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Pinot Noir
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Summary Recommendations
Overall recommendations for clones with which we have had sufficient experience are summarized in Table 8 which lists the primary attributes of the clone.
|
Clone |
Strong Points |
Weak Points |
|---|---|---|
| Recommended clones: | ||
| FPMS 29 (Jackson) | Most Cold Hardy | Bunch Rot Susceptible |
| Quality Wine | ||
| Mariafeld | Bunch Rot Resistance | Cold Hardiness |
| Pleasant fruity aromas & good balance | Medium color | |
| Pernand | Cold Hardiness | Availablility |
| Quality Wine | Only slight bunch rot resistance | |
| Clones with limited recomendation for red wine production: | ||
| Meunier | Cold hardiness | Bunch rot susceptible |
| Yield | ||
| Good quality when ripe, but attained only in certain years | ||
| (primary use for sparkling wine) | ||
| Gamay Beaujolais | Cold Hardiness | Mediocre Quality |
| Bunch Rot Resistance | ||
| Yield | ||
| Geneva | Cold Hardiness | Bunch susceptible |
| Experience | Mediocre quality | |
| Espinette | This is a compromise clone - No extreme strengths or weaknesses. It has moderate hardiness, rot resistance and wine quality | |
| Not recommended: | ||
| Spätburgunder | None | Low cold hardiness |
| Bunch rot susceptible | ||
| Poor quality | ||
| Low yield | ||
Pomard: Appears to be cold tender, some bunch rot resistance, first wines were disapointing.
Clone 2A - First indications are not very cold hardy, reputation is for quantity not quality
Clone 7 - First tests indicates some cold hardiness
Clone 236 - Mixed results in regards cold hardiness, not extreme bunch rot susceptibility, wines have been low color, but have nice mouth feel. Reputed to be a Champagne clone
Clone V - First wine quality results are very encouraging. Under our conditions this selection can give well structured, tannic wines with floral and wet earth aromas. We consider this clone worth further trials and it might make a valuable addition to the flavor profile and structure of our Pinot Noirs. viticulture considerations?
Clone 115 - First wine quality results are encouraging. Wine have good color, characteristic ripe fruit, plums aromas and medium structure.
Clone 13 - Pleasant chracteristic fruit flavors, good tannins structure.
As outlined in the introduction to this summary of our evaluation of Pinot Noir clones for New York State, the cold winters and the high pressure for bunch rot are the main determinants for the selection of cultivars. For the production of sparkling wines, the clones Mariafeld, Pinot Meunier, and Gamay Beaujolais provide good to outstanding base wines.
Currently our evaluation program focuses on the selection of clones with highly desirable attributes for production of premium red wines. Until we find the perfect clone which is (1) winter hardy, (2) bunch rot resistant, and (3) displays all the desirable flavor characteristics of very fine Pinto Noir our selection strategy is two-pronged: first, to identify clones which are highly tolerant to our very restrictive climatic conditions and have acceptable flavor qualities and, second, to identify clones which add strongly desriable flavor characteristics to our wines with an acceptable higher risk of winter injury and bunch rot infection. We are optimistic that some the clones which we have started to test only recently provide a stronger tannin structure, more varied berry and plum fruit aromas, and floral and wet earth aromas that allow our winemakers to blend more complex and more diverse styles of Pinot Noir.
© Copyright 2000 Robert Pool