About clones and mutations
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Tempranillo, Chardonnay, Riesling, Muscat, Verdejo, Xarel.lo, Garnacha, etc. We know them. We like their color, aroma and flavor. They are the chosen ones. But did you know that there are about ten thousand varieties of the species vitis vinifera?
So, how are they different? Where did they come from? And what determines the decision to vinify certain varieties, but not others?
Well, the factors involved go beyond the palate of wine lovers to include others that depend exclusively on the intention of the winemaker, his or her socioeconomic and geographical context, as well as the genetic characteristics of the variety. For example, how long the variety takes to ripen; how well it acclimates to different environments; its yields, quality, flavor, resistance to pests, and, now more than ever, the ability to adapt to a new climate reality (in an upcoming post we’ll tell you all about Bodegas Torres’s program to revive ancestral varieties.)
Why are there different varieties?
The aforementioned differences can result from one of two causes: sexual reproduction or genetic mutation.
In sexual reproduction the flower is pollinated and produces new seeds. If we planted those seeds, we’d get a new variety. For example, if the seed came from a Chardonnay vine, the resulting variety would not be Chardonnay. It would share certain characteristics with its maternal vine, of course, but it would not have the same organoleptic properties as Chardonnay.
When we talk about mutations, we’re not referring to the results of lab experiments.
Nature is solely and capriciously responsible for the genetic “copy-paste” that affects all living things, including plants. In the grapevine, genetic copying occurs with the growth of every new shoot. A simple error during this “copying” process would produce characteristics that differentiate it from the rest of its species. For example, Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc are mutations of Pinot Noir.
Selecting the “top” varieties: the clones
Cloning allows us to preserve and reproduce desired varietal characteristics. In other words: multiplying the genetic material of a vine. Two methods have been used to do this for centuries: cuttings and layering. You’ll see it’s simpler than it seems.
A cutting is a piece of a healthy shoot. The cuttings method consists of planting one of these pieces so that it roots and grows into a new plant with the same characteristics as the parent plant.
The technique known as layering involves bending one of the plant’s branches and burying a part of it. Once the new plant has rooted properly, it is separated from the parent plant.
Clone selection became very popular during the 1950s when the industry underwent a scientific boom. Nowadays, it is still used to select the best plants, either for their aroma and flavor characteristics and/or their resistance to drought or a specific pest.
Even though cloning in a globalized world does have a tendency to push wines toward a certain uniformity, it is worth noting that it also protects the continuity of legendary terroirs.
In any case, cloning does not guarantee a completely identical vineyard in the long run, because over time mutations will affect many individual plants, thus generating differences among them.
