Ep 347: The Grape Miniseries -- Viognier

<p>Saved from the brink of extinction just 50 years ago, Viognier (pronounced vee-ohn-yay), is a white grape that's native to the Northern Rhône in France – mainly the areas of Condrieu and Ampuis. The grape produces effusive wines with a strong aromatic character -- peaches, apricots, flowers, herbs, and ginger are common -- and when made well it has a medium body with a touch of acidity and a pleasant bitterness. This week we continue the grape mini-series (maxi series now?) by exploring this comeback kid and the pleasure it can bring when in the right hands. </p> <p> </p> <p><strong>History</strong></p> <p>Viognier's parentage is a bit ambiguous, but it is related to Mondeuse Blanche, which makes it either a half sibling or grandparent of Syrah (as MC Ice points out, we could definitely make a word problem out of this – it’s a brain twister to think about, but possible!). The grape is also tied to Freisa and may be related to Nebbiolo, both which are native to the Piedmont region of northwestern Italy.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p>Viognier was once grown pretty widely in the northern Rhône but the combination of the phylloxera outbreak in the mid- and late-19th century, followed by WWI, the Depression, and WWII drove a lot of growers to cities and left vineyards abandoned. By 1965, only about 30 acres (12 hectares) of Viognier vines remained in France, and the variety was nearly extinct.</p> <p> </p> <p>In the mid-1980s, interest started to grow both in France and from winegrowers in Australia and California. Growing interest lead to more plantings and today the grape is grown in Condrieu, Chateau Grillet, and Côte Rôtie in the Northern Rhône, all over the southern Rhône for blends, the Languedoc in southern France, as well as in North and South America, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Israel, Japan, Switzerland, and Spain.</p> <p><strong> <img style= "display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src= "https://assets.libsyn.com/secure/show/45638/WFNP_Maps_Rhone_Quarter.jpg" alt="(C)Wine F