The spring season is ripe for planting. This year, we have decided to honor an old grape variety that disappeared from Savoie over a century ago: the Jacquère Noire or Courcette de Chignin , also known as Martin Cot Noir de La Rochette or Dousset de Villard-d'Héry.
About ten years ago, two black jacquère vines were found by chance on the heights of Apremont (a vine was also discovered in one of our jacquère plots in Chignin). After analyzing their DNA, it turns out that this grape variety is different from the white jacquère, and that it is therefore not a mutation.
Grafts were carried out by the Lilian Berillon nursery in Jonquières (84). And this is how we were able to plant our first plot of Courcette de Chignin on the heights of our village.
We look forward to seeing you in 3 years to taste the first vintage harvested.
(To find out more, read “Dousset de Villard-d'Hery: the saga of a grape variety” by Roger Raffin – October 2015).