Have you heard the news? In August 2021, champagne winemakers had decided to approve a fungus-resistant grape variety called Voltis. The champagne producers are allowed to plant a maximum of 5% of their vineyards with this variety.
As I have already written about it here, we know that in Champagne there were a total of 7 permitted varieties until now. The most well-known being Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Meunier but the other four are quite interesting as well: Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Petit Meslier and Arbane or Arbanne. All of these varieties are a natural cross between two vitis vinifera vines and this is where the twist is coming with Voltis!
Voltis is a white grape variety (also Colmar 2011 G) which is a complex interspecific new breeding between Villaris x VRH 3159-2-12 (an intergeneric cross between Vitis vinifera x Muscadinia). It contains genes from Vitis berlandieri, Vitis rupestris and Vitis vinifera, as well as Muscadinia. The hybrid was created in collaboration between the INRA located in Montpellier and the Julius Kühn Institute in Siebeldingen, Germany as part of a project launched in 2000 for the development of PIWI varieties. The vine is characterised by total resistance to powdery mildew and high resistance to downy mildew. Voltis’ bunches are medium in size and moderately compact. The berries are also medium in size, simple-flavored, with a moderately thick skin and a moderately juicy pulp.
And how Champagne comes in all this? Since 2010, Champagne has been participating in the INRA-ResDur program as an in-situ growing region, which is currently in an “intermediate stage”. Seedlings with the necessary resistance genes were planted in the experimental vineyards in Champagne. There they are observed over a period of about six years.
My conclusion is that this experiment was successfull hence the permission for the very first PIWI variety in Champagne. (If you don’t know what is a PIWI grape, just click here where I explain everything!) With climate change, there is a big chance we will see more and more of these persistant varieties all around the World as already we can find a significal amount in Germany and Austria.
What do you think about it? Are you still going to consume wines from your favourite regions even if they contains PIWI grapes? And what do you think, how the quality of Champagne will change with this move?
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