Pineau d'Aunis (; also known as Chenin noir ) is a red

French wine French wine is produced throughout all of 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. French wine traces its history to th ...

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

that is grown primarily in the

Loire Valley The Loire Valley (, ), spanning , is a valley located in the middle stretch of the Loire river in central France, in both the administrative regions Pays de la Loire and Centre-Val de Loire. The area of the Loire Valley comprises about . It is r ...

around Anjou and

Touraine Touraine (; ) is one of the traditional provinces of France. Its capital was Tours. During the political reorganization of French territory in 1790, Touraine was divided between the departments of Indre-et-Loire, :Loir-et-Cher, Indre and Vien ...

.J. Robinson, J. Harding and J. Vouillamoz ''Wine Grapes - A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavours'' pg 804 Allen Lane 2012 A favorite of

Henry Plantagenet Henry II () was Monarchy of the United Kingdom, King of England from 1154 until his death in 1189. During his reign he controlled Kingdom of England, England, substantial parts of Wales in the High Middle Ages, Wales and Lordship of Ireland ...

, the English king had Pineau d'Aunis wine first brought to England in 1246. Today the grape is permitted in several ''

Appellation d'origine contrôlée In France, the ''appellation d'origine contrôlée'' (, ; abbr. AOC ) is a label that identifies an agricultural product whose stages of production and processing are carried out in a defined geographical area – the ''terroir'' – and using ...

'' (AOC) wine regions of the Loire Valley, including Cheverny and Coteaux du Vendômois.J. Robinson ''Vines Grapes & Wines'' pg 199 Mitchell Beazley 1986 While a red wine grape, Pineau d'Aunis is often treated like

Pinot noir Pinot noir (), also known as Pinot nero, is a red-wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. The name also refers to wines created predominantly from Pinot noir grapes. The name is derived from the French language, French words fo ...

and used to make ''

rosé A rosé () is a type of wine that incorporates some of the wine color, color from the grape skins, but not enough to qualify it as a red wine. It may be the oldest known type of wine, as it is the most straightforward to make with the Macerati ...

'' and white wines in both still and

sparkling wine Sparkling wine is a wine with significant levels of carbon dioxide in it, making it fizzy. While it is common to refer to this as champagne, European Union countries legally reserve that word for products exclusively produced in the Champagne ( ...

styles.

History

The name ''Pineau'' comes from the French word ''pin'' and refers to the

pine cone A conifer cone, or in formal botanical usage a strobilus, : strobili, is a seed-bearing organ on gymnosperm plants, especially in conifers and cycads. They are usually woody and variously conic, cylindrical, ovoid, to globular, and have scal ...

shape that clusters of grapes can resemble. It was first used to describe a

grapevine ''Vitis'' (grapevine) is a genus of 81 accepted species of vining plants in the flowering plant family Vitaceae. The genus consists of species predominantly from the Northern Hemisphere. It is economically important as the source of grapes, bot ...

growing in the Loire Valley in 1183 AD but whether or not this was Pineau d'Aunis is not known since ''Pineau'' has been a synonym used for Pinot noir,

Chenin blanc Chenin blanc (, ; known also as Pineau de la Loire among #Synonyms, other names) is a white wine grape variety from the Loire Valley (wine), Loire Valley of France (wine), France. Its high acidity (wine), acidity means it can be used to make var ...

and Menu Pineau (Arbois).

Aunis Aunis () is a historical Provinces of France, province of France, situated in the north-west of the department of Charente-Maritime. Its historic capital is La Rochelle, which took over from Châtelaillon-Plage, Castrum Allionis (Châtelaillon) t ...

, within what is now the

Charente-Maritime Charente-Maritime (; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Chérente-Marine''; ) is a Departments of France, department in the French Regions of France, region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, on the country's west coast. Named after the river Charente (river), Charen ...

department, was a '' pays'' erected into a historical province, the smallest of France, in 1374; it was a fief of the

Duchy of Aquitaine The Duchy of Aquitaine (, ; , ) was a historical fiefdom located in the western, central, and southern areas of present-day France, south of the river Loire. The full extent of the duchy, as well as its name, fluctuated greatly over the centuries ...

, brought to the English monarchy by

Eleanor of Aquitaine Eleanor of Aquitaine ( or ; ; , or ; – 1 April 1204) was Duchess of Aquitaine from 1137 to 1204, Queen of France from 1137 to 1152 as the wife of King Louis VII, and Queen of England from 1154 to 1189 as the wife of King Henry II. As ...

