WineSearcher: Wild Vines

Quite an interesting article in WineSearcher by MargaretRand on wild vines:
https://www.wine-searcher.com/m/2021/08/a-walk-on-wines-wild-side.

It discusses some of the work being done in SW France by two ampelographers, where there's a plethora of old & wild
vines. They are making an effort to track down many of these, do the DNA on them, and see how they fit in with modern/
cultivated vines. This work is of little practical value in terms of modern viticulture other than there are some varieties whose
parents have not yet been fully identified. Their work could possibly shed some light on identifying some of those missing parents.

Of particular interest is a project on EasterIsland. There is a volcano whose steep sides harbor a bunch of different ancient grape vines. One
researcher has taken cuttings and is currently doing the DNA on them. How the heck did these vines get there?? Certainly not planted.
The nearest continental land mass is over 4 hrs away. Again, a research project w/ no practical value...only of intellectual interest.

Anyway, quite a fascinating read.

Tom

[David M. Bueker]

Qu

Of particular interest is a project on EasterIsland. There is a volcano whose steep sides harbor a bunch of different ancient grape vines. One
researcher has taken cuttings and is currently doing the DNA on them. How the heck did these vines get there?? Certainly not planted.

Luke Skywalker did it.

How did the vines get to Easter Island? Most likely brought there by birds. Vines have evolved seeds that are small enough to be swallowed whole by the birds and other animals that eat the grapes. Grapes in fact are bribes to give animals an incentive for ingesting the seeds. The seeds pass through the animal's digestive tract and are deposited (along with some free fertilizer) away from the parent vine.

-Paul W.

How did the vines get to Easter Island? Most likely brought there by birds. Vines have evolved seeds that are small enough to be swallowed whole by the birds and other animals that eat the grapes. Grapes in fact are bribes to give animals an incentive for ingesting the seeds. The seeds pass through the animal's digestive tract and are deposited (along with some free fertilizer) away from the parent vine.

-Paul W.

Yup...what you say is true, Paul. But where did the birds pick up the seeds?? Over on the Continent?? That's one
hell of a flight. Don't think that we even know if they're vinifera.
Tom

Thanks for that, Tom.

Very interesting

Nadine is an ampelographer who works at the co-operative at Plaimont, in southwest France, which is so fascinated by the wealth of old and wild vines in its region that it has a project of hunting them down,

Plaimont Co-op have propagated a very old variety called Manseng Noir. They didn't have enough to make a varietal at first and blended it with Merlot to make a wine they called Moonseng, which is a pleasant drink but they produced a varietal Manseng Noir which I got some bottles from the Wine Society.

I did read a page about Manseng Noir on the Plaimont website but couldn't find it again just now, only this https://www.plaimont.com/en/aoc-pgi-win ... ies-vines/

The Wine Society Manseng Noir was released in their Bin Series as Number 8
https://www.thewinesociety.com/binseries#bin

I had Easter Island confused with the Canaries somehow.

Most likely the vines were brought there by Latino settlers, who would have been Catholic and in need of a source for communion wine.

-Paul W.