Petit Verdot
Registration Information
In France, Petit Verdot is officially listed in the “Catalogue of vine varieties” on the A list and is classified for wine grapes. This variety is also listed in the catalogues of other Member States of the European Union: Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Italy, Malta, Portugal and Spain.
Cultivation and Vine Characteristics
Petit Verdot is a fertile and rather productive variety. It grows soft shoots, is fragile at its base, rather long, with horizontal bearing which demands trellising. It is well adapted to gravelly soils. In southern areas, Petit Verdot requires regular watering. Formerly, some stumps were sensitive to Coulure due to the presence of a stigma malformation. This characteristic has been eliminated in France with selection work. The bunches are medium-sized, and the berries are small.
Wine Characteristics
When fully ripe, Petit Verdot can produce powerful, rich, deeply coloured, and tannic wines. These high-quality wines are well-suited for aging and, when blended, can add body, color, and vibrancy to otherwise flat wines. Under favorable weather conditions, Petit Verdot can yield grapes rich in sugar while retaining high acidity.
Clonal selection in France
The four certified Petit Verdot clones carry the numbers 400, 1058, 1273 and 1274. Three conservatories of approximately 150 clones in total were planted since 2002 in the Bordeaux wine-growing region.
Available Clones
400
Clone Characteristics
- Fertility: Very high
- Production Level: Medium to high
- Cluster Weight: Medium
- Berry Size: Medium to high
Wine Characteristics
- Sugar Potential: Medium
- Colour Potential: Medium
- Acidity: Medium
- Tannic Structure: Medium
- Oenological Characteristics: Typical wines of the grape variety.
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