. In Aunis the grape may have once been grown, but is currently not widely planted. However, wine writer Oz Clarke believes that the grape was named after a

priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. They were created by the Catholic Church. Priories may be monastic houses of monks or nuns (such as the Benedictines, the Cistercians, or t ...

known as ''Aunis'' that existed outside of the commune of

Saumur Saumur () is a Communes of France, commune in the Maine-et-Loire Departments of France, department in western France. The town is located between the Loire and Thouet rivers, and is surrounded by the vineyards of Saumur itself, Chinon, Bourgu ...

during the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

.Oz Clarke ''Encyclopedia of Grapes'' pg 169 Harcourt Books 2001 Today what is left of the Aunis priory belongs to the

Fontevraud Abbey The Royal Abbey of Our Lady of Fontevraud or Fontevrault (in French: ''abbaye de Fontevraud'') was a monastery in the village of Fontevraud-l'Abbaye, near Chinon, in the former French Duchy of Anjou. It was founded in 1101 by the itinerant preach ...

Chinon Chinon () is a Communes of France, commune in the Indre-et-Loire Departments of France, department, Centre-Val de Loire, France. The traditional province around Chinon, Touraine, became a favorite resort of French kings and their nobles beginn ...

.Richard Kelley '
Pineau d’Aunis
'' ''Richard Kelley's Definitive Guide to the Wines of the Loire Valley'' Accessed: March 28, 2013 Author Michel Freyssinet speculates that Pineau d'Aunis may have originated in the

Vendée Vendée () is a department in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France, on the Atlantic coast. In 2019, it had a population of 685,442.Chahaignes in what is now the

Sarthe Sarthe () is a department of the French region of Pays de la Loire, and the province of Maine, situated in the '' Grand-Ouest'' of the country. It is named after the river Sarthe, which flows from east of Le Mans to just north of Angers. It ha ...

department of the Loire in the 9th century.

Middle Ages

The grape was known in England by the 13th century when it was a favorite wine of King Henry III of England. Henry, the son of John Plantagenet and

Isabella of Angoulême Isabella (, ; c. 1186/ 1188 – 4 June 1246) was Queen of England from 1200 to 1216 as the second wife of King John, Countess of Angoulême in her own right from 1202 until her death in 1246, and Countess of La Marche from 1220 to 1246 as t ...

(a commune is what is now the

Charente Charente (; Saintongese: ''Chérente''; ) is a department in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. It is named after the river Charente, the most important and longest river in the department, and also the r ...

department), began importing casks of Pineau d'Aunis wine to England in 1246. In England, the usually light colored Pineau d'Aunis was often blended with darker colored wines such as those made from red-fleshed ''

teinturier Teinturier grapes () are grapes whose flesh and juice are red in colour due to anthocyanin pigments accumulating within the pulp of the grape berry itself. In non-teinturier red grapes, anthocyanin pigments are confined to the outer skin tissue ...

s''. The wine that Henry imported was labeled as ''vin clairet'', leaving wine writer Richard Kelley to presume that Pineau d'Aunis was the "original

claret Bordeaux wine (; ) 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 broad estuary called the Gironde; the Gir ...

". During the

Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a conflict between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France and a civil war in France during the Late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy ...

, King

Charles VII of France Charles VII (22 February 1403 – 22 July 1461), called the Victorious () or the Well-Served (), was King of France from 1422 to his death in 1461. His reign saw the end of the Hundred Years' War and a ''de facto'' end of the English claims to ...

gave

Philip the Good Philip III the Good (; ; 31 July 1396 – 15 June 1467) ruled as Duke of Burgundy from 1419 until his death in 1467. He was a member of a cadet line of the Valois dynasty, to which all 15th-century kings of France belonged. During his reign, ...

, the

Duke of Burgundy Duke of Burgundy () was a title used by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, from its establishment in 843 to its annexation by the Crown lands of France, French crown in 1477, and later by members of the House of Habsburg, including Holy Roman E ...

