Versoaln on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
Versoaln (or Versailler) is a white Italian wine grape variety that is grown in the
According to legend, the Versoaln vine is named after the French royal
Similar to the German/Italian grape variety Trollinger (Schiava Grossa), Versoaln has the tendency to produce large berries of thick-skinned grapes in similarly large, irregularly shaped bunches that can put a great strain on the vine if not properly managed by vine training and pruning. The vine tends to bud midway through the budding period of the
According to legend, the Versoaln vine planted at Katzenzungen Castle was originally a cutting taken from a Versoaln vine planted at the palace of Versailles in the Île-de-France region of north-central France. The vine was reportedly brought to northeast Italy by a former owner of Katzenzungen Castle, Grafen Schlandesberg.
While ampelographer doubt the details of that origin story, today the Katzenzungen Versoaln vine is considered to be one of the oldest and largest vines in the world. Dated by Martin Worbes of the University of Göttingen in Germany to be at least 350 years old, the vine has been measured to cover a length of . Among the few grapevines in the world that are older than the Katzenzungen vine is the 400+ year old
Maribor, Slovenia: a cultural city guide
'' ''The Daily Telegraph'' March 1st, 2012 The vine is maintained by viticulturists from the Laimburg Research Centre and has been used to propagate new Versoaln vines to keep the variety from being lost to extinction. Wine is still being made from the Katzenzungen vine with fruit harvested from the old vine added to the fruit taking from the newer plantings of Versoaln. Between the Katzenzungen vine and the newer plantings, around 500 bottles of Versoaln wine a year is produced in specially numbered bottles.
Versailler
' Accessed: February 23rd, 2014 Weiss Versoalen and Weisser Versailler.
Versoaln (or Versailler) is a white Italian wine grape variety that is grown in the South Tyrol wine
South Tyrol (called in Italian ''Alto Adige'') is an autonomous province located in north-east Italy producing wine. This Austro-Italian wine region is noted for the distinct Austrian influences on the wine industry due to the region's long histor ...
region of northeast Italy. In the commune of Tisens, in South Tyrol, one of the world's oldest vines is a Versoaln vine planted at Katzenzungen Castle
A cat tongue is a small biscuit (cookie) or chocolate bar available in a number of European, Asian, and South American countries.
They are known locally as "kočičí jazýčky" ( Czech), Kattentong ( Dutch), "kocie języczki" (Polish), ...
that has been dated to be at least 350 years old by the viticulturists at the University of Göttingen.J. Robinson, J. Harding and J. Vouillamoz ''Wine Grapes - A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavours'' pg 1133 Allen Lane 2012
History
According to legend, the Versoaln vine is named after the French royal Palace of Versailles
The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 19 ...
that was home to King Louis XIV from where the vine was reportedly brought to Katzenzungen Castle by Grafen Schlandesberg. However, ampelographers doubt the validity of this origin theory due to lack of historical evidence as well as DNA evidence showing a connection between Versoaln and any known French wine grape variety.
Ampelographers note that the root of Versoaln's name in the local dialect of South Tyrol means "to secure with a rope" and could be a reference to the viticultural practice of trellising
A trellis (treillage) is an architectural structure, usually made from an open framework or lattice of interwoven or intersecting pieces of wood, bamboo or metal that is normally made to support and display climbing plants, especially shrubs.
where the canopy of the vine is secured by rope or wires to a trellis
Trellis may refer to:
Structures
* Trellis (architecture), an architectural structure often used to support plants (especially vineyards)
* Trellis drainage pattern, a drainage system
Technology
* Trellis (graph), a special kind of graph used ...
. Another theory is that the name is derived from ''verdolen'', which means "green" in the local language, and describes the deep green color of the berries before '' veraison''.
Viticulture
Similar to the German/Italian grape variety Trollinger (Schiava Grossa), Versoaln has the tendency to produce large berries of thick-skinned grapes in similarly large, irregularly shaped bunches that can put a great strain on the vine if not properly managed by vine training and pruning. The vine tends to bud midway through the budding period of the growing season
A season is a division of the year marked by changes in weather, ecology, and the amount of daylight. The growing season is that portion of the year in which local conditions (i.e. rainfall, temperature, daylight) permit normal plant growth. Whil ...
and is also considered a " mid-ripening" variety. Versoaln is very susceptible to the viticultural hazards of sour rot and the fungal infections of downy and powdery mildew.
Wine regions
While once widely planted throughout the South Tyrol region, Versoaln was on the verge of extinction until viticulturists with the Laimburg Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry and Free University of Bozen-Bolzano startedpropagating
Plant propagation is the process by which new plants grow from a variety of sources: seeds, cuttings, and other plant parts. Plant propagation can also refer to the man-made or natural dispersal of seeds.
Propagation typically occurs as a step i ...
cuttings from the single, 350+ year old Versoaln vine planted at Katzenzungen Castle. As of 2012, there were approximately 100 new vine plantings of Versoaln in cultivation.
Katzenzungen vine
According to legend, the Versoaln vine planted at Katzenzungen Castle was originally a cutting taken from a Versoaln vine planted at the palace of Versailles in the Île-de-France region of north-central France. The vine was reportedly brought to northeast Italy by a former owner of Katzenzungen Castle, Grafen Schlandesberg.
While ampelographer doubt the details of that origin story, today the Katzenzungen Versoaln vine is considered to be one of the oldest and largest vines in the world. Dated by Martin Worbes of the University of Göttingen in Germany to be at least 350 years old, the vine has been measured to cover a length of . Among the few grapevines in the world that are older than the Katzenzungen vine is the 400+ year old Žametovka
Žametovka (also known as Ametovka and Kavčina črna) is a red Slovenian wine grape variety. This is one of the oldest domesticated grape varieties in Slovenian. Formerly it was popular in Styrian vineyards, and even more so, even today, known in ...
vine growing in the Slovenian town of Maribor
Maribor ( , , , ; also known by other #Name, historical names) is the second-largest city in Slovenia and the largest city of the traditional region of Styria (Slovenia), Lower Styria. It is also the seat of the City Municipality of Maribor, th ...
.G. Harding ''"A Wine Miscellany"'' pg 19, Clarkson Potter Publishing, New York 2005 Anthony Gardner 'Maribor, Slovenia: a cultural city guide
'' ''The Daily Telegraph'' March 1st, 2012 The vine is maintained by viticulturists from the Laimburg Research Centre and has been used to propagate new Versoaln vines to keep the variety from being lost to extinction. Wine is still being made from the Katzenzungen vine with fruit harvested from the old vine added to the fruit taking from the newer plantings of Versoaln. Between the Katzenzungen vine and the newer plantings, around 500 bottles of Versoaln wine a year is produced in specially numbered bottles.
Wine styles
According to Master of WineJancis Robinson
Jancis Mary Robinson OBE, ComMA, MW (born 22 April 1950) is a British wine critic, journalist and wine writer. She currently writes a weekly column for the ''Financial Times'', and writes for her website JancisRobinson.com, updated daily. She ...
, Versoaln tends to produce a dry wine with notable acidity levels and aromas green apples and apricot flavor notes.
Synonyms
Over the years, Versoaln has been known under a variety of synonyms including: Versailler, Versoaler, Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC)Versailler
' Accessed: February 23rd, 2014 Weiss Versoalen and Weisser Versailler.
References
{{coord, 46.5538, N, 11.1842, E, source:wikidata, display=title White wine grape varieties