Grape varieties used in the cognac region
From 92 AD growing wine was forbidden in France for almost two cenuries because the Romans feared the competition with their own wines. It was Emperor Marcus Aurelius Probus who in 280 AD once again granted the right to own vineyards and make wine. It is suggested that he gave the Gouais variety to the Gauls to make a start. Information about which grape varieties were used from that time onwards is scarce and difficult to find. I prepared a table with the known grape varieties used in Charente and I consulted the following sources for this purpose:
Etienne Munier,L’Angoumois à la fin de l’ancien Regime, 1779
Ravaz, Louis and Vivier, M. A.; Le Pays du Cognac, 1900
Delamain, R.; Histoire du cognac, 1935
Layton, T.A.; Cognac and other brandies, 1968
Sepulchre, Bruno; Le livre du cognac : trois siècles d’histoire, 1983
Conal, Gregory; Cognac, 1997
Faith, Nicholas; Cognac, 2004
Bourrouilh, R., Broquedis, M., Darne, G.; Wines of Bordeaux and Cognac: Geology of the Vineyards, 2004
abcduvin.com (online website)
vivc.de (online website)
To put things in perspective: distillation began around 1500 in the region and the product was known as eau-de-vie. Double distillation only started around 1600 and the first evidence that the product was called cognac dates back to 1617.
Note 1: Some synonyms in the table are used more than once for several different cepages.
Note 2: The table does not contain all grape varieties that are in use today for making wine or pineau.
| Name used in Charente | variety number and prime name | period (roughly) | comments | important synonyms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chauché (gris) | 14165; Trousseau gris | 11th c. - 1709 today the Chauché grise is again in use for white wine | Used for wine; didn't survive severe winter of 1709; replaced by Folle blanche | Gray Riesling |
| Chemère | 11th c. - 1709 | Used for wine; didn't survive severe winter of 1709; replaced by Folle blanche; not known anymore today | ||
| Gouais blanc | 5374; Heunich weiss | medieval times | Used for wine. It is suggested this variety was given by Marcus Aurelius Probus to the Gauls (ca. 280 ad). Ancestor of Colombard, Balzac blanc and Meslier Saint François. | Gros blanc; Bouilleaud; Bouillau; Guinlan |
| Chenin blanc | 2527; Chenin blanc | medieval times | Used for wine. It is the ancestor of Colomard, Balzac blanc and Meslier Saint François. | Anjou, Blanc d'Anjou, Gamay blanc |
| Colombard | 2771; Colombard | 10th century till now | Until 1600 used for wine, thereafter also for cognac. Hybrid of Gouais blanc and Chenin blanc. From 1600-1880 widely used for cognac, today rarely used | Colombier; Queu tendre; Blanquette |
| Folle blanche (white mad lady) | 4183 (Folle blanche | 10th century till now | Until 1600 used for wine, thereafter also for cognac. It survived the severe winter of 1709 and replaced Chauché and Chemère and later also Balzac, Most widely used cepage from 1800-1870s, thereafter almost none | Picpoule; Engreat blanc; Grais; Gros plant; Plant de madame; Chalosse blanche |
| Daune (verte) | 11480; Semillon | see Sémillon | Sémillon; Sémillon blanc; Dausne; Blanc doux | |
| Sauvignon | 10790; Sauvignon blanc | allowed until 1955 | probably only for wine | |
| Gaumez | 1500 - 1709 | In use for making cognac before Balzac; didn't survive severe winter of 1709; mentioned by Delamain, but couldn't find any record of it. | ||
| Balzac (Balzac blanc) | 947; Balzac blanc | 1600 - 1800 | hybrid of Gouais blanc and Chenin blanc;. From 1709-1800 most widely used for cognac | Balzat; Blanc Limousin |
| Ugni blanc | 12628; Trebbiano Toscano | Late 1870s till now | replaced the Folle blanche | St. Emilion; Trebbiano; Buan et Beou; Bobebon; Chatar, Cadillac |
| Montils | 7956; Montils | still used | descendant of Gouais blanc; survived Phylloxera | Chalosse; Blanc de montils; Aucarot; Folle Blanche de Loire Atlantique; Folle blanche de Loire Inferieure |
| Meslier Saint François | 7677; Meslier Saint François | allowed until 2020 | hybrid of Gouais blanc and Chenin blanc | Blanc ramé; Anereau; Chalosse |
| Jurançon blanc | 5861; Jurançon blanc | allowed until 2020 | Braquet blanc; Notre dame; Quillat | |
| Sélect blanc | 16868; Select | allowed until 2020 | hybrid of Ugni blanc with Jurançon | |
| Sémillon blanc | 11480; Semillon | still used | Sémillon; Sémillon blanc; Daune verte; Dausne; Blanc doux | |
| Folignan | 17815; Folignan | allowed from 2005 | hybrid of Ugni blanc with Folle blanche | |
| Gros blanc (syn. for Gouais blanc) | 5374; Heunich weiss | see Gouais blanc (mentioned by Ravaz) | ||
| Bouilleaud (syn. for Gouais) | 5374; Heunich weiss | see Gouais blanc (mentioned by Ravaz) | ||
| Saint Pierre | 14834; Colombaud | mentioned by Ravaz | Colombeau; Blanquette; Psalmodi blanc | |
| Saint Rabier (red) | 7650; Merille | mentioned by Ravaz | Gros noir; Mérille | |
| Balzac noir (red) | 7915; Monastrell | mentioned by Ravaz | Monastel; Mourvèdre | |
| Petit noir (red) | 5862; Jurançon noir | mentioned by Ravaz | Dégouttant; Jurançon noir |
Comments
Cepages used in Charente — No Comments
HTML tags allowed in your comment: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>