, vines of Pineau d'Aunis as a peace offering in 1425. Other accounts say that Charles' gift of Pineau d'Aunis was made to John VI, Duke of Brittany instead. However, French author Henri Galinié challenges these claims as being no more than myths without robust factual evidence. He says that these are merely stories that have gained the status of facts through repetition. See his 56-page scholarly document specifically on the history of Pineau d'Aunis, published in 2014 Le Pineau d’Aunis, Recherches sur l’histoire des cépages de Loire,201

/ref>

19th century to modern times

In 1816, André Jullien described Pineau d'Aunis as being widely grown throughout the Loire, particularly in the

Loches Loches (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Departments of France, department of Indre-et-Loire, Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is situated southeast of Tours by road, on the left bank of the river Indre (river), Indre. History Loch ...

commune of Touraine. In 1845, French ampelographer Alexandre-Pierre Odart described Pineau d'Aunis as ''Chenin noir'' which led to speculation that Chenin blanc, the notable Loire grape of Vouvray and Savennières, was 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 ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, is a species of flowering plant, native t ...

of Pineau d'Aunis. However, DNA testing in the early 21st century confirmed that Pineau d'Aunis is not related at all with Chenin blanc nor Pinot noir, with which it is frequently confused. As with most French wine grapes, the phylloxera epidemic of the late 19th century drastically cut into the Pineau d'Aunis plantings in France. The construction of the

Paris–Bordeaux railway The railway from Paris to Bordeaux is an important French 584-kilometre long railway line, that connects Paris to the southwestern port city Bordeaux via Orléans and Tours. The railway was opened in several stages between 1840 and 1853, when the ...

as well as the 1980s high-speed expansion of the

LGV Atlantique The LGV Atlantique (; ) is a high-speed rail line running from Gare Montparnasse in Paris towards the Atlantic coast of France. It opened in 1989–1990 and has two intermediate stations: Massy TGV station and Vendôme-Villiers-sur-Loir TGV s ...

and the planned construction of the LGV Sud Europe Atlantique threaten to gobble up more plantings of Pineau d'Aunis but sparked some ''vignerons'' to launch conservation efforts to save the variety from extinction. In 1958, there were 1,741

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), that is, square metres (), and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. ...

s (4,302 acres) of Pineau d'Aunis planted in France. Throughout the rest of the 20th century that number would steadily decline and by 2009 there were 435 hectares (1,075 acres) in France.

Viticulture

Pineau d'Aunis is a mid-ripening variety that can produce very irregular yields with the quality of the resulting wine sharply diminished if yields become too excessive. Like the Pinot grapes, the vine produces small, compact bunches that can be highly susceptible to

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 ...

, particularly in wet climates.

Chlorosis In botany, chlorosis is a condition in which leaves produce insufficient chlorophyll. As chlorophyll is responsible for the green color of leaves, chlorotic leaves are pale, yellow, or yellow-white. The affected plant has little or no ability to ...

is another

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'' *''Ampe ...

that can impact Pineau d'Aunis, inhibiting

photosynthesis Photosynthesis ( ) is a system of biological processes by which photosynthetic organisms, such as most plants, algae, and cyanobacteria, convert light energy, typically from sunlight, into the chemical energy necessary to fuel their metabo ...

and leaving the leaves of the grapevine prone to sunburn and browning. Wine writer Richard Kelley notes that Pineau d'Aunis is a "very ''

terroir (; ; from ''terre'', ) is a French language, French term used to describe the environmental factors that affect a crop's phenotype, including unique environment contexts, farming practices and a crop's specific growth habitat. Collectively, th ...

''-sensitive" variety that will greatly reflect the

vineyard soils The soil composition of vineyards is one of the most important viticulture, viticultural considerations when planting grape vines. The soil supports the root structure of the vine and influences the drainage levels and amount of minerals and nutrie ...

and growing conditions that it experience. In soils with high

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

content, it can ripen very quickly which can limit the amount of phenolics and

aromatic In organic chemistry, aromaticity is a chemical property describing the way in which a conjugated system, conjugated ring of unsaturated bonds, lone pairs, or empty orbitals exhibits a stabilization stronger than would be expected from conjugati ...

compounds that have time to develop. However, cooler soils with high

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impuriti ...

content and high water capacity may retard the ripening too drastically. The variety has a tendency to

bud In botany, a bud is an undeveloped or Plant embryogenesis, embryonic Shoot (botany), shoot and normally occurs in the axil of a leaf or at the tip of a Plant stem, stem. Once formed, a bud may remain for some time in a dormancy, dormant conditi ...

irregularly, depending on the climate. It will always bud after

Chardonnay Chardonnay (, ; ) is a green-skinned grape variety used in the production of white wine. The variety originated in the Burgundy wine region of eastern France, but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from England to New Zealand. For new a ...

