Arrouya noir is a red

French wine French wine is produced all throughout France, in quantities between 50 and 60 million hectolitres per year, or 7–8 billion bottles. France is one of the largest wine producers in the world, along with Italian, Spanish, and Amer ...

grape variety This list of grape varieties includes cultivated grapes, whether used for wine, or eating as a table grape, fresh or dried (raisin, currant, sultana). For a complete list of all grape species including those unimportant to agriculture, see Viti ...

grown in the

Jurançon Jurançon (; oc, Juranson) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France. Population See also *Jurançon AOC, a wine from this commune *Communes of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department The followi ...

region of Southwest France. The grape has a long history in the region, growing in the

Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; eu, Pirinio Atlantiarrak or ) is a department in the southwest corner of France and of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Pyrenees mountain range and the Atlant ...

since at least the late 18th century.

Ampelographer Ampelography ( ἄμπελος, "vine" + γράφος, "writing") is the field of botany concerned with the identification and classification of grapevines, ''Vitis'' spp. Traditionally this has been done by comparing the shape and colour of the ...

s believe that Arrouya noir has some genetic relationship with Camaraou noir,

Fer Fer (also known as Fer Servadou, Pinenc, Mansois and several other synonyms) is a red French wine grape variety that is grown primarily in South West France and is most notable for its role in the ''Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée'' (AOC) ...

and Petit Courbu though the exact nature of those relationships is not yet known. The variety also shares some similarities in

morphology Morphology, from the Greek and meaning "study of shape", may refer to: Disciplines * Morphology (archaeology), study of the shapes or forms of artifacts * Morphology (astronomy), study of the shape of astronomical objects such as nebulae, galaxies ...

with Cabernet Franc and until the late 19th century was often confused for the

Loire The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône ...

and

Bordeaux wine Bordeaux wine ( oc, vin de Bordèu, french: vin de Bordeaux) is produced in the Bordeaux region of southwest France, around the city of Bordeaux, on the Garonne River. To the north of the city the Dordogne River joins the Garonne forming the ...

grape, especially in the Basses-Pyrénées and Hautes-Pyrénées region.J. Robinson, J. Harding and J. Vouillamoz ''Wine Grapes - A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavours'' pgs 56-57 Allen Lane 2012

History and confusion with other grapes

The name ''Arrouya'' is believed to come from the word which means "red" in the

Béarnese dialect Béarnese ( endonym or ) designates the whole of the Occitano-Romance languages of Béarn. Linguistics does not distinguish Béarnese from Gascon; these languages form a homogeneous whole within the Pyrenees- Atlantic-Garonne triangle. The o ...

. The grape has been growing the Pyrénées-Atlantiques since at least the late 18th century where it was mentioned in 1783 document as being a late-ripening variety. Up until the late 19th century, plantings of Arrouya noir among vineyards in the foothills of the

Pyrénées The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to C ...

were misidentified as Cabernet Franc. Even today the grape is sometimes confused for Cabernet Franc or other red grape varieties of Southwest France including

and

Manseng noir Manseng noir (sometimes translated: Black Manseng) is a wine grape variety of Basque origins that is grown primarily in South West France. It is allowed into Béarn AOC wine but very little used. Manseng Noir is deep in colour and tannic. Li ...

Viticulture

Arrouya noir is a late-ripening grape variety that can be very vigorous and high yielding if not kept in check by winter

pruning Pruning is a horticultural, arboricultural, and silvicultural practice involving the selective removal of certain parts of a plant, such as branches, buds, or roots. The practice entails the ''targeted'' removal of diseased, damaged, dead, ...

and late season green harvesting. It's late-ripening nature means that it can be very sensitive to the conditions of a

vintage Vintage, in winemaking, is the process of picking grapes and creating the finished product—wine (see Harvest (wine)). A vintage wine is one made from grapes that were all, or primarily, grown and harvested in a single specified year. In certa ...

and may not reach full

physiological ripeness In viticulture, ripeness is the completion of the ripening process of wine grapes on the vine which signals the beginning of harvest. What exactly constitutes ripeness will vary depending on what style of wine is being produced ( sparkling, still, ...

every year. The vine tends to produce small, compact bunches that are vulnerable to infections by

botrytis bunch rot ''Botrytis cinerea'' is a necrotrophic fungus that affects many plant species, although its most notable hosts may be wine grapes. In viticulture, it is commonly known as "botrytis bunch rot"; in horticulture, it is usually called "grey mould" o ...

. Other

viticultural hazards This is a list of diseases of grapes (''Vitis'' spp.). Bacterial diseases Fungal diseases Miscellaneous diseases and disorders Nematodes, parasitic Phytoplasma, virus and viruslike diseases See also *'' Ampeloglypter ater'' *'' Am ...

that Arrouya noir is susceptible to include

black rot Black rot is a name used for various diseases of cultivated plants caused by fungi or bacteria, producing dark brown discoloration and decay in the leaves of fruit and vegetables: * A disease of the apple, pear and quince caused by a fungus ('' Botr ...

and

downy mildew Downy mildew refers to any of several types of oomycete microbes that are obligate parasites of plants. Downy mildews exclusively belong to the Peronosporaceae family. In commercial agriculture, they are a particular problem for growers of cruc ...

Wine regions

While Arrouya noir is permitted to be planted throughout the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, it is not widely grown and is mostly limited to the Jurançon region where it is often found in

field blend Viticulture (from the Latin word for ''vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ran ...

s along with Camaraou noir in older vineyards.

Styles

According to

Master of Wine Master of Wine (MW) is a qualification (not an academic degree) issued by The Institute of Masters of Wine in the United Kingdom. The MW qualification is generally regarded in the wine industry as one of the highest standards of professional knowle ...

Jancis Robinson, Arrouya noir tends to produce pale-colored red wines that have noticeable levels of

acidity In computer science, ACID ( atomicity, consistency, isolation, durability) is a set of properties of database transactions intended to guarantee data validity despite errors, power failures, and other mishaps. In the context of databases, a ...

and astringency.

Synonyms

Over the years, Arrouya noir has been known under a variety of synonyms including: Arhuya, Aroyat, Arrouyat, Arroya, Arruya, Dourec noir (in Béarn), Eremachaoua (in Béarn), Erematxahua (in

French Basque Country The French Basque Country, or Northern Basque Country ( eu, Iparralde (), french: Pays basque, es, País Vasco francés) is a region lying on the west of the French department of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques. Since 1 January 2017, it constitu ...

), Rouja and Vieux rouge.

Vitis International Variety Catalogue The Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) is a database of various species and varieties/cultivars of grapevine, the genus ''Vitis''. VIVC is administered by the Geilweilerhof Institute for Grape Breeding (''Institut für Rebenzüchtung Gei ...

(VIVC)
Arrouya noir
' Accessed: May 21st, 2013

References

{{reflist Red wine grape varieties