Viticulture
How grape varieties work
Varieties, clones, crossings and hybrids — and why the distinctions matter.
Overview
Nearly all fine wine comes from Vitis vinifera, a single species domesticated in Eurasia. Individual varieties — Chardonnay, Nebbiolo — are cultivars of that species.
A crossing combines two vinifera varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon is a natural crossing of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc; Pinotage a deliberate one of Pinot Noir and Cinsault.
A hybrid combines vinifera with another Vitis species, usually for disease or cold resistance. Seyval Blanc, Solaris and Rondo are hybrids, which matters legally: some EU-derived quality designations exclude them.
Varieties propagate vegetatively from cuttings, so every Chardonnay vine is a clone of the same original plant. This is why a "variety" is genetically far narrower than a species.
DNA analysis since the 1990s has overturned a great deal of received wisdom about parentage — establishing that Zinfandel, Primitivo and Tribidrag are one variety, and that Syrah has nothing to do with Persia.
Sources
Sources consulted
- Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) — Julius Kühn-Institut, Institute for Grapevine Breeding Geilweilerhof
- Wine Grapes: A Complete Guide to 1,368 Vine Varieties — Robinson, Harding & Vouillamoz (Allen Lane, 2012)
- Population-genomic research on grapevine domestication — Peer-reviewed genomics literature
More in the vineyard
Viticulture
Climate and wine style
The largest single influence on what a wine tastes like — larger than grape, producer or winemaking, and the reason the same variety is unrecognisable in two places.
Viticulture
Climate change and wine
Warming is already reshaping where wine is grown and what it tastes like.
Viticulture
Harvest and picking decisions
When to pick — the single most consequential decision a producer makes each year.