Gamay Gamay () is a purple-colored grape variety used to make red wines, most notably grown in Beaujolais and in the Loire_Valley_(wine), Loire Valley around Tours. Its full name is Gamay Noir à Jus Blanc. It is a very old cultivar, mentioned as lon ...

and

, and thus have much less risk of suffering from spring time frost, but will bud much earlier than

Cabernet Franc Cabernet Franc is one of the major black grape varieties worldwide. It is principally grown for blending with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in the Bordeaux (wine), Bordeaux style, but can also be vinified alone, as in the Loire (wine), Loire's C ...

. Depending on the

vintage In winemaking, vintage is the process of picking grapes to create wine. A vintage wine is one made from grapes that were all, or primarily, grown and harvested in a single specified year. In certain wines, it can denote quality, as in Port wine ...

, Pineau d'Aunis will usually bud around 4 to 5 days before

followed by

flowering Flowers, also known as blooms and blossoms, are the reproductive structures of flowering plants ( angiosperms). Typically, they are structured in four circular levels, called whorls, around the end of a stalk. These whorls include: calyx, m ...

at about the same time as Chenin. Like Gamay, Pineau d'Aunis will develop thick, reddish-color stalks in the autumn with the leaves changing color to a bright red with purple/bluish veins.

Clones and rootstock

Currently, there are two clones of Pineau d'Aunis being widely propagated. Clone #289 which lends itself more to '' vin gris'' style wines and Clone #235. In recent years, some ''vignerons'' have been moving away from using clonal selections in lieu of using ''massale'' cuttings taken from a broad swath of vines from old "pre-clonal" vineyards with the aim of creating more

genetic diversity Genetic diversity is the total number of genetic characteristics in the genetic makeup of a species. It ranges widely, from the number of species to differences within species, and can be correlated to the span of survival for a species. It is d ...

in the vineyard. Like many French grape varieties, plantings of Pineau d'Aunis from the 1960s onward were most often grafted onto SO4

rootstock A rootstock is part of a plant, often an underground part, from which new above-ground growth can be produced. It could also be described as a stem with a well developed root system, to which a bud from another plant is grafted. It can refer to ...

(an interspecfic crossing of '' Vitis berlandieri'' and ''

Vitis riparia ''Vitis riparia'' Michx, with common names riverbank grape or frost grape, is a vine indigenous to North America. As a climbing or trailing vine, it is widely distributed across central and eastern Canada and the central and northeastern parts ...

''). Given Pineau d'Aunis susceptibility to chlorosis, this rootstock did particularly well in vineyards with high

calcium Calcium is a chemical element; it has symbol Ca and atomic number 20. As an alkaline earth metal, calcium is a reactive metal that forms a dark oxide-nitride layer when exposed to air. Its physical and chemical properties are most similar to it ...

content in the soil. However, in most other soils, the rootstock propensity for increased vigor and creating excessive foliage created problems for the vine with

canopy management In viticulture, the canopy of a grapevine includes the parts of the vine visible aboveground - the trunk, cordon, stems, leaves, flowers, and fruit. The canopy plays a key role in light energy capture via photosynthesis, water use as regulated ...

and increase susceptibility to mildew and rot. In recent years, more ''vignerons'' have been turning to Riparia Gloire de Montpellier (derived only from ''Vitis riparia'') rootstock.

Wine regions

Historically Pineau d'Aunis has been grown throughout the Loire Valley and

Centre-Val de Loire Centre-Val de Loire (; ,In isolation, ''Centre'' is pronounced . ) or Centre Region (, ), as it was known until 2015, is one of the eighteen Regions of France, administrative regions of France. It straddles the middle Loire Valley in the interior ...

region of France with plantings in the

Indre-et-Loire Indre-et-Loire () is a department in west-central France named after the Indre River and Loire River. In 2019, it had a population of 610,079.Loir-et-Cher Loir-et-Cher (, ) is a Departments of France, department in the Centre-Val de Loire Regions of France, region of France. It is named after two rivers which run through it, the Loir in its northern part and the Cher (river), Cher in its southern p ...

Loiret Loiret (; ) is a department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of north-central France. It takes its name from the river Loiret, which is contained wholly within the department. In 2019, Loiret had a population of 680,434.

