but on its own doesn't fertilise enough female flowers to produce a decent crop, hence co-planting with another variety

Thanks, Peter, for that additional bit of information. Wasn't aware that the males were only partly sterile. Interesting.
Tom

Thanks, Peter. It all makes sense now.

-Paul W.

Thanks for sharing the article Tom.

Some might find the following link interesting

http://www.thenativegrapes.com/grapewatch/picolit/

P.S before reading the article scroll down a little and "start" the video.


Salute

Thanks for that link, Victor. Very interesting read. With Picolit, you can get as good a dessert wine, often, from Kracher at half the price.
Tom

With Picolit, you can get as good a dessert wine, often, from Kracher at half the price.

In UK, according to Winesearcher, it's the other way around.

Wiatrik notes the large number of varieties of vitis vinifera indigenous to Georgia. Only a very few are produced commercially due to disease susceptibility and the lingering effects of industrial policies of the former USSR . But a research station dedicated to indigenous grapes offers the promise of a better day. Known as Jighaura, the name of the village in Mtskheta where it is located, the station grows 20 plants of each of 438 indigenous varietals of vitis vinifera from all over Georgia. The goal is to identify varieties with good disease resistance that make into palatable wines. Recognizing the limitations imposed by local conditions some effort is made to approximate home growing conditions. The station itself has been under government operation only since 2013 and the equipment and facilities are basic. For example, fermentation of whites is done in carboys and there are no temperature controls. Nevertheless, plans call for a fully functioning winery at Jighaura and satellite research operations across different parts of Georgia.