Petit Verdot is a variety of red wine

Wine

Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...

 grape

Grape

A grape is a non-climacteric fruit, specifically a berry, that grows on the perennial and deciduous woody vines of the genus Vitis. Grapes can be eaten raw or they can be used for making jam, juice, jelly, vinegar, wine, grape seed extracts, raisins, molasses and grape seed oil. Grapes are also...

, principally used in classic Bordeaux

Bordeaux

Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...

 blends. It ripens much later than the other varieties in Bordeaux, often too late, so it fell out of favour in its home region. When it does ripen, it is added in small amounts to add tannin, colour and flavour to the blend. It has attracted attention among winemakers in the New World

New World wine

New World wines are those wines produced outside the traditional wine-growing areas of Europe, in particular from Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States.-Early wines in the Americas:...

, where it ripens more reliably and has been made into single varietal

Varietal

"Varietal" describes wines made primarily from a single named grape variety, and which typically displays the name of that variety on the wine label. Examples of grape varieties commonly used in varietal wines are Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Merlot...

 wine. It is also useful in 'stiffening' the mid palate of Cabernet Sauvignon

Cabernet Sauvignon

Cabernet Sauvignon is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Canada's Okanagan Valley to Lebanon's Beqaa Valley...

 blends.

When young its aromas have been likened to banana

Banana

Banana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red....

 and pencil shavings. Strong tones of violet

Violet (plant)

Viola is a genus of flowering plants in the violet family Violaceae, with around 400–500 species distributed around the world. Most species are found in the temperate Northern Hemisphere; however, viola species are also found in widely divergent areas such as Hawaii, Australasia, and the Andes in...

 and leather develop as it matures.

History

Petit Verdot probably predates Cabernet Sauvignon in Bordeaux, but its origins are unclear. There are records of it in the eighteenth century, but its characteristics suggest an origin in much hotter climes than the Gironde

Gironde

For the Revolutionary party, see Girondists.Gironde is a common name for the Gironde estuary, where the mouths of the Garonne and Dordogne rivers merge, and for a department in the Aquitaine region situated in southwest France.-History:...

.

It is one parent of Tressot

Tressot

Tressot or Tressot Noir is a variety of dark-skinned wine grape. Tressot has historically been grown in Burgundy but it is now almost extinct. Some small plantations still remain in the Chablis district of Burgundy....

, the other parent being Duras

Duras (grape)

Duras is a traditional French variety of red wine grape that is mostly grown around the Tarn River, northeast of Toulouse. It is usually blended with other traditional varieties, but production has been declining in recent years....

, a grape from the upper Tarn valley

Tarn River

The Tarn is a long river in southern France , right tributary of the Garonne.The Tarn runs in a roughly westerly direction, from its source at an altitude of 1,550 m on Mont Lozère in the Cévennes mountains , through the deep gorges and canyons of the Gorges du Tarn The Tarn is a long...

 near Toulouse. It's possible that both were brought to the region by the Romans as they moved inland from the Mediterranean.

Argentina

There are some blocks of Petit Verdot in Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

, although for many years it was labelled as Fer

Fer

Fer is a red French wine grape variety that is grown primarily in South West France and is most notable for its role in the Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée wines of Gaillac, Marcillac and Béarn but can also be found as minor component in the wines of Madiran, Cabardès and Bergerac...

.

Australia

Verdot was included in James Busby's collection of 1832, and it was trialled by Sir William Macarthur in the 1840s. In 2000 there were 1600 hectares in Australia with Kingston Estate

Kingston Estate

Kingston Estate was established in 1979 by Sarantos and Constantina Moularadellis when they planted 40 acres of vines in South Australia’s Riverland....

 in South Australia having the largest planting, four times more than in France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

. It is increasingly being used to make massive, brooding, single varietal wines that will age for several years - Pirramimma has championed this approach.

France

Almost all the Petit Verdot in France is planted in Bordeaux, mostly in the Médoc

Médoc

The Médoc is a region of France, well known as a wine growing region, located in the département of Gironde, on the left bank of the Gironde estuary, north of Bordeaux. Its name comes from Medullicus, or "country of the Medulli", the local Celtic tribe...

 where it is used in small amounts to give structure to the classic Bordeaux blend. However the late ripening means that in some years the entire crop is lost and it only properly ripens once every four years, so it has fallen out of favour, particularly with the trend towards earlier-maturing wine. Château Palmer

Château Palmer

Château Palmer is a winery in the Margaux appellation of the Bordeaux region of France. The wine produced here was classified as one of fourteen Troisièmes Crus in the historic Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855...

 is unusual in having up to 10% Petit Verdot in its blend, which helps stiffen the high proportion of Merlot

Merlot

Merlot is a darkly blue-coloured wine grape, that is used as both a blending grape and for varietal wines. The name Merlot is thought to derive from the Old French word for young blackbird, merlot, a diminutive of merle, the blackbird , probably from the color of the grape. Merlot-based wines...

 in their wines. 1-3% is more usual.

Italy

In Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 is sometime cultivated in Maremma

Maremma

The Maremma is a vast area in Italy bordering the Tyrrhenian Sea, consisting of part of south-western Tuscany - Maremma Livornese and Maremma Grossetana , and part of northern Lazio - Maremma Laziale .The poet Dante Alighieri in his Divina Commedia places the...

 (Tuscany

Tuscany

Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....

) and Lazio. Casale del Giglio Cave, near Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

,
Baglio di Pianetto Cave in Palermo Sicilia produces a wine based on 100% Petit Verdot.

USA

The profusion of Meritage

Meritage

Meritage is a proprietary term used to denote red and white Bordeaux-style wines without infringing on the Bordeaux region's legally protected designation of origin. Winemakers must license the Meritage trademark from its owner, the California-based Meritage Alliance...

 Bordeaux blends has seen considerable interest in the variety in California, where there was 360 ha in 2003. The more consistent, warmer climate is a big help in reliably ripening the grape, and producers are starting to experiment with single varietals. It is also planted in a small way in Colorado

Colorado

Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

, Texas

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

, Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

, Missouri

Missouri

Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...

, and Washington.

Venezuela

Altagracia Vineyards in Carora, Venezuela (a 1980 joint venture between Martell of France and Polar Breweries of Venezuela now solely run by Polar) produce a Bodegas Pomar Petit Verdot wine.

In addition to the countries above, Petit Verdot is used as 'seasoning' in Bordeaux-style blends in British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

, New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

, South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

 and Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

.

Vine and Viticulture

The leaves have 3-5 lobes with a distinctively elongated central lobe. The small, cylindrical bunches are winged, with small black berries.

The name Petit Verdot ('small green') refers to one of the main problems with the grape, that often the berries fail to develop properly without the right weather during flowering. It also refers to the late ripening which usually comes too late for the Bordeaux climate. Petit Verdot also has a peculiar characteristic in that it produces more than two clusters per shoot.

Synonyms

Bouton, Carmelin, Heran, Lambrusquet Noir, Petit Verdau, Petit Verdot Noir, Verdot and Verdot Rouge.

Further reading

• Robinson, Jancis Vines, Grapes & Wines Mitchell Beazley 1986 ISBN 1857329996

External links

• Great overview from a South African producers magazine
• Petit Verdot on the rise in Bordeaux from decanter.com