Maine-et-Loire Maine-et-Loire () is a department in the Loire Valley in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France. It is named after the two rivers, Maine and the Loire. It borders Mayenne and Sarthe to the north, Loire-Atlantique to the west, Indr ...

and Vienne departments. Today it is most closely associated with the Anjou and Touraine region of the middle Loire where it is a permitted grape variety in several AOCs including Anjou,

, Valençay, Coteaux du Loir and Coteaux du Vendômois.

AOC regulations

In the Anjou AOC, Pineau d'Aunis can make up the blend for the general ''rouge'' wine along with

Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Sauvignon () is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Australia and British Columbia, Canada to Lebano ...

and

. Here the grapes are limited to

harvest Harvesting is the process of collecting plants, animals, or fish (as well as fungi) as food, especially the process of gathering mature crops, and "the harvest" also refers to the collected crops. Reaping is the cutting of grain or pulses fo ...

yields of no more than 40

hectoliters The litre (Commonwealth English, Commonwealth spelling) or liter (American English, American spelling) (SI symbols L and l, other symbol used: ℓ) is a metric units, metric unit of volume. It is equal to 1 cubic decimetre (dm3), 1000 cubic c ...

/hectare (approximately 2 tons/acre) with the finished wine needing to attain a minimum

alcohol level Alcohol by volume (abbreviated as alc/vol or ABV) is a common measure of the amount of alcohol contained in a given alcoholic beverage. It is defined as the volume the ethanol in the liquid would take if separated from the rest of the solution, ...

of at least 10%. In the sparkling

s of Anjou Mousseux it can be blended with the same grapes as the rouge, plus Groslot, with yields that can go up to 65 hl/ha (≈ 3.4 tons/acre) and a minimum alcohol level of 9.5%.P. Saunders ''Wine Label Language'' pgs 35-109 Firefly Books 2004 For both the reds and rosé of the Coteaux du Loir, based around the

Loir The Loir is a long river in western France. It is a left tributary of the Sarthe. Its source is in the Eure-et-Loir department, north of Illiers-Combray. It joins the river Sarthe in Briollay, north of the city of Angers. It is indirectly ...

tributary of the larger Loire river, Pineau d'Aunis is limited to harvest yields of 55 hl/ha (≈ 3 tons/acre) and is blended with Cabernet Franc and

Malbec Malbec () is a purple grape variety used in making red wine. The grapes tend to have an inky dark color and robust tannins, and are known as one of the six grapes allowed in the blend of red Bordeaux wine. In France, plantations of Malbec are ...

in a wine that must have at least 9% alcohol by volume. Whole cluster Pinot noir grapes loaded into wine press

In the town of

Vendôme Vendôme (, ) is a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Departments of France, department of Loir-et-Cher, France. It is also the department's third-biggest Communes of France, commune with 15,856 inhabitants (2019). It is one of th ...

in the Loir-et-Cher department, Pineau d'Aunis is made into a

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. ...

wine of all colors (red, rosé and white) in Coteaux du Vendômois. The white AOC wine is made from whole cluster pressingof the grapes soon after harvest with no

skin contact Maceration is the winemaking process where the phenolic materials of the grape— tannins, coloring agents ( anthocyanins) and flavor compounds—are leached from the grape skins, seeds and stems into the must. To macerate is to soften by soaki ...

to extract color. Grapes for the red and rosé are limited by a maximum yield of 60 hl/ha (65 hl/ha for the white) with the finished wines having a minimum alcohol level of 9% (9.5% for the white). For the sparkling rosé and white Crémant de Loire which spans the Loire Valley wine region, Pineau d'Aunis can be used in a blend with Chenin blanc, Cabernet Franc, Pinot noir, Groslot,

Arbois Arbois () is a Commune in France, commune in the Jura (département), Jura Departments of France, department, in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region, eastern France. The river Cuisance passes through the town, which centres o ...

and

. For this AOC, yields for all wines are limited to 50 hl/ha with the wines having at least 9.5% alcohol by volume. For sparkling Saumur, Pineau d'Aunis is blended with most of the same varieties as Crémant de Loire (with

Sauvignon blanc Sauvignon blanc () is a green-skinned grape variety that originates from the city of Bordeaux in France. The grape most likely gets its name from the French words ''sauvage'' ("wild") and ''blanc'' ("white") due to its early origins as an ind ...

