Blending is a defining feature of many French wines and, for some, is an art in its own right. This method involves mixing different grape varieties or different cuvées to create the best wine possible. Many wines are made from “two grape varieties.” However, in some regions, blends can include up to 13 different grape varieties. Domaine du Goût tells you more below.
Why create a blend?
In oenology, blending makes it possible to produce richer, more complete wines. By combining complementary grape varieties, the aim is to achieve the best possible result. It is worth knowing that France has more than 200 grape varieties used to make wine. These grape varieties do not all have the same aromatic and flavor characteristics. To reveal their full potential, some grape varieties need to be combined with others to create a more appealing product. Thus, the right balance can be achieved by enhancing the aromatic range and adjusting the tannins or freshness.
Blending can also help preserve a wine’s distinctive character from one year to the next, depending on the harvests. In this way, winemakers seek to reproduce the character that contributes to a wine’s reputation, ensuring that consumers find similar characteristics in the wine year after year. This practice therefore makes it possible to offer wines with varied profiles, adapting to people with different tastes and preferences.
The different types of blends
There are three types of blends:
- Grape variety blends
- Vintage blends
- Terroir or parcel blends
Grape variety blends involve mixing different grape varieties to produce a wine. This technique originated from the practice of co-planting: planting different grape varieties in the same vineyard parcel so that they can be harvested and vinified together. Nowadays, grape varieties are planted in different parcels and blended after the harvest. Grape variety blending is particularly popular in the Bordeaux and Languedoc-Roussillon regions.
Vintage blending involves combining wines from different harvest years. In this case, the rule is that the vintage (the year) must not be indicated on the bottle. Vintage blending is particularly renowned in the production of Champagne wines and is even considered one of their defining characteristics.
Finally, terroir (or parcel) blending is a practice in which the wine is made from one single grape variety but expresses itself differently depending on the age of the vines, their orientation, the soil, and the type of aging. This type of blending is mainly practiced in the Loire and Burgundy, which are known as “single-variety” regions, where most wines are made from a single grape variety. In Burgundy, for example, many wines are made from 100% Pinot Noir.
At what stage of winemaking does blending take place?
It depends on the winemakers, but two methods are used. Some winemakers choose to age wines made from different grape varieties together. The blend is then made directly after the harvest, as soon as the wine is placed in the vat. Others choose to harvest and vinify each grape variety separately. They then blend them before bottling the wine. This latter method makes it possible to determine the best proportion of one grape variety in relation to another. It also allows them to create several different cuvées.
Where does blending take place?
In France, many regions practice blending. However, some regions rely on blending more than others. This is particularly true of Bordeaux. Indeed, grape variety blending has been a centuries-old tradition in the region. Considered an art by many, the hallmark of great Bordeaux wines is achieving the perfect balance between grape varieties. Champagne is also known as a blended wine, but it is a special case because the Champagne region has full rights regarding blending. Thus, wines from crus with different characteristics and different grape varieties are blended, even combining red and white grape varieties (the only region in France where this is permitted). Finally, blending different vintages, combining the current year’s wine with wines from previous years, is also a defining characteristic of Champagne wines. It should be noted that Alsace and Burgundy are not known for practicing blending, but rather for working exclusively with single-variety wines.
