Mauzac 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 America ...

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 ...

that is grown in Southwest France. Despite the similarities in name, Mauzac noir is not a

color mutation The propagation of grapevines is an important consideration in commercial viticulture and winemaking. Grapevines, most of which belong to the ''Vitis vinifera'' family, produce one crop of fruit each growing season with a limited life span for ind ...

of the white

Limoux wine Limoux wine is produced around the city of Limoux in Languedoc in southwestern France. Limoux wine is produced under four ''Appellation d'origine contrôlée'' (AOC) designations: Blanquette de Limoux, Blanquette méthode ancestrale, Crémant de ...

grape Mauzac that is an important component in the ''

Appellation d'origine contrôlée An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication primarily used to identify where the grapes for a wine were grown, although other types of food often have appellations as well. Restrictions other than geographical boun ...

'' (AOC)

sparkling wine Sparkling wine is a wine with significant levels of carbon dioxide in it, making it fizzy. While the phrase commonly refers to champagne, European Union countries legally reserve that term for products exclusively produced in the Champagne regi ...

Blanquette de Limoux. Today Mauzac noir is nearly extinct but at least one grower in the

Gaillac AOC Gaillac AOC is an ''Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée'' (AOC) in South West France in the département of Tarn, just north of Toulouse. History The region makes claims to be among the earliest viticultural centres of ancient Gaul, though possibl ...

is attempting to revive the variety and make

varietal A varietal wine is a wine made primarily from a single named grape variety, and which typically displays the name of that variety on the wine label.The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, 2000.winepros.com.au. ...

examples of the grape.J. Robinson, J. Harding and J. Vouillamoz ''Wine Grapes - A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavours'' pgs 608-609 Allen Lane 2012

History

The earliest recorded mention of a Mauzac grape dates a 1525 document titled ''Livre de raison'' written by Antoine Antiquamareta who was the ''seigneur'' (or

lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or ar ...

) of

Villeneuve-lès-Lavaur Villeneuve-lès-Lavaur (, literally ''Villeneuve near Lavaur''; oc, Vilanava de La Vaur) is a commune in the Tarn department in southern France. See also *Communes of the Tarn department The following is a list of the 314 communes of the T ...

in what is now the

Tarn department Tarn ( or ; ) is a department in the Occitania region in Southern France. Named after the river Tarn, it had a population of 389,844 as of 2019.

. However,

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 and wine historians can not confirm which color Mauzac variety is being described in the document or in a similar 1564 document discovered by ampelographer Pierre Rézeau. Rézeau traced the first definitive mention of both Mauzac noir and Mauzac blanc to a 1736 report that described both grape varieties growing in the

Languedoc wine Languedoc-Roussillon wine, including the ''vin de pays'' labeled ''Vin de Pays d'Oc'', is produced in southern France. While "Languedoc" can refer to a specific historic region of France and Northern Catalonia, usage since the 20th century (espe ...

region, producing round and "crunchy" berries. The origins of the name ''Mauzac'' is difficult to confirm, especially since early synonyms for Mauzac blanc such as ''Mausague'', ''Mausat'' and ''Mausax'' suggest that the commune of

Mauzac, Haute-Garonne Mauzac (; oc, Mausac) is a commune in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern France. Geography The village lies on the middle banks of the Garonne river. The commune is bordered by four other communes: Le Fauga to the north, Beaumont-sur- ...

may not be the origin.

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 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 ...

notes that another commune, Meauzac, in the

Tarn-et-Garonne Tarn-et-Garonne (; oc, Tarn e Garona ) is a department in the Occitania region in Southern France. It is traversed by the rivers Tarn and Garonne, from which it takes its name. The area was originally part of the former provinces of Quercy and ...

may have a connection to the two grape varieties.

Viticulture and relationship to other grapes

Mauzac noir is a mid-ripening grape variety that, what it can be very vigorous and produce expansive

foliage A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, ste ...

, tends not to be very high yielding. Unlike the relationship between

Pinot blanc Pinot blanc is a white wine grape. It is a point genetic mutation of Pinot noir. Pinot noir is genetically unstable and will occasionally experience a point mutation in which a vine bears all black fruit except for one cane which produces white ...

and

Pinot noir Pinot Noir () is a red-wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from pinot noir grapes. The name is derived from the French language, French words for ''pine'' and ''black.' ...

Grenache blanc Grenache blanc (also known as garnatxa blanca in Catalonia) is a variety of white wine grape that is related to the red grape Grenache. It is mostly found in Rhône wine blends and in northeast Spain. Its wines are characterized by high alcohol a ...

and

Grenache Grenache () or Garnacha () is one of the most widely planted red wine grape varieties in the world. Niels Lillelund: ''Rhône-Vinene'' p. 25, JP Bøger – JP/Politikens Forlagshus A/S, 2004. . It ripens late, so it needs hot, dry conditi ...

, Mauzac noir and Mauzac blanc are two distinct varieties and not a color mutation of one or the other.

DNA profiling DNA profiling (also called DNA fingerprinting) is the process of determining an individual's DNA characteristics. DNA analysis intended to identify a species, rather than an individual, is called DNA barcoding. DNA profiling is a forensic tec ...

suggest that there maybe a relationship between Mauzac noir and

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) ...

but the exact nature of that relationship is not clear. Before it fell out of wine production, Négret Castrais, another local Southwest France wine grape, was often confused for Mauzac noir. While DNA analysis suggest that Négret Castrais may have a parent-offspring with Mauzac blanc, there is no known relationship with Mauzac noir.

Wine regions

Despite its long history, Mauzac noir is not widely planted today. However, at least one wine grower in the Gaillac region, Domaine Plageoles has been cultivating the grape for use in blends and as a varietal wine.

Styles

According to Jancis Robinson, Mauzac noir tends to produces fruity light-bodied wines that are often pale in

color Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associ ...

Synonyms

A very rare variety that is not widely cultivated, Mauzac noir has not been known under many synonyms with only Feuille Ronde and Mauzac rouge being recognized by the

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) maintained by the Geilweilerhof Institute for Grape Breeding.

(VIVC)
Mauzac noir
'' Accessed: April 28th, 2013

References

{{reflist Red wine grape varieties