Spurned gouais blanc grape was pick of the bunch

A WINE variety that was once so heavily scorned by connoisseurs that it was banned from aristocratic tables was the victim of a classic case of sour grapes, scientists have discovered.

A WINE variety that was once so heavily scorned by connoisseurs that it was banned from aristocratic tables was the victim of a classic case of sour grapes, scientists have discovered.

The gouais blanc grape, disparaged for centuries as an inferior wine ingredient fit only for peasants, has been revealed as the mother of many of today's most sought-after varieties.

A genetic study has shown that gouais blanc is the chief ancestor of modern grapes such as chardonnay, the grape used to make chablis and a component of champagne, and gamay noir, the mainstay of beaujolais.

"This is a striking conclusion, as gouais is generally considered a highly inferior variety," said Christopher Howe, of the University of Cambridge, who led the study.

Both gouais blanc and pinot noir were grown extensively in Europe in the Middle Ages, particularly in northeastern France. Gouais blanc, however, was generally considered to make poor-quality wine, and several attempts were made to ban its cultivation between the late 16th and 18th centuries.

While attempts to ban the grape outright failed, it fell from popularity and largely disappeared from French vineyards in the 19th century. The original variety survives today in only a few vineyards.

John Haeger, of Stanford University in California, another author of the research, said: "Varieties of this sort were grown on flat land by peasants. Good vineyards, on the other hand, growing better and lower-yielding varieties, were owned and farmed under the supervision of the church or nobility.

"Many of the bans were designed either to favour aristocrats and monastic orders over peasants, or force more arable land into the production of cereals and legumes to eliminate food shortages."

The research, published in the journal Biology Letters, has used genetic fingerprinting techniques similar to those used in forensic science. While it was already known that several modern varieties owed their origins to cross-breeding of gouais blanc and the more respectable pinot noir, the findings show gouais was often the senior partner.

The Times