and Malbec instead of Arbois and Gamay permitted for the sparkling red and rosés) but yields are allowed to go up to 60 hl/ha though the wine needs to meet the same minimum alcohol. In Touraine, the sparkling cépage allows Pineau d'Aunis to be blended with any of the varieties used in both Saumur and Crémant de Loire under the same minimum alcohol restrictions but with an even higher yield allowance of 65 hl/ha. Pineau d'Aunis is also permitted in the red and rosé of the Saumur AOC where it is blended with both Cabernet grapes as well as Groslot. Similar to the greater Anjou AOC, yields are restricted to 40 ha/hla with a minimum alcohol level of 10%. In the red wine-only sub region of Saumur-Champigny, Pineau d'Aunis is only blended with the Cabernet varieties but with the same maximum yield and minimum alcohol restrictions. In the general Touraine AOC, the Pineau d'Aunis is limited to harvest yields of 55 hl/ha and can be blended with Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Gamay, Malbec, Pinot noir, Groslot and

Pinot gris Pinot gris, pinot grigio (, ), or ''Grauburgunder'' is a white wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. Thought to be a mutant clone of the pinot noir variety, it normally has a pinkish-gray hue, accounting for its name, but th ...

in the red and rosé wines of the AOC. The minimum alcohol level for these wines much reach at least 9%. Along the river

Cher Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...

, Pineau d'Aunis is grown in the Valençay AOC where it is blended with the Cabernet varieties, Malbec and Gamay in the red and rosé wines. Grapes are restricted to yields of 45 hl/ha with a minimum 9% alcohol by volume.

Styles

Pineau d'Aunis can be made into a wide range of wine styles from red, rosé to white and in both still and sparkling styles. According to Master of Wine

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 ...

, Pineau d'Aunis as a red wine tends to produce slightly tannic wines and with all styles can contribute noticeable

acidity An acid is a molecule or ion capable of either donating a proton (i.e. hydrogen cation, H+), known as a Brønsted–Lowry acid, or forming a covalent bond with an electron pair, known as a Lewis acid. The first category of acids are the ...

and white pepper notes. Richard Kelley notes that the quality of

Pineau d'Aunis will depend heavily on the type of yields that the grape was harvested at, as well as the age of the vines. Well made examples of red Pineau d'Aunis from favorable vintages will have the characteristic white pepper note of the variety as cherry, raspberry and strawberry fruit flavor and sometimes

kirsch ''Kirschwasser'' (, , ; German for 'cherry water'), or just ''Kirsch'' (; the term used in Switzerland and France, less so in Germany), is a clear, colourless brandy from Germany, Switzerland, and France, traditionally made from double distill ...

and

confit Confit (, ) (from the French language, French word ''wikt:confire#French, confire'', literally "to preserve") is any type of food that is cooked slowly over a long period as a method of food preservation, preservation. Confit, as a cooking term, ...

notes. Long, slow

fermentation Fermentation is a type of anaerobic metabolism which harnesses the redox potential of the reactants to make adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and organic end products. Organic molecules, such as glucose or other sugars, are catabolized and reduce ...

s at cool temperatures (around 20 °C/68 °F) will help to extract aromas that don't stray "baked" fruit flavors. The low phenolics and

anthocyanin Anthocyanins (), also called anthocyans, are solubility, water-soluble vacuole, vacuolar pigments that, depending on their pH, may appear red, purple, blue, or black. In 1835, the German pharmacist Ludwig Clamor Marquart named a chemical compou ...

content can make color extraction difficult, though this can be enhanced with both blending as well as "bleeding off" ('' saignée'') some of the juice to more concentrate the must.

Synonyms

Over the years Pineau d'Aunis has been known under a variety of synonyms including: Aunis (in Loir-et-Cher), Brune Noir, Chenin Noir (in some parts of the Loire Valley and California), Côt á Bourgeon blanc, Côt á Queue Rouge, Gros Pineau, Gros Véronais, Kek Chenin, La Brune Noire, Mançais Noir, Pineau, Pinot d´Aunis, Plant d´Aunis (in Loir-et-Cher and Maine-et-Loir), Plant de Mayet (in Sarthe) and Shenen nor.

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 G ...

(VIVC)
Pineau d'Aunis
' Accessed: March 25, 2013

References

{{reflist Red wine grape varieties