Wine Clones

This week we are trying a wine that is a single clone of Pinot Noir, but what does that mean, what is a clone in relation to grapes? This week we’ll explore this somewhat wonky side of wine and how it affects the final product in your glass!

So first what is a clone? We often like to describe it in terms of dogs. Like domesticated dogs, most domesticated wine grapes belong to a species. Dogs have breeds, like a German Shepherds or Golden Retrievers, similarly grapes have breeds, we just call them varietals, like Pinot Noir or Cabernet Sauvignon. Further, there are variations of dog breeds, you can have a German Shepherd that is all black, or all white or saddled, many of these subbreeds get specific names. Similarly, within grapes, like Pinot Noir, there are variations, and we call these variates clones.

Sometimes grape clones happen in the vineyards and get named for the place where they come from, in Pinot Noir Pommard is a famous village in Burgundy and lends its name to a clone from the village. Sometimes the clones are bred by scientists at some of the world’s great wine universities, these wines tend to be a bit less romantic with clonal names like 667 or 777. Whether done at a university or in a vineyard in Burgundy, the idea is the same, some plants have certain properties that viticulturalist like and try to enhance and breed into future generations.

What are the viticulturalist looking for? Well, it depends. They aren’t looking for one specific thing per se, but rather certain characteristics. It can be anything from the size of the grapes themselves, the space between to grapes on the cluster, maybe they are looking for a plant that is more drought resistant or can handle colder winters. There are also flavor variations that can be considered, maybe one clone is fruitier, while another, like the Coury clone we’ll be trying in our tasting, is considered more spicy.

While clones and clonal variation may be a bit more in the weeds than we typically get into the world of wine, the next time you are learning about a wine you may have some extra knowledge to know precisely what you like!