Mauzac (grape)

Mauzac
Grape (Vitis)

Mauzac in Viala & Vermorel
Color of berry skin Blanc
Species Vitis vinifera
Also called Blanquette et cetera
Origin South West France
Notable regions Gaillac, Limoux
Notable wines Blanquette de Limoux

Mauzac or Mauzac blanc a white variety of grape used for wine, of the species Vitis vinifera. It is mainly grown in the Gaillac and Limoux regions in the southwest of France. Total French plantations of Mauzac stood at 3,200 hectares (7,900 acres) in the year 2000.[1]

In Gaillac its aromatic wines are blended with Len de l'El to create mildly sweet and sparkling white blended wines. Since the late 1980s, some Gaillac producers have created an interest in Mauzac by producing better wines. In Limoux, Mauzac is a compulsory part of the Blanquette de Limoux, where it may be blended with Chenin blanc and Chardonnay. However, in Limoux, plantations of Mauzac are decreasing at it is losing ground to Chardonnay.[1] The grape is also one of the seven permitted white varieties in Bordeaux wine.[2]

Mauzac buds and ripens late, and was traditionally picked quite late, when temperatures had dropped in Limoux. This allowed for slow fermentation which preserved residual sugar for a "natural" second fermentation in the spring, creating a sparkling wine. Today, it is more common to pick Mauzac earlier, giving a more crisp wine with higher acidity, but also without much of its particular aromas.[1]

Mauzac rose and Mauzac noir

Mauzac Rose grapes

While Mauzac almost always refers to Mauzac blanc there are also Mauzac varieties with other skin colors; Mauzac rose[3] and Mauzac noir.[4] Both of these are very rare in cultivation. While Mauzac rose is a color mutation of Mauzac blanc, Mauzac noir is a distinct variety whose relationship to Mauzac is unclear.[5]

Synonyms

Mauzac blanc, or wine made with substantial proportions of it, is known under the following synonyms:[6] Aiguillon, Becquin, Bekin, Bequin, Blanc Lafitte, Blanquette, Blanquette Aventice, Blanquette de Limoux, Blanquette Sucrée, Caspre, Clairac, Feuille Ronde, Gaillac, Gaillade, Gamet blanc, Manzac, Maousac, Mausac, Maussac, Mauza, Mauza blanca, Meauzac, Moisac, Moissac, Moysac, Mozac, Mozak Belyi, Peron, Perrond, Pied Rond, Plant de Gaillac, Primard, Queue Fort, Queue Roide, and Sudunais.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Jancis Robinson, ed. (2006). "Mauzac". Oxford Companion to Wine (Third ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 431. ISBN 0-19-860990-6.
  2. ↑ Anson, Jane, Decanter.com (August 31, 2007). "Petit Verdot on the rise in Bordeaux".
  3. ↑ Vitis International Variety Catalogue: Mauzac rose, accessed on October 5, 2009
  4. ↑ Vitis International Variety Catalogue: Mauzac noir, accessed on October 5, 2009
  5. ↑ J. Robinson, J. Harding and J. Vouillamoz Wine Grapes - A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavours pgs 608-609 Allen Lane 2012 ISBN 978-1-846-14446-2
  6. ↑ Vitis International Variety Catalogue: Mauzac blanc, accessed on October 5, 2009
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